Three weeks ago I took a visiting tour group to Fort Hendrina, between the library and the municipal offices. As usual, the steel plates had been ‘plastered with literature’ advertising a wide range of ‘personal medical’ procedures.

One of the women in the group asked if the fort now serves as an abortion clinic and another person remarked how disgusting it was for such a unique National Heritage site to be allowed to deteriorate to that level … right next to the offices of the municipality and library!

It is difficult to add further value to a tour group’s visit when the very first historical site draws such negative comment.

On Monday, 21 March, despite the previous nasty experience, I again arrived at the old steel fort with a fairly large group which included an Australian lady, as well as one from Namibia, a retired Professor of History and his wife, visitors from Middelburg, Pretoria and Polokwane and their friends and relatives from Louis Trichardt.

What an overwhelming and refreshing surprise to arrive at a ‘clean’ Fort Hendrina!
Fortunately, one of the local people in the group knew who had removed the disgusting, immoral and obnoxious ‘literature’ from the steel plates. She told the visitors how this man has taken it upon himself, in his own free time and at his own risk and cost, to remove immoral, degrading and disgusting ‘literature’ that constantly reappears - illegally - on traffic signs, telephone and transmission poles, fire hydrants, walls of buildings and even in shopping centres.

What effective and embarrassing advertisement – or proclamation - of the moral values of our town! What little – or no – response from the Town Council!

How fortunate that we have a man with high moral values, who has taken it upon himself, alone and unassisted, to remove this trash from the public eye.

Frans van der Merwe, we salute you in your ongoing efforts and concern for the moral decay and resultant image of our town!

- Mr Charles Leach, Louis Trichardt, “and about 35 visitors to our town”