MAJOR MACFALL'S LIFE OF LOVAT FRASER.
[To the Editor of the SPECTATOR.] Sin,—Far be it from me to resent hostile criticism, but when your critic goes out of his way deliberately to falsify for your readers another reviewer's estimate of my book in a contemporary journal, I think you will admit it to be not quite worthy of your great traditions. If your critic does —not -like -my book he is quite entitled to his -opinion of it ; and its wide circulation that he foresees and deplores need not spoil his sleep if his conscience be clean ; but as this book fulfils the dead man's most urgent plea to me, I do not see that I am bound to sing your critic to sleep even if his con- science be not clean.
He complains bitterly that my volume does not contain a fully representative series of Lovat's works ; but I could not do more than state explicitly that I make no such claim —indeed, those responsible for the " official " Life made it impossible by refusing to allow publication of the fine paintings by Lovat in my possession. But why all this worry ? The much-vaunted " official " and " definitive " Life which is to be the " lasting memorial " to Lovat is out and abroad, loudly proclaiming its authors, Mr. Drinkwater as " one of the most distinguished writers of the day," and Mr. Rutherston as "one of the leading artists of the day"---a needlessly pessi- mistic point of view as regards our national achievement, probably due to the morbid depression from the chaos of the War ; but we shall soon all settle down again, and your critic cease to use hog's-gall for ink, and decency will prevail.
Previous page
