* * * * The discussion in The Times on
the publication of wills turns on nicely balanced considerations. It is arguable, as some writers have argued, that what a man (or woman) Jeaves is a purely private matter, and that to publish details of it is an unwarrantable intru- sion. To that it may be replied that a will is a public document ; anyone can ,look at it by paying a small fee at Somerset House (though that is a very different matter from publishing it in papers with circulations of millions). Also wills are generally matters of considerable interest. Most of us like to see what someone we know, or know of, has left—often out of a genuine concern to know whether relatives will be adequately provided for. And if bequests to public institutions or charities are included, the interest is considerably widened. On the whole, there is, I feel, more to be said for publicity than for suppression. * * * *
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