Further to Mr. Wathen's letter, in which he so succinctly illustrates the absurdity of our so-called "Honours System" in this country, may I voice my opinion that the granting of an OBE to a manufacturer and distributor of weapons of warfare ("Journal", January 6th., page seven) is more than just an absurdity?

It is a national disgrace! I am not denying for one minute that his enterprise has brought employment to many, nor that it has generated revenue for our economy, but that there are many other field of engineering that the recipient of this award could have chosen to enter and achieve these same benefits. Whether, by so doing, he would have accumulated a comparable personal fortune is debatable.

The so-called "U.K. defence industry" is a total misnomer. To the ignorant, it all sounds very patriotic: the manufacture of weapons and arms to defend this country against foreign aggression. But that's not quite how it works. Our "defence industry" exports the means of death and destruction to thousands throughout the World. Where is the morality and "honour" in rewarding such activity in this way?

Therefore, I submit that the "Honours System" has become, at the very least, a total absurdity: it is long due for complete abolition.

To echo Mr. Wathen: "it must be a British thing". It's more than this: it's a national disgrace!

Mr Alan Hall, Cheltenham Road, Evesham.