GOVERNMENT BY OLD ETONIANS
SIR,—We were surprised, not to say a little amused, at the indignant complaint you published last week from a Mr. Wood. It is clear. to us that his pride has been deeply wounded, and we would presume to soothe his outraged feelings. He insinuates that the abusive `toilet-paper' correspondence he received was written by someone at this school. That is pos- sible, but by no means certain. Doubtless in this, as in any large community, there are people 'who might wish to express their feelings by sending such letters. Although such action is to be deplored, there are times when it deserves the profoundest sympathy; and this is one of them.
We do not intend to reply to the provocative argument set out in Mr. Wood's earlier letter. It Would take much time and space, and would prob- ably be wasted on a man who is plainly ighorant of the details of the question, has a complete disregard for the true facts and seeks, an outlet for his con- temptible .prejudice in a welter of confused thought and a bombast of erratic gcneratlisation.
No, Sir, we will not waste time in argument. Wc quite understand that Mr. Wood is suffering from a severe inferiority complex, probably because he con- siders that he was deprived of the finest type of education. And so we would like to apologise to him, if indeed the letters did come from a Marlburian, and We trust that he may learn from this experience to write letters more balanced, more moderate, more courteous and more accurate.
We are delighted to hear that he has achieved such considerable success as painter, author and poet, and we, too, would welcome a slim volume of his poetry. If it is appreciated nowhere else, we assure him that it will be read with great interest here at Marlborough.—Yours faithfully, JOHN HARTLAND, CHARLES HARVEY
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