7 FEBRUARY 1998, Page 26

Sir: Peregrine Worsthorne (As I was saying, 31 January) and

Matthew Parris are being disingenuously fair-minded in their defence of Bill.

His offence is really aesthetic rather than moral. Always, it's the personableness of the protagonist that matters. We rather enjoy the fantasy of our Caesars enjoying their concubines — but a good ole boy with a W.C. Fields schnozzle and his pants rounds his ankles? I'm sure we empathise more with our cousins' embarrassment than their outrage.

As well we might — when confronted with not dissimilar mental images of our very own Foreign Secretary.

Robert Bowman

Ballintemple, Cork