considered a symbol of youth. Many people were astonished to hear that he is a grandfather who celebrated his fifty-second birthday three days before he became Minister of Defense in May, 1967. His face is young, almost mischievous, and does not seem to belong to his plump, nearly shapeless body-the body of a middle-aged farmer, with a farmer's lumbering walk. During the past few years, his hair has thinned, but his youthful smile makes one forget the fact. Yet the smile is devoid of any warmth; there is nothing glad in it. It is an unmoving smile, fixed on his face throughout all public appearances.
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These outward contradictions reflect inner ones. The main characteristic which made Dayan a national hero during the days of anxiety preceding the recent war is his ability to make decisions without reluctance or procrastination. The public wanted him because he seemed to be the opposite of Eshkol, who (according to one current joke) when asked by a waiter whether he wanted coffee or tea, hesitated, then answered, "Half and half." The real Dayan is unlike his public image. He does decide quickly, but often the next day, another quick decision contradicts yesterday's. His decisions form a mosaic of indecision, a systemless pattern perhaps worse than simple procrastination. During the last few months, people have become accustomed to the pattern. Dayan objected to the military assault on the old city of Jerusalem, but, when overruled by the government, was the first to be photographed at the Wailing Wall. Immediately after the war, he ordered the destruction of the town of Kalkiliah and the eviction of its inhabitants to Transjordan, but a week later, in person, he welcomed the same inhabitants back to what was left of the town. During the weeks following the war, his many political statements about the future of the occupied territories, each exactly contradicting the one before, became a source of irritation even to his admirers.
Another characteristic endearing him to the public is