I read your newspaper’s “expose” of goings-on at the Hyde School in Bath — specifically a Maine court case involving a single plaintiff, a former pupil, who alleges child abuse at the school. Allegations of child abuse must be taken seriously. Transparency at privately run institutions must be apparent. But I wonder — is this story less than it appears?

Why, as reported in December, did the Maine lawyer for the plaintiff step away from the case? Is it because the case is flimsy? Why is the second lawyer for the plaintiff in Massachusetts?

I graduated from a private, mostly fee-paying high school that boarded pupils in North Yorkshire, England. The robust-sounding nature of an education at Hyde School is reminiscent of the old-school English public schools (think Eton or Harrow). Such schools educate the sons and daughters of mostly wealthy, titled and famous, or well-connected people from the U.K. and around the world.

“Alternative” private (prep in the U.S.) boarding schools, such as Gordonstoun in Scotland (with which viewers of the TV show “The Crown” will be familiar), are described as being “the home of character education,” which has “… an international reputation for blending academic rigour with unrivaled outdoor experiences.”

I am unaware that the Hyde School can boast of such lofty ambitions for its pupils. But from the articles your newspaper has run to date, there may well be a “smoking gun” to raise suspicion. If there is a bigger reveal in the offing, I will read it with interest.

Patrick Kelly
South Portland