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EDWARD C. MANN
Holly, Mich.
A Natural Consequence
Sir / Your cover story on Carlos Castaneda and Indian sorcery [March 5] presented me rather like the Clifford Irving of the mushroom-munching set, a reputation I neither enjoy nor deserve.
I made Mr. Castaneda aware of the fact that I intended to write a magazine article on him. Mr. Castaneda invited me into his seminar, invited me to visit the "place of power" described in my Penthouse article, and even gave me his home address in Los Angeles, a courtesy he extends to very few.
I did not deviously "procure" a copy of Journey to Ixtlan, nor did I "paste" one together. Even the most casual reading of my Penthouse article reveals that the greater portion of it has little to do with Journey to Ixtlan. In the few instances where there is redundancy between the article I wrote and Ixtlan, it occurred naturally as a consequence of the fact that during his stay at Irvine, Mr. Castaneda spoke freely of the material that subsequently appeared in the book Journey to Ixtlan.
JOHN WALLACE, PH.D.
Associate Professor of Administration/Psychology
University of California
Irvine, Calif.
-TIME is glad to print Mr. Wallace's side of the story. Castaneda, however, says he does not remember meeting Professor Wallace and was not aware that Wallace was writing an article about him. Wallace's wife did attend Castaneda's class and Castaneda says it is possible that he may have spoken informally with her husband.
One More Prayer
Sir / Under no circumstances would I put down in any way the gallant and courageous returned prisoners [March 19]. The contrast, however, between our happy and apparently healthy P.O.W.s, and the "grotesque sculptures of scarred flesh and gnarled limbs" who have been "politically re-educated" by Mr. Thieu, might make one more prayer of thanksgiving seem in order: "Dear God, thank you for allowing me to be captured by the enemy, and not by the friends I was sent to fight for."
JOHN M. MORRIS
Youngstown. Ohio
Sir / Now that we have once again been told about the tiger cages at Con Son and the barbarous tortures the South Vietnamese use in eliciting information from captives—ad nauseam—isn't it about time we have a decent in-depth study concerning the terror bombings of marketplaces and meetings, the kidnapings and murders of civilians committed by the Viet Cong?
MURRAY FURGANG
New York City