THE SPECTATOR, APRIL 1 5 . 1960 S1R, — Just in case
any of your readers may hoc, believed Mr, Erskine Childers's opening statement that he was writing 'not in rhetoric,' a later passqe„ in his letter requires explanation. 'In 1949, writes, 'having added 35 per cent, more territorY .1° the UN's partition award, Israel signed armst fixes. . . .' What Mr. Childers doesn't say is 1,11s, Israel in fact accepted the UN partition award, ell: that the Arab States rejected it because they thougat they could get more territory by force of arras. They then attempted to do so and were defeat.. The extra territory Israel acquired was acquired In the course of inflicting this defeat. On the other hand, I think he is right to sugg.est that the standard Israel story that the Palestine Arabs fled because their leaders ordered them t° evacuate is suspiciously naïve. It is about naive as suggesting that they all fled 'at Zion's' bayonet-point,' as he does.—Yours faithfully, ROBERT gE6 Stokke Manor, Great Bedwyn, Wiltshire
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