It is regrettable that so few English wear a rose on St George's Day, but the reason is quite obvious — roses do not happen to he in flower in England on April 23. Our ancestors can never have worn them on this day.
Would it not he a nice gesture if the English wore a rose on June 22, the least of our first martyr, St Alban? I understand that this day,is now also the feast of all English martyrs, including SS John Fisher and Thomas More.
These martyrs should mean far more to the English than the rather shadowy St George. The trouble is that none of our martyrs is reported as having killed any dragons, which is a particularly English hobby: but as dragons are the symbol of evil our martyrs have. in fact, killed quantities of them.
G. Houghton Brown London. SW7.