Readers of The Times of London know Oliver Edwards' column as literary chat. It is no secret that Oliver Edwards is Sir William John Haley, editor of The Times and formerly Director-General of the B. B. C. In August 1957, on the publication in England of Gérard Jean-Aubry's biography of Joseph Conrad, Sir William launched an attack on Ford Madox Ford. “Time has an exorable way of taking its own revenge,” he begins. “When Joseph Conrad died, many who had affectionate regard for that master … were hurt or outraged at the way Ford Madox Ford seemed to cash in on the event. In a book about Conrad, in articles, and in other reminiscences the only purpose that could be discerned was to glorify Ford, even if that meant somewhat diminishing Conrad… . Ford's nature and experiences were such that by that stage in life he no longer had any touch with reality and had lost what little perspective he ever had.” As the column continues, the accusations become more personal. Ford was “a bit of a bounder,” he writes, whose “inaccuracies were … congenital and venial… . The question remains why Ford acted the way he did.”