Being a bit of a nut about letterboxes (see my website) I have been quite interested to see that on Lewis there is a special acknowledgement of the weather. (The normal weather, that is, not the wall to wall sunshine I’ve been having so far.) The primary weather feature is the wind. The second one is probably rain. Add the two together and you get horizontal rain. Elsewhere this phenomenon is so rare that the standard letter box flap is designed to exclude the rain.
Here on the island many of the lamp letter boxes have special additional hinged flaps that you have to lift to post your letter.
Pat has suggested that the idea behind the flap is to exclude birds from nesting in them (and putting the box out of commssion). I have asked the Letter Box Study Group if they know which is the correct reason. I shall keep you posted, as they say.
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