The White Case

Sir:

Thanks for the unraveling of Harry Dexter White [Nov. 23], a gloriously written piece.

JOHN R. BISHOP Bridgeport, Conn.

Sir:

After months of necessarily dry or unfavorable reporting on "their" administration in Washington, TIME gobbled up Brownell's exhumation of the Harry Dexter White case like a hungry goat an empty tin can . . .

(MRS.) JANET STAFFEN Chicago

Sir:

Your cover story on Harry Dexter White is a beginning answer, appropriate and timely, to the urgent public need for background information and clarification on what so much of the press glibly termed (in the autumn of 1952) "the mess in Washington." More must come, a great deal more . . . I see three great areas of need in this clarification: 1) a study of the term "McCarthyism" . . . 2) a study of the "climate of treason" . . .3) 3 study of the unsound philosophies of social reform that made it possible to undermine democratic principles of loyalty, of patriotism, and of objective morality . . .

MARY ELLEN COSTELLO New York City

Sir:

Truman's impassioned "statement of the facts" was real drama. He referred to Vinson and God, and one wonders through what magnificent self-restraint the Boy Scouts, the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution were omitted.

Somehow our ex-Chief Executive's denial of any negligence or wrongdoing reminds me of a doctor who, through neglect of proper sanitation procedures, carelessly infected some ten or twelve patients. When queried about this carelessness, he retorted, "Well, I cured all the infections, didn't I?" . . .

JANE W. WELLS Larchmont, N.Y.

Sir:

That a President of the U.S. should lend himself to an accusation that his predecessor, Mr. Truman--who declared war on Communist aggression in Korea--actively preferred a man he knew to be a Communist is an. action both foolish and unjust. Whatever Mr. Truman's faults, few will deny he was a patriotic American with the best interests of his country at heart. For many Englishmen, such as I, who so tremendously admired General Eisenhower, President Eisenhower is a disappointment.

DAVID PIPER

Cambridge University England

SIR: IT SEEMS STRANGE THAT A PFC CAN BE

JUDGED BY HIS COMMANDER IN CHIEF TO DEATH FOR NEGLIGENCE OF DUTY BUT WHEN POSITIONS ARE REVERSED THE JUDGMENT DOES NOT BECOME EFFECTIVE . . . J. F. TOFTNESS GRAND FORKS, N. DAK.

Sir:

Your article . . . helps to clarify the mystery of the Truman Administration fight against Communists in our government. They appear to have been satisfied that the job could be accomplished by simply kissing them to death.

ERNEST OBERING Oklahoma City

What Is a Recession?

Sir:

With better than 63 million Americans savoring the fruits of full employment and historically high wages, with more money being spent than ever before, I . . . am beginning to get rather perplexed and concerned at the number of manufacturers, agency executives and financial wizards who keep up the constant chatter of "recession" talk [TIME, Nov. 16] . . . Better yet, some of these top brains are going around telling people we are in the "midst of a depression . . ." We are a nation that has experienced a 20-year boom. This "boom period" has been one of growth and building, and the tremendous height of this growth signifies only one thing--progress! The American people have the biggest dollar cushion in history, with . . . unemployment and social security funds and accumulated corporate earnings at an alltime high . . . The thing that is lacking today is nothing more than plain, old-fashioned salesmanship. That's the only thing missing! . . .

LIONEL H. BRAUN New York City

Sir:

. . . A recession is when millionaires teach the butler to drive, fire the chauffeur; teach the seamstress to wash, fire the laundress; flatter their wives for their green thumbs, fire the gardener; teach the cook to wield a duster, fire the upstairs maid; teach the bairns to open the front door and fire the footman. A depression is when all the above are done and in addition: the master undertakes to dress and bathe himself and the lady of the house spends considerable time turning off the electric lights when they are not in use . . .

In case of a deep and long-lasting depression, the summer and winter houses, the town house, the shooting lodge and the country home are closed, all but the favorite servant are sent to the soup lines, and the master, madam and the rest of the menage crowd into the 15-room gatehouse . . .

PHILIP M. WOOL WORTH South Bend, Ind.

Career Girl's Goal

Sir:

. . . Perhaps it has never occurred to Adwoman Fitz-Gibbon that liberal-arts graduates (and their colleges) have some other goal in mind besides a "lush" seat in the boss's lap [TIME, Nov. 16]. Does her outlook for the future see the cream of our college female crop focusing on dollar signs and useless jobs? Does she think any self-respecting college placement service would want to see its "intelligent, attractive girls" trained four academic years to coo in the ears of three chins and an ulcer?

I wish she could read this and know from at least one 21-year-old liberal-arts grad that in spite of attitudes like hers as to what a college education might be good for, it is possible to seek out and find the permanent values of life. Let the colleges go on trying to instill the genuine motives of productiveness and contribution in their students; as for Adwoman Fitz-Gibbon, she would be helpful if she would stick to selling girdles.

CAROL ANN GAUSS

Berwyn, Ill.

The U.S. & Britain

Sir:

Your article on relations between the U.S. and Britain [TIME, Nov. 16] is alarmingly true and voices a realization from which many an anxious Briton has shrunk in the hope that it may somehow disappear. For leftists the world over the simple rule is that the U.S. can never, ever, be in the right. Thus to nearly one-half of the United Kingdom's electorate since World War II any good word for America or Americans becomes not only a denial of their political selves but, what is even worse, an implication that Toryism may, after all, have something to offer.

H. N. Fox Blackpool, England

Sir:

Your article is most interesting, but nevertheless extremely biased. You point out repeatedly that the fault of our strained relationship rests, for the most part, with Britain's failure to recognize that the basic conflict is worldwide. It appears to me the fact we have strained relations indicates that our leadership abilities leave much to be desired . . . Our past actions have clearly indicated our policies are not unquestionable, but in many cases badly in need of improvement. Difference of opinion is a healthy sign and should be welcomed. Subservience to the common cause is necessary, but subservience to another nation's desires tends to compromise the common goal. I was shocked by your statement, "British China policy is mainly the product of pure ignorance." For a nation which sold China out to the Reds and ultimately turned 450 million people over to the Communists, we ought to use the word "ignorance" with more reserve.

(M/SGT.) WILLIAM F. OSMOND U.S.A.F. Gulfport, Miss.

Sir:

. . . Such an objective discussion of the ills which beset Anglo-American relations . . . has rarely, if ever, been presented in any English-language magazine . . . British inability to forget that what is now the world's most powerful and independent nation was once a British colony manifests itself as a form of anti-Americanism which would be foolish if it were not dangerous. Failure to recognize this . . . will only tend to deepen the conflict to the delight and benefit of the common adversary.

CHARLES R. JACOB JR. Georgetown, British Guiana

Sir:

. . . Thank God there is a difference in Anglo-American foreign policy. Our British allies present a far clearer and more realistic picture of world affairs than our amateur diplomats will ever be capable of grasping. On every issue mentioned in your article the British stand is both sensible and wise. Failure to recognize Red China and continued support of a corrupt government on Formosa can only endanger our policies in the Far East. It is to Nehru and not to Chiang or Rhee that the State Department must look for Asian leadership. As for the naive idea of building a strong Arabic power, we have already seen the danger of power falling into hands of men like Mossadegh and Naguib.

You may discount the years of experience that England has held as a world leader, but experience will tell in the long run, and it is the British who have it . . .

THOMAS J. SMITH 2nd Lieutenant, U.S.A.F. Tachikawa, Japan

Sir:

You neglected to state who, in the wars to date, stood apart from whom. As spokesman for a nation which, as recently as twelve years ago, stood idly by until war came in its own back door, TIME should be a little less harsh on Britain, whose record to date has been considerably better.

JOHN MACFIE Sioux Lookout, Ont.

Sir:

. . . What I like about this article is that it goes deep into the historic background and underlying causes, which are necessary to explain the present dissensions. Having lived in England during the "Uncle Shylock" phase of our relations, in 1922-25, and seen that pass, I have every confidence that the fundamental common sense of the British and American people will assert itself over the ill-wishers and troublemakers, and that we shall stand together in the next world conflict ii, unfortunately, it comes, as we have done in the last two.

SAMUEL ELIOT MORISON* Boston

Faith, Morals & Homosexuality

Sir:

[Lord Samuel] may well represent the "common sense" point of view not only of Britons but perhaps also of many Americans in his statement that with regard to the current prevalence of homosexuality, "we should return to . . . a requirement that the rules of conduct should be based upon the universal moral law [TIME, Nov. 16]." Apparently he fails to see that there can be no universal moral law without a framework of a faith within which to establish it . . . We have a serious predicament in this era that follows the dismissal of Christian presuppositions from daily life. If [Lord Samuel] wishes to preach the gospel, all well and good; to challenge his nation to adhere to a "common sense" standard rather beats the air.

Fortunately, there are evidences today of extension and deepening of Christian life in our midst. Nor have the physiological and psychological disciplines dictated a denial of morality, the Kinsey heresy that the prevalence of sin justifies its existence notwithstanding. Since there are moral differences amongst homosexuals just as among "normal" (frightfully illusive term) folk, it would seem that we need not only a teaching of moral principles but also a fresh view of the various levels of behavior in homosexuality . . .

(THE REV.) ROBERT HILL PORTER

All Souls' [Episcopal] Church Waterbury, Conn.

Poet & Producer

Sir:

TIME, Oct. 5, is in error in stating that the late Dylan Thomas' The Doctor and the Devils is at present being filmed under the title Doctor in the House.

Doctor in the House . . . which I am producing . . . is taken from Richard Gordon's bestselling novel of that name, and deals with the loves and lives of present-day medical students. It is a lighthearted Technicolor comedy and, as such, bears no relation to Dylan Thomas' The Doctor and the Devils, the story of Burke and Hare, the 19th century body snatchers.

BETTY E. Box J. Arthur Rank Productions, Ltd. Iver Heath, Bucks., England

Man of the Year

Sir:

Please let me suggest . . . the Honorable Henry Cabot Lodge Jr.

ARMAND MORISSETTE Lowell, Mass.

Sir:

. . . Mr. Adlai Stevenson . . . who, in the most anomalous position in public life, has kept both his head and his humor . . .

CLARE EAMES New York City

Sir:

. . . Malenkov, Stalin's unholy ghost. The most important, most dangerous man in the world today.

HARRY A. GALLON JR. New York City

Sir:

. . . India's Lieut. General K. S. Thimayya, a man doing a commendable job in the world's toughest position.

M. O'BRIEN Granville, N.Y.

Sir:

. . . Syngman Rhee . . .

HANS A. BERLINER Long Beach, Calif.

Sir:

. . . Major General William F. Dean . . . An inspiration to all his countrymen . . . MRS. LLOYD BALDRIDGE San Diego, Calif.

Sir:

. . . Ben Hogan--a great golfer . . .

ROGER S. GREENBERG Detroit

Sir:

. . . Dr. Albert Schweitzer . . .

NICHOLAS PAPAFILIS Cairo, Egypt

Sir:

... Sir Winston Churchill . . . Who else ? . . .

STEPHEN MAGNUS Winnetka, Ill.

* Whose History oj the United States Navy in World War II has already reached eight volumes, with half a dozen more to come.

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