16 JANUARY 1942, Page 4

In my capacity as founder, president and sole member of

.the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to English (hereafter to be known officially as S.P.C.E.—perhaps one day R.S.P.C.E.), I would reason mildly with the writer of an excellent article in Tuesday's Times on Napoleon and Hitler regarding his com- mission of an all too common offence in the matter of the adverb "infinitely." "Russian resistance," he writes, "was infinitely greater in 1941 than in 1812." He illustrates this by saying that, both starting on June 22nd, Napoleon reached Mojaisk on September 9th, Hitler not till the end of October. Infinity. therefore, boils down to roughly seven weeks. Some infinity.