To the Editors of the CRIMSON:

Reference your editorial of 6 November 1961, the "West" Cambridge emphasis smacks remarkably of what the Crimson most wishes to avoid--a non-native, ill-advised intelligence of a local political situation.

With complete appreciation of what the Crimson is trying to emphasize, let me itemize how you have missed:

1. Thomas Coates lives at 327 Concord Avenue, an address as deep in "West" Cambridge as that of Don Belin.

2. Mayor Crane and Councilor DeGuglielmo, although now residents of "West" Cambridge, have their chief support and constituency from East Cambridge (DeGuglielmo), and from Ward 4 (Crane), from whence they came, etc. East Cambridge, especially, has seldom lacked a more than adequate support in Cambridge government.

3. Why only four from "West" Cambridge, when only two of the four you endorse are actually representative of the current you apparently think ought to be curbed?

Only in its most elementary sense does Proportional Representation mean geographical distribution, especially in Cambridge, where social, cultural, and racial groups are in perpetual motion.

Despite a long-standing regard for Crimson journalism, I submit that in this case the opinions of the editors were hastily formed and ought to be ignored--bad news for any newspaper, and especially Harvard's. Andrew Curcio   Vice President, Cambridge Civic Association

Editors' Note:

1. The CRIMSON regrets the mistake of placing Coates' address in East Cambridge. The point we meant to emphasize, as Mr. Curcio appreciates, remains the same. Although Coates resides in West Cambridge, his electoral strength and constituency will undoubtedly lie in the population of eastern and central Cambridge.

2. As a CCA candidate, he remains distinctly apart from the western group, including Crane and DeGuglielmo, who are really oriented toward the west.

3. The CRIMSON said not that CCA "western" influence ought to be "curbed," but that a balance of four CCA representatives of the Brattle-Harvard-M.I.T. area, one CCA spokesman for the east and central area, and four independents would be healthy for the city.