BUT STRANGEST OF ALL WAS THE LACK OF "LETTERS TO THE EDITOR". IT WOULD SEEM THAT IN A CITY LIKE SAN FRANCISCO, CONTAINING SOME 700,000 PEOPLE, SOMEONE WOULD HAVE AN OPINION ON A CHARGE SUCH AS THAT MADE BY WOLDEN. AND OF THESE PEOPLE WITH OPINIONS, SOME WOULD WRITE TO THEIR NEWSPAPERS.

BUT IN ALL THE ISSUES OF ALL THREE PAPERS SINCE THE NEWS BROKE, APPROXIMATELY EIGHT LETTERS HAVE APPEARED IN PRINT. PERHAPS THE "CONSPIRACY OF SILENCE IS STILL WORKING.

THE NEWS-CALL BULLETIN, IN ONE ISSUE, PUBLISHED SOME SIX LETTERS, DIVIDED EVENLY PRO AND CON. THE PRO BEING MAINLY AGREEMENT THAT WOLDEN WAS "PLAYING DIRTY" BY USING SWEAR TACTICS. ONE LETTER IN THE CHRONICLE, BY A MARRIED WOMAN AND MOTHER OF FOUR CHILDREN, FOUND WOLDEN'S ATTITUDE TOWARD THE HOMOSEXUAL "ARCHAIC" AND ARGUED THAT IF HE WAS THAT FAR BEHIND THE TIMES HE CERTAINLY WOULDN'T MAKE A GOOD MAYOR. THE EIGHTH LETTER OBJECTED TO WOLDEN'S TERM— ING SAN FRANCISCO THE "NATIONAL CAPITAL OF SEX DEVIATES". THE WRITER CLAIMED SAUSALITO, A SMALL COMMUNITY ACROSS THE GOLDEN GATE FROM SAN FRANCISCO, DESERVED THAT TITLE.

IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO WATCH THE DEVELOPMENTS NOW THAT THE ELECTION IS OVER. WE WONDER IF IT IS POSSIBLE THAT THE PAPERS WILL RELENT A BIT AND PUBLISH SOME OF THE LETTERS THEY UNDOUBTEDLY HAVE RECEIVED.

AUTHOR'S ROUNDTABLE PLANNED FOR 1960 DOB CONVENTION

OPPORTUNITY TO MEET THE AUTHORS AND HEAR THEIR DISCUSSION OF PUBLISHING PROBLEMS WITH REGARD TO LESBIAN SUBJECT MATTER WILL BE GIVEN THOSE WHO ATTEND DOB'S FIRST NATIONAL CONVENTION TO BE HELD IN San FrancisCO OVER MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND NEXT YEAR.

TENTATIVE ACCEPTANCES HAVE BEEN RECEIVED FROM CAROL HALES, AUTHOR OF "WIND WOMAN"; LISA BEN, EDITOR AND PUBLISHER OF THE FIRST LESBIAN PUBLICATION, "VICE VERSA"; ARTEMIS SMITH, AUTHOR OF "ODD GIRL"; MARION ZIMMER BRADLEY, SCIENCE FICTION WRITER; FRANCES LASALLE, FICTION WRITER WHO HAS BEEN PUBLISHED IN THE LADDER. IT IS HOPED THAT DOB WILL BE ABLE TO CONTACT MORE WRITERS IN THE FIELD BETWEEN NOW AND CONVENTION TIME.

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