Crackback in Viet Nam

Sir: After reading your cover story on Viet Nam [Aug. 15] I felt almost prepared for the current crisis. But I cannot understand why "Washington officials" were so alarmed at the prospect of the crisis coming to a head before the election. I think that it is fortunate that the voters will now be able to judge Johnson's skill in the art of "big-stick" diplomacy.

TANIA BELDEN

New York City

Sir: If the ultimate American goal in Southeast Asia is to stem the flow of Communism, and if an increased effort on America's part leads to even more aggressiveness by the Chinese-supported Communists, where will it all end? I don't see how a limited supply of men can defeat the almost inexhaustible Chinese supply in a conventional war in China's own backyard.

JAMES JOHNSON

Ottawa

Sir: As a "fellow Amurricun," I am appalled at the President's apparent concept of "judicious restraint" applied this week in the Gulf of Tonkin. If a neighbor's child hits yours, do you cut off your neighbor's hand--and then proudly proclaim your "limited and fitting response" because you didn't kill both parents? I am disappointed that my country has chosen to play the role of the strong young father stomping around the world with a bomb on his shoulder.

DENNIS ANSON

Gainesville, Fla.

Sir: President Johnson has shown that he is truly a man of courage and strength in the action that he has taken in the Viet Nam crisis. This was a well-calculated and wise decision. Bless him for it.

JAMES W. PARKER

Parma Heights, Ohio

Backlash Sting

Sir: The one-paragraph example of extremism by Negro Comedian Ray Scott [July 31] is the most revolting, sadistic thing I have ever read. I'm beginning to understand why there will be a "white backlash" in November.

N. C. NIELSEN

Mankato, Minn.

Sir: Everybody knows that the Negroes hate Goldwater. I suppose King and the other Negro leaders think that after November it will be fine for the riots to begin all over again. They had better wake up, because their idol, President Johnson, just might not make it. In Goldwater we will have a President with all the qualities necessary to make our country safe from Communism and riots!

ROY F. WOOD

Tampa, Fla.

Sir: So far, I have been robbed twice by Negroes, kicked in the head and left in an alley. So far, I am still a brother to the Negro, but offhand I would say that the Negro is pushing too hard.

HOWARD J. WILLIAMS

San Diego

Sir: I used to be in sympathy with those people, but now I believe I will say yes to Goldwater come November.

CHARLES L. CONUS

Hollywood

Sir: Skip the polls for the presidential election. Too many two-faced Americans in the privacy of the voting booth will vote differently from what they indicate to neighbors or to pollsters. It is Goldwater all the way--for there are enough prejudiced Americans to elect him.

A. H. GOLDNER

Southfield, Mich.

Sir: If Goldwater hopes to win the election by wooing that portion of our society that seeks to perpetuate white supremacy, if he neglects to condemn openly and forthrightly its bigotry, if he hopes by his silence to encourage its vote, then he may be successful. But he will have sold out his convictions and become President for the most heinous reason in our nation's history.

TIM BLECK

Fairborn, Ohio

Sir: The real truth is that there is no sudden white backlash; it is not new--it has been in existence for more than a hundred years. Goldwater is simply a present-day excuse for opposing equal rights.

A. BAILEY

Pittsburgh

Moon Gazing

Sir: I enjoyed your well-prepared and well-presented article on the recent trip of Ranger VII to the moon [Aug. 7]. Overlooked by many, but not by me, was the speed with which you prepared this story and rushed it into the hands of your readers.

LESTER C. HARLOW

Arlington, Va.

The Long, Hot Summer

Sir: Your article on Harlem [July 31] was more than fine reporting. It was brilliant social commentary and distinguished literature. It points up the awesome enormity of the Negro problem and the need for perseverance, intelligence and decency in working toward its solution.

CHARLES S. JOELSON

Eighth District, N.J.

Congress of the U.S.

Washington, D.C.

Sir: The New York police would have suffered considerably less from thrown bottles, bricks, etc., if they had been provided with wicker shields such as those I have seen used by the Nigerian riot police. These shields are light, and they protect most of the head and body against the usual missiles of an enraged mob. They are also reasonably inexpensive, easy to transport in a hurry to trouble spots, and a good morale booster for harassed policemen.

BRIAN M. BARROW

Houston

Sir: You state that the "numbers game" drains Harlem of $50 million a year. Much of this probably comes out of welfare checks. If the state or city government were to set up a legal numbers game, not only could this $50 million be diverted from the pockets of racketeers, but it could be pumped back into Harlem in the form of improved education, vocational training, recreational facilities and other worthwhile projects designed to build productive, first-class citizens.

RALPH HYDE

Concord, N.H.

Sir: Regarding citizen review boards (to consider civilian complaints of police practices), only four municipalities have established such boards: Philadelphia; York, Pa.; Minneapolis; and Rochester. True, the York and Minneapolis boards petered out before getting off the ground, but the Philadelphia board, established in 1958, is flourishing, and has performed a substantial service to the community.

SPENCER COXE

American Civil Liberties Union

Philadelphia

Sir: At no time did I say to your reporter that "once welfare workers could not tell one Negro child from another and all kids in the neighborhood ran from house to house, a few steps ahead of the social worker, to pad the rolls." There are no facts to support this statement. The problem of unrelated children living with families in receipt of public assistance is not and has not been characteristic of Negroes. Our use of birth certificates and school records is required by federal and state policies for all families receiving aid for dependent children. It is not for the purpose of controlling the identity of Negro dependent children.

JAMES R. DUMPSON

Commissioner

Department of Welfare

New York City

> TIME inadvertently attributed that on-relief tale to Welfare Commissioner Dumpson.--ED.

Sir: As I leave for home (Kenya), I shall take with me your issues of July 17 and July 31 as a reference in answering the very many questions I will be asked about the South and Harlem. In my two years' stay in this country, I have not come across such objective reporting and thorough analysis of explosive and emotional problems.

HERBERT KANINA

Stillwater, Okla.

Gentleman's Totem

Sir: You misuse the term "aristocrat" in relation to Faulkner [July 17]. Faulkner was by birth a gentleman, but he let down the totem by appearing tieless and unshaven before his audience. There is a certain noblesse oblige that prompts a gentleman to keep up appearances, even though he may be a week's march through the jungle from the nearest outpost.

ADRIAN CONAN DOYLE*

St. Paul de Vence, France

Mischief in Malaysia

Sir: All Malaysia was shocked to read "Amok But Not Asunder" [July 31], your version of the recent disturbances in Singapore, which implied that this was a premeditated offensive action by Malays against Chinese. The truth is that the riot was caused by a mischief-maker who threw a bottle at Prophet Mohammed's birthday procession. We hope this is the last time foreign journals and newsmen run amok with untrue tales of indelible racial hatred in Singapore.

SYED ZAINAL ABIDIN

Director

Malaysia Information Services

Kuala Lumpur,Malaysia

Sir: The majority of Singapore's population are sensible, educated and reasonable. But the Malay community has for some time been agitating for better education, jobs and wages--in general, a boost in their lower-than-other-races standard of living. All that was needed was for someone to light the fuse. The racial clashes were the result of a well-planned plot of extremists bent on creating a distrustful internal atmosphere. Once racial feelings were aroused, both sides took up arms and went for each other's throats, destroying everything in their path. But, within a week, order was restored when the people realized that they had to remain united.

The existence of hateful feelings among the races would be precisely what the exponents of the "crush Malaysia" policy are hoping for.

ANIL BHATIA NATH JR.

Singapore, Malaysia

Juanita's Problems

Sir: I read with bitter surprise your article devoted to defaming and offending in a cowardly way the memory of my deceased parents [July 10]. When I made the decision of declaring before the world the truth about Cuba, and of thus helping to unmask the existing regime in our country, I did it conscious of the difficulties I would have to face. I knew that I was putting myself in a position in which I was going to be attacked by the partisan press of international Communism. I knew that they were going to try to demoralize me politically. I even thought that I would be the object of personal criticism by my enemies. However, I never imagined that my political attitude would be used to injure the memory of my parents. I consider that it is not worth the trouble to start a polemic, since the struggle that all Cubans have ahead of them does not permit me to lose time clearing up stories without foundation. As our apostle Jose Marti well said: "He who goes in search of mountains does not stop to pick up stones in the road."

JUANITA CASTRO Ruz

> TIME sympathizes with Miss Castro, but believes that at times harsh facts are relevant and must be reported.--ED.

Catholics v. Nazis

Sir: Three thousand to four thousand Catholic priests [July 24] underwent their "Golgotha" in Nazi Europe during the years 1939 to 1945. They became victims of Nazi persecution for their silent or outspoken resistance against the Third Reich. The martyrdom of these priests, who sacrificed their lives for their faith in the service of the church, is the only valid answer to the accusations of indifference of the Catholic Church toward the Nazi regime.

BENEDICTA MARIA KEMPNER

Lansdowne, Pa.

Sir: In 1940, as a prisoner of war in Germany, I was put to work in villages near the town of Ellwagen, where a few years earlier the Bishop of Rothenburg had made a resounding sermon denouncing the Nazi regime and philosophy. The Gestapo came at once to arrest the bishop, but he managed to flee to Switzerland. However, his sermon had been printed, and the villagers were keeping copies of it carefully hidden. Some of them showed it to us, warning us "nicht sagen."

FATHER FILIBERT

Order of Friars Minor Capuchin

Istanbul

Switched Bishops

Sir: Re the excellent article you wrote concerning the assignment of Bishop James S. Thomas and me [July 24], you inadvertently placed my name under the picture of Bishop Thomas and his name under mine.

PRINCE A. TAYLOR JR.

Bishop The Princeton Methodist Church Princeton, N.J.

Pam's Slam

Sir: You quoted Pamela Mason as saying that neither Louella Parsons nor Hedda Hopper "writes her own column [July 17]." I cannot speak for Parsons; but I worked for Hedda Hopper for about ten years. My wife is still her private secretary, and Miss Hopper is still a close friend. The statement that she does not write her own column is false.

DAVID C. MCCLURE

North Hollywood, Calif.

> TIME agrees that Pamela Mason was indulging in colorful hyperbole when she stated flatly that "Hedda Hopper doesn't write her own column."--ED.

* Sir Arthur's son.

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