10 JULY 1976, Page 19

M ercenaries sir : In this country there are thousands of , P , e oPle

receiving very substantial remunera`!nn for doing nothing whatsoever. So why snnuld there be any objection to freelance c(bat soldiers being paid for their services? AfMlter all they have to live as well as die. The motivations which drive such individuals are complex and change with the sYars but money is not their prime confkleration. Nobody with experience of war Will doubt this obvious fact. And very te" kw. work against the genuine interests of vv,ls country. This is presumably the reason l_nY Many of our highly paid politicians and adei. writers view them with such hatred. 5M.Beer s rife Road, Kingston on Thames, -urrey