A few years ago now I was on a Yahoo list and there was a message from someone in Australia who was coming to Britain with a brother and a sister on one of those paid for trips to contact their families, and out of curiosity I asked where they were coming to visit.

One of those weird coincidences - they were coming here - the coach dropped them at the local parish church and they were staying close to the local First school.

Towards the end of their visit I went to see them.

Their mother had died when they were young and their father had put them into an orphanage, and then allowed them to be transported to Australia.

The youngest could not even remember the voyage.

They told me that various family members had said to them that if they had known that they needed a home then they would have taken them - they told me with such sadness - but by the time it was realised that they had been given up, they had already left the country.

They were so quiet, eerily so - shy and subdued they had to be coaxed to speak and then listened to intently, or they would just fall silent. Usually people feel easy with me and chat and smile, bring out their remeniscences, but that was a tough one. Just once or twice they became animated, and for a minute or so they would relax, but then something would silence them again.

I supose institutionalised would be the term used, but they seemed more like broken people to me.

What compensation could make up for such distruction of the Human spirit?

Anne Croucher