Bile from a Stone
From Mr J.H. Carr Sir: Any person reading Norman Stone's review of The Vices of Integrity, a biography of E.H. Carr by Jonathan Haslam, must be left marvelling at how proudly the reviewer displays his odious character (Books, 4 September). Two months after the death of my father, in the guise of a review pub- lished in the London Review of Books, Stone wrote a lengthy and vitriolic article, a wildly spiced attack on the personal and private life of the deceased, which he now impudently describes as an obituary.
The family gave Haslam authority and support. This was not to be an anodyne biography, the only limitation being that the facts must be true. Yes, my father believed that the harshness of Versailles sowed some seeds that contributed to later developments in Germany. He wrote histo- ry in a way to stimulate people to think and discuss. Like so many single-minded peo- ple, his personal life was unbalanced, bright spells but with such sad consequences in his relationships.
From Cambridge, Stone moved on to Sony I'm late, but the Tube was a nightmare!' Oxford where, no doubt, he planned to achieve greater popularity and distinction. But even this fell apart, so he finds himself settled in Turkey, from where he feels free to indulge his unwholesome spite on those who cannot sue him.
John Carr Chippers Copse, Aldworth Road, Upper Basildon, Reading
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