At Rochester

Sirs:

... I might mention some incidents which have made me realize the wide spread influence of TIME among cultured people. I have attempted no less than three different times, in three separate classes, to arouse respect for my wide knowledge of current events by plagiarizing incidents re lated in TIME, and each time the professor has smilingly and somewhat devastatingly retorted, "Yes, I read about that in TIME." So you see the plight a poor collegian is in when he tries to put your magazine to such practical uses. . . .

ROGER P. BUTTERFIELD University of Rochester Rochester, N. Y. Obvious Distinction

Sirs:

It used to be a pleasure to put TIME into the hands of the children in my cur rent "censor" events and cut class ; out but an now item I every have now to and then, and I am not at all sure that I want to continue taking the trouble of doing course, this. One cancellation. alternative would be, of I think that a simpler and much better solution would be, however, for you to of adopt this anything rule : which, "TIME while will it print may no be 'right' details or 'moral' in some other country, is not 'right' or 'moral-- in our United States."

It is this sort of item which I most often have to "censor" out of TIME. Take, for example, your item about how the Prime Minister of Japan procured an heir* (TIME, Aug. 15). You cannot imagine how impossible it would have been of me to explain to my group of children why that sort of thing is wrong in the United States and yet right in Japan. Their little minds would not grasp the distinction, obvious though it is ; and so I appeal to you to strike all such stories out of TIME. Will you? Otherwise I cannot promise to continue using TIME in my class.

(Miss) MARY FAIRFAX Chicago, Ill. Let not Teacher Fairfax continue to "censor" from TIME such truth ful items as that to which she takes exception, but rather explain with patience the distinction, ob vious though it is. -- ED.

Rolvaag's Translation

Sirs: I am very much interested in your comment (TIME, July25) on Rolvaag's Giants in the Earth, particularly where you state that he has translated his latest work into strong, thick-muscled English. I feel perhaps you would like to know something regarding this translation.

As a matter of fact, Professor Rolvaag did attempt a translation of his book and found it rather difficult to put the strength of it out in English. By chance, Mr. Lin coln Colcord of Minneapolis heard of this work. Also, Mr. Colcord did not know Professor Rolvaag but he went to Northfield and suggested to Rolvaag that they get together on this translation. Colcord does not know a word of Norwegian but he and Rolvaag worked a year and a half, Rolvaag reading his manuscripts and trans lating sentence by sentence, Colcord putting it into the English language with the result that it was unquestionably one of the best pieces of translation that has been made of the English tongue in years. Before the book was published

Before the book was published, I submit ted a copy in Norwegian to several Nor wegians who understood their literature and their comment was that no one would ever be able to translate the book giving it the power and strength as it was in the Nor wegian. I have before me a letter from one of the leading Norwegian scholars of the Northwest which he wrote me in response to a copy of the book translated that I sent to him and asked his opinion. He states that it is amazing what a wonderful translation has been made of the book. I don't know if this is of particular interest to you but I thought a little insight regard ing this translation might be worthwhile.

L. H. WELLS Powers Mercantile Co. Minneapolis, Minn.

Epstein Rebuked

Sirs:

Never print again a letter in which a U. S. soldier, much less a veteran of the Civil Your War, is editorial called a rebuke to "sap" ! Morris ("Al") Epstein Jr. for doing this in a letter to you (TIME, Aug. 15) is not one-tenth You can tell this " -- Al" from me (and I am a veteran of the war with Spain) that he's a RUFUS FURNESS SEMPLE Chicago, Ill.

Notorious?

Sirs: In your issue of July 25, you speak of the "notorious that Mme. Journal Michael Borodin." As I realize that Journal TIME would not speak of a woman as notorious (generally considered rather insulting I believe), unless it had ample justification, I am writing to ask that it share with me its information on this point. It is hardly likely that TIME could have referred to her as notorious simply be cause of her support of one of the warring factions in China. If this makes one notorious, I assume that all of the European ambassadors and envoys to China, together with their wives, would be spoken of as notorious, should they appear in your columns. I can scarcely believe that TIME has gone in for Russian-baiting, popular among the less distinguished, tabloid journals at whom Journal TIME pokes such robust fun. CHURCHILL MURRAY Los Angeles, Calif. A "notorious person" is, according to Webster's New International Dictionary, one who is "generally known and talked of ... commonly in an unfavorable sense." TIME called Mme. Borodin "notorius" to denote the fact that she is generally known to and unfavorably talked of by some millions of persons in non-Soviet countries.-- ED.

Little Brotherhoods Sirs: I approved your recent refusal to print an item* about the Lions, for I have al ways thought of them as far down on a par with the Elks and Prophets.

Today, however, I notice that a cheering audience of Lions in Portland, Me. applauded the following words by a speaker at their luncheon:

"Let us tell all red-blooded Americans that we in Maine stand four-square for old-fashioned methods, and if there must be a Red fight in Massachusetts we will be there as we were at Lexington and at Bunker Hill.

"I say, call out the militia, put the Reds on a boat and send them back to the land from which they came. We do not want them here." Before you belittle the Lions again you should take this speech into consideration. It has raised them a notch or two in my estimation.

I consider myself quite impartial in this matter, since I belong to no fraternal order, and have no friends in the "little brotherhoods." New York, N. Y. BASCOM SNAITH

Prophecy

Sirs: Milwaukee, Wis. JOHN MULLER In my letter praising you for not putting Lindbergh's picture on your cover [TiME, June 3], I said: "Who doubts that the ordinary German commercial aircraft companies could not better Lindbergh's feat with a stock plane?"

Now my prophecy has been fulfilled! For I have just read in TIME that a German Junker's plane has smashed all endurance records by remaining in the air over 52 hours. The best Lindbergh ever did was 33 hours! Therefore it is a foregone conclusion that one or more Junker's planes will come gliding into New York with no fuss or fiddling. . . . JOHN MULLER Milwaukee, Wis.

Cryptic Sirs: ...Finally I wish that you would explain the meaning of the rather cryptic ANNOUNCEMENT which now seems to appear on your letter page each week. Does this mean that you have moved your editorial department away from Cleveland? I surely hope not.... Louise Barker Mrs. B. Barker) Cleveland, Ohio.

Common Gossip Sirs: It is common gossip in Cleveland that you have moved your editors from here and your rather shifty and evasive reference to "Editorial Mail" in recent issues seems to confirm this fact.

You will never get my subscription. Joseph R. Glynn Cleveland, Ohio.

Improvement Noted Sirs: I judge from the "Announcement" which has been repeated on your letter page since August 1 that your editorail staff was moved from Cleveland to New York on or about that date. Approval! Approval! Approval! New York is the only fit and adequate home for TIME and I have already noted an improvement in your issued of August 1, August 8 and August 15. They have more savor already and they seem to me to show that you are now successfully gleaning a much larger field of news information than you could possibly have drawn upon in small-town Cleveland. J. C. SINGER

Philadelphia, Pa.

Let Subscriber Singer restrain his praise. The August 1 & August 8 issues of TIME were compiled and edited in Cleveland; the August 15 issue in Manhattan. --ED. Major General Nichols

Sirs:

As a Southerner I would have been glad to see as a "Milestone" a mention of the recent death of Major General

Edward West Nichols, retired superintendent to the Virginia Military Institute, Lexington, Va., called "the West Point of the South" by General Pershing. General Nichols was a great inspiration to the cadets, each one carrying away his favorite lines:

Ships sail east,

Ships sail west,

With the selfsame winds that blow.

It's not the gales

But the set of the sails

That determines the way they go.

MRS. JAMES L. ANDREWS

Memphis, Tenn.

Blasphemous Son

Sirs:

"From now on I want to know will the institution of learning at Cambridge which once we called Harvard be known as Hangman's House?"

That is typical of the sneering writings of that columnist, Heywood Broun. At least, TIME, I am glad that you were gentlemanly enough not to quote that sentence from Mr. Broun in your Sacco & Vanzetti story (TIME, Aug. 15). All good Americans should know that Mr. Broun is the most blasphemous son Harvard ever had. And I hope that all good Harvard men as well as the New York World will disown him.

FRANKLIN CARRINGTON

Boston, Mass.

Levine

Sirs:

Not since you saw fit to call him "a large black fly in the ointment" [TIME, July 18] have you seen fit to mention our courageous Jew, Charles A. Levine. Like the rest of the prejudiced press you have devoted columns and columns to Lindbergh, Byrd, Chamberlin and other Nordic flyers. To Levine you have grudged even the iotas of space required by sheer force of his importance. This looks like discrimina tion to me. Is this discrimination? I think it is! Mr. Levine has fled the unfairness of the newspapers of our country. It has been an added discouragement in the face of already drastic odds against tricky Frenchmen who will not honor a contract and hold to it after signing. Then too he has felt uncomfortable about landing in his own New York and now plans to land in Philadelphia. Is that fair to him?

But Charles Levine is carrying on, a pioneer like the others but not a publicity hunter. Without financial backing you can get nowhere with a commercial business. He knows it and will help put commercial aviation on its feet in spite of everything.

GEORGE LOVEMAN

Boston, Mass.

TIME abhors discrimination. Did not mention Charles A. Levine from July 18 to August 15 because Charles A. Levine during that period did nothing notable. Let Charles A. Levine (or any other) fly from Paris to the U. S. (or any other notable distance) and TIME will give due notice.--ED.

* An error. TIME merely stated, In reply to a subscriber's question (TIME, Aug. 8), that no story had appeared in TIME concerning a convention of Lions International.-- ED.