10 OCTOBER 1958, Page 24

THE CANKER IN OUR MIDST

SIR,—The following may perhaps be of interest : engaged on research recently, .I discovered that the well-known 'carpe diem' of Horace's Ninth Ode is in fact a misreading of 'caepe diem' or 'an onion a day.'

While this revered and unexpected support may hearten present-day alliophagists, I would point out that Horace spent thirty years tucked away on his Sabine farm. The moral is obvious.—Yours faith-

St. John's College, Cambridge

F. W. KNIGHT