(4 of 4)
Sir: Your "Golden Age of Bridges" omitted that milestone, the Mackinac Bridge. "Mighty Mac" is the outstanding contribution to bridge history in the period between the Golden Gate Bridge and the yet to be completed Verrazano-Narrows structure. Completed in 1957, Mackinac far exceeds the Golden Gate in its lean across the Straits of Mackinac. Its total superstructure length is more than 3½ miles. Its suspension section between cable anchors stretches 8,614 ft., more than 1,000 ft. longer than the comparable dimension of the Verrazano Bridge. Only Mackinac's 3,800-ft. main span is shorter than those of Golden Gate and Verrazano.
PAUL D. SMITH Cleveland
Sir: I wish that those superengineers who weave those fabulous cables to support tremendous bridges would design a simple three-wire clothes line that will not sag.
MRS. V. O. FRITZE San Antonio, Texas
Unsporty Entertainment?
Sir: All of us concerned with the integrity of sports are disturbed over the CBS purchase of the Yankees precisely because of the kind of thinking revealed by that TV executive who said, "I can't see the difference between Mickey Mantle and Jackie Gleason. They're both entertainers" [Aug. 21]. If Mantle's new owners ever persuade him that he is being paid just to entertain, baseball can settle gently into its coffin. It is worth noting that some of these same executives a few years ago were unable to distinguish the difference between a Gleason show and a TV quiz contest.
RICHARD L. GAINES Lawrenceville, N.J.
Sir: I heartily favor purchase of the Yankees by CBS. Perhaps professional entertainers can bring new life to what has become an exceedingly dull sport.
JOHN M. ERVING JR. Gulfport, Fla.