LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
Letters from Dr A. L. Rowse, G. W. Mackworth-Young, C. H. Sis- son, Peter Paterson, Tony Palmer, Martyn Snow, Katharine Kenyon, David Cohen and others.
Shades of blue
Sir: My subscription to your ex- cellent magazine has given me a ringside seat at the contest between the featherweight Paterson and the heavyweight 'a Conservative'. I am not in the least surprised that with or without his consent you have thrown the Paterson towel in.
S. E. Piney 2 Crosbie Court, Craigend Road, Troon, Ayrshire Sir: Faced with our present national difficulties—accelerating inflation which defies solution by either of the major parties; the quest for a role to play in the world now that Britain is no longer one of the scriptwriters, etc—there undoubtedly exists a widespread longing among ordinary people of all parties for the emergence of 'a British de. Gaulle'.
Peter Paterson acknowledges the existence of this national mood, but exceeds even the most liberal bounds of anti-Powell fatuity by accusing the MP for Wolverhamp- ton sw of actually sustaining it. We arc all now accustomed to the familiar bogeyman version of Powell, but Powell the magician, Powell the Pied Piper, the one politician who is able to manufac- ture a mass-yearning for his par- ticular brand of leadership to the rejection of others . . . Well, the note of paranoia which Mr Pater- son claims to detect in Mr Powell appears to be contagious. The fact that this national mood prevails, as it did not prevail tea years ago, has nothing to do with Mr Powell. Electors only seek the leadership of strong men when they have become convinced that they are suffering from the inade- quacies of weak ones. Mr Wilson has recently completed a five and a half year premiership during which he proved beyond argument, that whoever does hold the key to Britain's economic revival, he doesn't. Mr Heath, admittedly with only six months under his belt. is beginning to alarm even the few who place any confidence in him, by sounding on inflation unpleas- antly like an inverted echo of Herbert Hoover on deflation. He has implied in several public utter- ances that he regards inflation as being a matter for the individual to sort out, though he has not specified how this can be achieved.
Hardly the kind of leadership to make the masses purr with satisfac- tion about future prospects, is it Mr Paterson?
Peter C. Dawson 'Brandlehow', Seven Acres Lane, Thingwall, Heswall, Cheshire.
Sir: Will someone explain why 'a Conservative' always refers to him- self (himselves?) as 'we'?
John Alexander 56 North End House, London w14
Sir: The improvised Latin tag to- wards the end of my final contri- bution last week was intended to read Vox populi, vox ovis, but it somehow failed to reach the prin- ter in that form. My regrets, and best regards to 'a Conservative'.
Peter Paterson 17 College Cross, London Ni
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