The Oppenheimer Case

Sir: More startling than the excellent exposition of the meat of the Oppenheimer case in TIME, June 28, was the box preceding it under the title "The Handout." TIME really outdid itself in this expression of journalistic candor, for the professional intellectuals in journalism have loudly boasted for years about reporting in the "public interest." Now we see an enormous admission that some highly placed typescribblers permitted themselves to accept handouts from a prejudiced side of a highly important public controversy and thus to distort the substance of a highly important decision. And lazy editors followed the lines handed out by Oppenheimer's lawyers.

. . . The left-wing slanting that has permeated our news in recent years is mostly the result of professional inculcations by professors bent upon turning out social "reformers" --journalistic socialists, that is ...

KARL E. BRANDT

Chadds Ford, Pa.

Sir: ... You take for granted that a free play of ideas is easily separable from [Dr. Oppenheimer's] "peculiar attributes of character The virtue in a free play of ideas is that it is creative, that it produces conceptions--technical or otherwise--that are new and valuable. But such conceptions, because new, are unconventional, and the mind able to discover them must have in its makeup at least some disregard for conventions and restrictions. Such disregard leads to peculiarities. Dr. Oppenheimer is a brilliant man.

Like most brilliant men, he is a peculiar man. How can our government employ brilliant men without putting up with their peculiarities? . . .

RICHARD T. MOORE

Hartford, Conn.

Sir:

. . . Oppenheimer's and McCarthy's assumption of their above-the-law status furnishes the pivot of rationalized excuse for vast numbers of either tempted or careless or ignorant lesser fry to flout or evade the law, including security regulations, as may seem best to their own individual judgments. This is so elemental that the almost universal failure of our scientists to sense its truths brings the scientific fraternity into question, posing one of the great paradoxes of our time . . .

C. AUSTIN DE CAMP

Carmel-by-the-Sea, Calif.

Sir:

. . . Your remarks concerning me in the Oppenheimer story [June 14] amount to character assassination of the grossest kind . . . They also reflect unfavorably on Oppenheimer, as well as on my friends, past and present . . . Before the war I had, among others, many associations with left-wingers, including Communists . . . My position was, and is, that of a fighting liberal. I have often agreed with the Communists and often disagreed with them . . . My life has been dedicated to truth, justice and freedom. If this be treason, make the most of it ...

Regarding the incident of which you give so fanciful a version . . . The facts of the case were set forth by Oppenheimer before a House committee as far back as 1948, I believe. Regarding his testimony he wrote me as follows in a letter dated Feb. 24, 1950: "I can understand that an account of my testimony before the House committee could be helpful to you ... I told them that I would like as far as possible to clear the record with regard to your alleged involvement in the atom business. I said that as far as I knew, you knew nothing of the A-bomb until it was announced after Hiroshima; and that most certainly you had never mentioned it or anything that could be connected with it to me. I said that you had never asked me to transmit any kind of information, nor suggested that I could do so, or that I consider doing so. I said that you had told me of a discussion of providing technical information to the U.S.S.R. which disturbed you considerably, and which you thought I ought to know about. There were surely many other points; but these were, I think, the highlights ... As you know, I have been deeply disturbed by the threat to your career which these ugly stories could constitute. If I can help you in that, you may call on me--Sincerely yours, Robert Oppenheimer."

HAAKON CHEVALIER

Paris

P:Dr. Oppenheimer testified this year before the Atomic Energy Commission's personnel security board that he had lied repeatedly about the Chevalier incident (TIME, June 28). The truth, he swore, is: One night in the winter of 1942-43, Chevalier told him that a mutual acquaintance had a way of getting technical information to Soviet scientists. In reply, Dr. Oppenheimer told Chevalier that that was a terrible thing to do. According to Dr. Oppenheimer's testimony, Chevalier agreed.--ED.

Pride of Lions

Sir:

With all due respect to the members of Rotary International, we of the mighty brotherhood of Lions International are growling mad. We protest that Rotary is not "the largest service club" [TIME, June 21]. Active membership of Lions International numbers 498,244, or approximately 108,000 greater. We flip our tails at you. For shame!

LION LEW EVANS Detroit

Sir:

... Better check your facts in regard to which service organization is the largest We expect approximately 40,000 Lions at our convention in New York early in July.

HARRY M. WHITE

Rogers, Ark.

P:TIME hastily joins the Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Lions--ED.

Kith & Skin

Sir:

Your otherwise excellent article [June 7] on General Sir Gerald Templer was spoiled for me by the usual reference to "diehard British . . . made to open their posh clubs to men of all races ..." Apart from General Templer not having done this, there was no necessity for him to do so. They are and have been for many years "open to men of all races." The fact is that people in their leisure hours generally enjoy the company of their own kith and kin, and tend to flock together ... One never hears references to the exclusive Chinese clubs in Malaya, which are not open to Europeans . . . How many Negroes belong to the "posh" American clubs? Whatever our faults may be, we make a point of never stoning or assaulting the Asian families who move in next to us, which appears to be ie of America's less attractive habits, I read with great distaste of youths stoning a pregnant Negro woman who had the temerity to live in the same neighborhood as some of your white Americans. This "diehard British" angle is a bit outmoded, and should be abandoned for some other angle of attack.

GEOFFREY TRUBSHAW

Bangkok, Thailand

Lost Harmony

Sir:

. . . Barbershop singing [TIME, June 21] ain't what she used to be. The traditional mellow harmony is gone. Today's S.P.E B S etc. quartets alternately blast and whisper! We interpolate difficult swipes and key changes just for the spectacular hell of it. We usually sing without a trace of vibrato. All of this requires vocal precision beyond the capacity of most professionals. But we belie our name: "Preservation" of barbershop quartet singing? No!

SAMUEL A. WOOD

Baldwin, N.Y.

McCarthy & the Army (Contd.)

Sir:

Congratulations on your forthright and objective coverage of the McCarthy-Army hearings. I used to think TIME was prejudiced, but your June 21 summary seems to me faultless--and I have watched all ... of the TV hearings . . .

MARION H. BEMIS

Bloomfield Hills, Mich.

Sir:

. . . The conduct of all persons concerned I has been a national disgrace.

(S/SGT.) HARVEY L. SILVER

U.S.A.F. Tachikawa, Japan

SIR:

RE YOUR DESCRIPTION OF WELCH'S LACHRYMOSE DEFENSE OF HIS . . . YOUNG PARTNER FRED FISHER: ARE YOU REALLY SO SIMPLE AND ARE YOU REALLY SUCH A PUSHOVER FOR SUCH A PITIFUL HAM ACT? IF WELCH HAD BEEN ACCOMPANIED BY HEARTS AND FLOWERS YOU MIGHT HAVE BROKEN DOWN AND SOBBED WITH HIM . . .

LON P. FLANIGAN

GENEVA, N.Y.

Sir:

Your obvious anti-McCarthy-Cohn reporting is unjust . . . Perhaps Senator McCarthy has what is sometimes called the Celtic inattention to exact statement . . . He may not be genteel but he's a doer, and it's too bad we don't have more like him.

T. G. HAYDEN

Chicago

Sir:

The first proven strategist of the Army-McCarthy hearings is Senator Symington.

He expertly advised Secretary Stevens that McCarthy would not fight by Marquis of Queensberry rules but by his own (Joe's), which we learned through TIME [June 28] were taught him by Indian Charlie, the Below-the-Belt Kicker. In fact, Joe is. . .quite a kicker. . . He is going to kick the brains out of anyone protecting Communists . . .

CHARLES RYAN

Belmont, Mass.

Sir: . . . For a magazine as large as yours, contributions toward original, creative terminology are plainly lacking. For example: to parallel the term "McCarthyism," you could coin or use a new word to represent the strongest opposite camp, such as "Malocrats" --which could thereafter represent to your readers a group of Democrats for Malenkov or bad Democrats . . .

ED HENRY

Stillwater, Okla.

With Audubon in Arkansas Sir: ... It was with some shock and disgust that I read in your June 21 issue the appellation, "John McClellan, the old Arkansas buzzard." I do not know Senator McClellan . . . except what I have seen and heard . . . during the McCarthy hearings.

WM. C. STEWART

Los Angeles

P:TIME meant that the Senator was durable, useful, sharp-eyed, discerning, but not universally loved, and no stranger to Arkansas. Ed.

Well-Adjusted Horse

Sir:

Commenting on the colt Landau in TIME'S [June 14] story on the [British] Derby, you said Landau "had been so temperamental lately that he had had to be attended by a psychiatric horse doctor . . .

Landau is neither nervy nor temperamental ... This year he had shown, in public, resistance to driving pressure from his rider which had prevented him showing his ability in [a previous race]. I was invited to treat him . . . and [since] the treatment, there has been no record of his resistance . . . The technique used is one that substitutes, for existing impulses in the nervous system, impulses that dictate the conduct or condition desired. It is a nonphysical treatment of the nervous system . . .

Before taking to this work ... I was in practice for about twelve years in Harley Street. Some of my patients might find it a little surprising to see me described as a psychiatric horse doctor. This work is completely outside the sphere of physical science, medical or veterinary . . .

CHARLES BROOK

London

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