The Editor
Dear Sir:
THANKS FOR AN ACT OF HONESTY

My family and I wish to record our thanks to an Anguillian gentleman (whose full name we forgot) for his honesty, fine example and caring compassion.

We were basking in the sun on a lovely day last month at Shoal Bay, when my wife absent-mindedly left her purse on the sand as we hurried back to our hotel and to catch the ferry for St. Martin.
When she discovered her purse was missing, we drove our rental back to the beach in panic and began searching the area where we were relaxing close to some vegetation. We had not long arrived when a man called out to us. “Hey, you looking for this?” he asked, holding up the black purse. We had no time to answer him because he ran up with a big grin and said “Here you are!”
I could hardly reply, but managed to thank him from the bottom of our hearts. We rewarded him with what we could afford (although he had politely declined the offer at first), but we felt like giving him all the money we had in the purse. He seemed so gracious, kind and honest. We think his last name is Richardson, but cannot remember the first name he told us. What a shame!
The contents of the purse were intact – money, visas and credit cards. We asked him what he would have done with the purse and all that was in it if we did not return to the beach. He said he was going to take it to the police station. “I am one honest man,” he said, with all the seriousness he could muster, “but I can’t speak for anyone else.”
We believe him, and his honesty is a credit both to himself and to the name of Anguilla. I hope that there are many others like him on the island and that those who practice dishonesty, and are involved in some of the breakings and other acts of dishonesty we have heard about, will for conscience sake have a change of heart.

Selson L. Showrey & family, Seattle, WA.

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