Sir, - John A. Murphy suggests (May 18th) that those involved in the current corruption scandals may have taken their cue from Francis Bacon. Perhaps the Government might also take its cue from Bacon's case: he was initially fined £40,000 - a substantial sum in the 17th century - and sentenced to indefinite imprisonment in the Tower of London. The fine and sentence were remitted but Bacon was officially excluded from public office for the remainder of his life. - Yours, etc.,
Harry McCauley, Maynooth, Co Kildare.