Try #'column, #'row. They are also setfable. These will give you individual columns and rows from a matrix, as a vector (mvector).
Excellent, just what I need.
As for general submatrix or subvector, the answer is no.
Fair enough, I can see there are lots of efficiency issues here which make it a big job. #'column and #'row are very useful by themselves for the moment, so thanks!
Malcolm