An account of some forms of dishonesty that I have met

Some acts of dishonesty are on such a massive scale that they attract international publicity and condemnation. A recent example in the UK was the Robert Maxwell affair. After his death by drowning it was discovered that this entrepreneur had consistently diverted pension fund money to his personal use, leaving hundreds of trusting saves penniless. there can be no excuse for this kind of heartless selfishness. Ha Maxwell survived he would have faced a long term of imprisonment.

Other examples belong to our personal experience. Going back to school days, I remember two dishonest schoolboys.

Neither was caught out, though one may be thought more reprehensible than the other. Both came from poorish families. Pocket money was scarce. Albert promised to be a brilliant chemist, but laboratory time for experimentation was severely limited. So Albert steadily filched chemicals and equipment to set up his own lab at home Surely Albert’s parents were as much to blame as he was. Fred was put in charge of the tuck shop. At the end of his term of office, profits had dropped dramatically, but since he had not stolen money there was suspicion but no evidence. A hungry, growing boy, he had in fact helped himself and his friends to free chocolates and sweets conveniently forgetting to put the cash into the till. the reader may consider Fred more culpable than Albert.

Although any kind of dishonesty is immoral and usually illegal, incurring the most severe penalties in some countries, the degree of its culpability must depend on the motivation behind it. My wife and I were stationed in Germany shortly after the end of the Second World War. Within a week, we had two burglaries which literally deprived us of everything we had. We weren’t too angry, however. At that time, many Germans were literally starving, and we asked ourselves the question ‘would we steal in order to feed our children?” The black marketeers of that period were an altogether different matter.

In the early part of that war, I remember the only occasion when I ever heard the banns forbidden in church. The Church of England is responsible for the legal as well as the spiritual side of marriage. On three successive Sundays, the names of those proposing to marry are read out and the final question as to legality is asked at the beginning of the marriage service. At one of these readings, a man in the congregation got up and said ‘I forbid the banns’, and it transpired that the proposed bridegroom was already married. So he was dishonestly attempting to commit bigamy since in western society to have more than one wife at any time is forbidden. the man’s motivation was probably personal gain, irrespective of the suffering he would cause to the bride and others.

I cannot profess to have led an entirely honest life myself. when I became a senior in the British Army it was my duty to write the annual confidential reports of my juniors. Most were straightforward, but I remember having to write that of a friend, never easy. He was lazy. Should I recommend him for promotion? I wrote ‘yes’.

Should one congratulate a lady on her appalling outfit, or remain silent and be ‘economical with the truth’? In that case, honesty would not be the best policy. Nor would it be kind, nor would the verdict matter. Forms of dishonesty range from minor matters of tact to major crimes which have far-reaching consequences for evil. The key to them all lies in motivation.