Letters: Dec. 10, 1928

Byrd Flayed

Sirs:

I am pleased to note that TIME has not joined the other magazines in the ballyhoo for the Byrd expedition. Up here in the Northland we are interested in explorers who let their deeds speak for themselves. What a difference between Wilkins and Byrd! Wilkins and Eilson start out with a handful of men and reach their goal by dint of their own hard work and perseverance. Afterwards they speak of the hardships as being a matter of course and part of the day's work. Their unassuming personalities have endeared them to all Alaskans who came in contact with them.

But Byrd! After months of writing articles about the difficulty of securing men as gallant and hardy as himself, and articles of the dreadful hardships to which he subjects himself, he boards his craft like a conquering hero, midst tooting of horns and beating of tin pans, and mounts the poop deck in stately grandeur while the crew sweat below. When near the pole they pass the deadline beyond which no person but Byrd himself may send back any articles, for fear they might not exaggerate the hardships enough. How terrible it must be to be away from civilization with no consolation except phonographs with stacks of records and radios and a piano and cigarettes and five-foot bookshelves, and not knowing where the next meal is coming from till the chef beats the gong in the galley. And the racking suspense of waiting for word from his staff that all is well and the path to the pole blazed and strewn with roses for the intrepid explorer Byrd. Let us pray!

E. G. MOORE McKinley Park, Alaska

TIME cannot be induced to ballyhoo anything. But before he left the United States, Commander Byrd saw his face on TIME'S cover, and in TIME'S pages a concise account of his newsworthy adventure. For more Byrd news, see page 64.—ED.

Shake

Sirs:

I have noted the article appearing in the Nov. 19 issue of TIME with reference to my detail for duty in the Philippines.

I thank you for the courteous reference to my service and feel that the article must have been written by some man who served with me overseas. I would be very glad to know who he is and to shake hands with him through the columns of your distinguished publication.

PAUL B. MALONE

Major General, U. S. Army

Chicago, Ill.

Since the writer must remain anonymous, he requests the General to shake, with a special shake, the hand of the first TIME-reader he meets in the Philippines, and to report results to TIME.—ED.

Cucumber After Vodka

Sirs:

"Vodka should never be tasted, sipped, or mulled upon the tongue. It is esteemed not for its taste but for the warm and stimulant sensations with which it fires the entire gullet. Therefore Russian epicures invariably down vodka in long, potent, scorching swigs."

This footnote of yours -is illustrative of the surity and knowledge with which you handle all topics, all news. No theorist could have written this, no imagination could picture it, it required the masterful information of a TIME editor.

Hardly an omission, there is yet an addition to be made to the epicurean formula for downing vodka. A bit of freshly pickled cucumber should be ready to use as a "chaser," adding finesse to the performance and furthering the comfort of the bibber.