Readers may recall many articles in the recent past where "Johnisms" were adduced in support of the writer’s views. For instance in that forthright article in the Island of 27/07/09 captioned ‘Maharajaneni’ the writer quotes Sir John on sycophants as saying "I say, Lickers never change, only AR.... ES Do". That was a gem of a saying true today as it was so decades ago. It is a cryptic and astute comment on human conduct, so worded to be etched indelibly in memory. The saying will be remembered as long as grovelling toadism is a constituent of our national fabric.

His dictum "Serving oneself when the spoon is in his hand," is another noteworthy saying. This statement may have been repeated thousands of times after it appeared in print. Such self aggrandisement, though repugnant to all but the beneficiaries, is rampant in our society. Sir J. may never have heard the term "Carpe diem" - which means "Make the most of the present time", or a saying attributed to Horace, "Seize the day".

Not all that Sir J. said was accurately reported. The press at that time, with all good intentions no doubt made a few changes in his expressions.

Once when he returned from an overseas trip, unwell, he was transferred into an ambulance from the plane. In the process, he had instinctively groaned saying "Ammey". The next day the papers reported that, "Where’s mother?" was the only cry uttered as he was taken to the ambulance! It is likely that statements that he never made could be tagged on to him, to embellish a debating point.

There may be senior journalists, or retired Civil Servants who worked with him who could enlighten us with useful anecdotes. Could they please pool their narratives, not only for entertainment, but also for posterity to glean an insight into this uncommon man.