Letters, Jun. 11, 1956

Georgia Without George

Sir:

You head your May 21 article "Georgia Loses" and admit that Senator George is a great statesman and Herman Talmadge is the overwhelming choice of the Georgia voters for Senator; with Statesman George as ambassador to NATO and ex-Governor Talmadge as Georgia's preferred Senator, it is hard to see how Georgia loses.

ROBERT S. DUGGAN JR.

Atlanta

Sir:

A Senator is a mirror of his respective state. That includes the future Senator from Georgia, Herman Talmadge. Why is it that Georgians prefer that hick wonder of callousness, ignorance and narrow-mindedness to a true American gentleman ?

MARIA RAMSPOTT Rehoboth, Mass.

Sir: You refer to Camilla as the county seat of "the bottom of Georgia's backwoods." May I also point out that it is the peanut capital of the world, only 24 miles from Moultrie, the watermelon capital of the world, and only 28 miles from Thomasville, where President Eisenhower goes to shoot backwoods birds, who doubtless appreciate the honor bestowed on them ?

ANN WALDRON

Lakeland, Fla.

The New Navy

Sir:

In a world ringed with crisis it is reassuring to read "The U.S. Navy in the Atomic Age" [May 21] and to be able to take off our hats respectfully to a great service—our Navy—ever mindful of proud tradition and accomplishment but never too steeped in the past to change with the times to best serve our nation.

RICHARD A. VELZ

Richmond, Va.

Sir:

No Navy man will question the praise given Arleigh Burke in your fine article; however, I think the statement that "Burke was a long time changing Airman Mitscher's prejudice against surface sailors . . ." can justly be questioned. Pete Mitscher was not only a great air commander but a very rugged sailorman; before becoming a flyer, he had had experience in many types of surface craft. There has always been close union between flyers and nonflyers in our Navy; here was one of the great differences between our naval air arm and the British. During World War II, when a British carrier visited San Fancisco, a curious American officer asked the carrier's "Number One" (who was not a flyer) if the two branches understood each other's problems. Did they get along well? The British commander replied: "I hate the bloody crates, and I despise the bastards who fly 'em!"

HARVEY HAISLIP

Captain, U.S.N. (ret.) Claremont, Calif.

Sir: You should be taken to task for not giving out with the story prevalent in the Fleet concerning "31-Knot Burke." While commanding a division of destroyers, the admiral somehow got off course and ended up in a minefield. When asked by his immediate superior what in hell he was doing over in that minefield, he calmly replied: "31 knots."

(YNC) C. O. MYERS, U.S.N.

c/o Postmaster, San Francisco

Sir: Lieut. Gordon Gray Jr. no doubt appreciates the new speed record title you have bestowed upon him, but again he may not, for such a record is nonexistant. Gray holds the 500-kilometer closed circuit speed record and not the 50-kilometer speed record, which does not exist.

(JOC) H. C. VARNER, U.S.N.

Naval Aviation News Washington, D.C.

Trouble with the Phillies

Sir: