November 18. I read with interest your editorial (November 14) on the

origins and myths of tartan, and reiterate the broad international

appeal of this, our most distinctive cloth.

While attending the World Congress of Junior Chamber International in

Helsinki, as part of a delegation from Glasgow involved in promoting the

city as the possible venue for the 1995 world congress, I was struck by

our popularity -- kilts, on the one hand, and by the popularity of

tartan as worn by delegates from all over the world on the other.

From the French ladies in tartan trews to the Japanese in tartan

jackets there was widespread enthusiasm for the power and impact of

tartan -- and no worries about clannish origins.

Like the Glasgow delegation it is adaptable, robust, and stylish.

Neil Gibson,

8 Kennyhill Square,

Dennistoun,

Glasgow.