Don't Create a Washington City-State

``D.C. Needs Voting Voice,'' a Nov. 29 editorial asserts.

The District of Columbia was originally carved out of the states of Maryland and Virginia in the shape of a rectangle. Later the part taken from Virginia was returned to that state. Why cannot most of the district be returned to Maryland, reserving a small portion for the national buildings and monuments? The people of Washington could elect representatives as their population would allow, and they could vote for senators from greater Maryland. Then there would be no need for a city-state in our union. Goldwin Smith Pollard, Richboro, Pa. Don't Create a Washington City-State

The District of Columbia is and should be a federal government compound, containing the three branches (executive, legislative, and judicial) and representing all of the states. If the District becomes one of the states, the principal headquarters of the three arms of government will be isolated within the confines and jurisdiction of this one state. Perhaps those employed by the federal government would have divided loyalties between local and national affiliations.

I was born and grew up in D.C. and always felt I was privileged to live within a federal district which was reserved for the seats of the United States government.

Many residents are drawn to Washington, D.C., either to serve the government offices, represent their state before the Congress, or peddle influence. Most of these people have retained their legal status as residents of the states from which they came.

Washington, D.C., belongs to all citizens of the United States as the official headquarters of the nation and as a national monument. It should remain that way in symbolic terms and in fact. E. M. Grinder, Williamsburg, Va. Let shop owners decide

After reading the article ``British Bid to Permit Sunday Shopping Draws Cheers, Jeers,'' Dec. 6, I think that shops should have the ability to open on Sundays if they so desire.

When the law which restricts shopping on Sundays was established, people who had no religious beliefs were not considered at all. They have a right to shop on Sundays if they wish. By abolishing this law, British leaders are not implying that stores must open on Sundays. If store owners wish not to open they don't have to. It should be left up to the shop owner to decide, not the government. Brandi Campbell, Fayetteville, Ga., Counterpane School Tune up education

While reading the Cover Story ``American Orchestras Shape Their Future,'' Nov. 22, I was dismayed that there was no discussion of the serious lack of support for arts education in American schools, especially in public schools.

Music, like all artistic, scientific, or academic disciplines, is best appreciated by those who have been exposed to and participated in its long-standing formal traditions. And unless arts education is given adequate attention in American educational plans, audiences will fail to mirror the actual diversity of our society, and will continue to decline as that diversity grows.

Educational programs or superficial appeals to diversity undertaken by orchestral institutions cannot possibly counteract the absence of a learning process during children's and young adults' formative years. Perhaps orchestras should focus their development energy on lobbying educators and elected officials to commit themselves to providing a quality education for every child. The ``classical'' music tradition contains some of the highest expressions of the human spirit. It is unfair to denigrate that tradition by inappropriate application of our current - and often justified - notions of plurality. Patrice Newman, New York

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