LETTERS

Dear Editor:

I bought my first copy of ONE in a newsstand here in New York City. The October issue is the only one I have seen, and if the others are comparable, it is a great step in the right direction.

Dear Sir:

MP

New York, N. Y.

This "perspicacious reader" guesses that the author of "Evolution's Next Step" in the November issue is Philip Wylie. (Wrong: the Editor). He does not guess, however, when he characterizes that essay as one of the most turgid, prolix and flatulent specimens of irrelevant nonsense ever to be perpetrated upon the readers of a magazine supposedly dedicated to the clarification of important issues. While G. Stanley Hayden's pitiful parable in the same issue has at least the negative virtue of brevity, the presumed Mr. Wylie's contribution lacks even that distinction; it occupies, ad nauseum, fully one-sixth of the magazine's valuable space.

I hope the printing of this mish-mash does not mean that we are going to be assaulted by the deservedly unsalable meanderings of people with Big Names, whose identity, moreover, will not even be revealed. If you cannot get readable material from such authors, by all means decline their efforts in favor of pieces by those who may lack literary reputations but who have the inestimable advantages of sincerity, originality, and plain speech. Berkeley, Calif.

Dear Editor:

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May I offer a small criticism of the very learned article put forth by D. B. Vest? What in the world was it about? I read and reread it and came to the conclusion that my education had been sadly neglected. I have never delved into the subject of evolution, and the lives of insects, however fascinating, failed to help me understand (Mr.?) Vests' brilliant effort. Are we to gather that homosexuals are links to a better form of humanity, stepping stone to something barely discernible to our present civilization, or have I missed the point entirely? I can see our intelligentsia shaking their heads sadly at this letter. "How could anyone be so dense?" say they,-"No wonder we get nowhere." Forgive but please enlighten me.

one

Lowell, Mass.

The Editors:

The promise for new and "internationally known" blood made on the center spread is glowing; but if this is the blood of "D. B. Vest" (I am not perspicacious enough to even guess his/her identity), then the transfusion is in vain. The patient will surely die. Such gobbledegook I never read. I should say I have tried to read it. On the third time through I began to recognize a sophomoric

of scientific jargon and to suspect a pseudo-fascist tendency in the author. I fear that he must not be known to very many millions of readers if he writes often in that vein. I don't wonder he found no market for the piece; but is it suitable for any publication? Perhaps I am not mentally equipped to understand D. B. Vest; then I don't think many of my friends are either. (We did absorb much from Simpson's "Meaning of Evolution" a few years ago and it is on my list for re-reading this winter.)

Dear Sirs:

California.

I want to commend the Staff. ONE is a welcome ray of light penetrating the darkness of ignorance on a vital issue. In fact, it's the only medium of expression some of us have ever had.

Dear Sir:

#

Honolulu, Hawaii.

I find your approach to this difficult subject stimulating and very different from that of other magazines. I should much prefer to engage in some of the controversy that seethes so enticingly across your pages, but I am afraid that, since it takes at least a month for ONE to reach me, my contributions would inevitably be stale long before they arrived. As it is, I must make one comment. Please use more discrimination in printing "atrocity" stories which may only serve to inflame tempers and prolong grievances on both sides. Meanwhile, accept my assurance that you have one more enthusiastic supporter..

Durban, South Africa.

Ladies and Gentlemen of The Editorial Board: I am interested in ONE'S functionings because of the position it occupies in human relationships. So how's chances of getting you to answer these questions? Is ONE, itself, intended to accomplish anything in particular? Is ONE the voice of an organization? If so, which? Why do you print an organized confusion? Have you canons, lights, or a yardstick for ascertaining what is natural and what is not natural? Why do you refer to homosexuals as a minority? Do you believe that heterosexuality, or any sexuality, is naturally normal? Los Angeles, Calif.

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