Insulting language
Sir: Whenever my eye has fallen upon Peter Jones's column 'Ancient & modern', I have felt about him what Sydney Smith felt about Macaulay when he said, 'I wish I felt as certain about anything as Tom Macaulay is about everything.' The insulting language which he has used about Dr Deborah Eap- pen (8 November), whose patient I have been and for whom I have a high regard, and about her husband (`abysmal', 'ghast- ly') surely justifies me in writing that this vain and nasty little man is the last person I should have chosen to inform readers about the ancient world.
Hugh Lloyd-Jones
15 West Ridingh, Wellesley, Massachusetts, USA
Peter Jones writes: The intemperance of Professor Sir Hugh's letter will shock those in Oxford who remember him as a self- effacing, supportive and caring human being. Under Dr Deborah Eappen, whose professional expertise is not in doubt, he has surely been receiving the best possible treatment.
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