19 MARCH 1948, Page 5

* * A distinguished British soldier who knows Russia well

is said to have expressed his views recently on the prospects of war with that country. "I will bet all I have," he said, " that there won't be war with Russia in the next five years. I will bet half of what I have that there won't be war with her in the next ten years. I will bet all I have that there will be war with her within the next fifteen years." I find this reassuring ; for while a well-informed person is qualified to form a sound judgement for perhaps five years ahead, no one on earth can form a judgement worth having about Russia's condition and her international relations more than ten years ahead. I therefore accept the five years prediction and discount the fifteen years prediction.