12 MARCH 1954, Page 7

More Suited to the Barrack-room than the Boudoir

When the foregoing anecdote was related to Colonel Bernard Fergusson, he reminded me of Field Marshal Lord Wavell's story of the officer commanding a cavalry regiment who con- cluded his confidential report on a subaltern who, though proficient, was neither well-built nor well-mannered with the words, " I would not, however, breed from this officer."