21 DECEMBER 1985, Page 33

Valets

Sir: In the Spectator of 19 October (Diary), Richard Ingrams asks, 'Who said, "No man is a hero to his valet"?' In his essay on repentance, written between 1585 and 1588, Michel de Montaigne wrote, 'men have seemed miraculous to the world, in whom their wives and valets have never seen anything even worth noticing. Few men have been admired by their own households (peu d'hommes ont ete admires par leurs domestiques).' Politicians, take note.

Bruce McDougall

390 Bloor Street West, Toronto, Ontario, Canada