YOUR report on the introduction of the Vietnam-built £14 million MV Alfred by Pentland Ferries makes interesting reading (“‘Hugely significant' new ferry flies the flag for low emission transport", The Herald, December 12) and inevitably must draw comparison with the debacle of the two ferries being built for Calmac in the now-nationalised Ferguson Marine yard in Port Glasgow.
What in reality is hugely significant is that whilst everyone wants commercial shipbuilding to flourish again in Scotland, how can it when, at costs so far, if it had wanted Calmac could have had about seven Alfreds for one incomplete Glen Sannox and a hull?
Alan Fitzpatrick, Dunlop.
Stinker of a problem
IT is good that Darrell Desbrow, a keen crucverbalist, feels much better after sending you one or two cross words (Letters, Deccember 12). It is apparent that Mr Desbrow is also a keen student of English, having appeared in your pages in December 2016, holding up a tray in a local store which he said had " be-trayed" the English language. Said tray depicted the word "Tasty" as a noun.
Mr Desbrow makes a good case for the exclusion of proper nouns and names from cryptic crosswords. I wonder, however, what he would make of my addiction to the unique Myops and his famous Wee Stinker crosswords. These include cryptic and general knowledge clues, as well as proper nouns and names; one difficulty in solving the Wee Stinker is in detecting which of these types of clue Myops has concocted for his followers.
David Miller, Milngavie.
MUCH as I sympathise with Darrell Desbrow's opinion that crosswords should contain no proper names (the solution, incidentally, to his clue, Letters December 12), there are some names that simply beg to be encrypted:
Larry first browsed larder to cook for Herald correspondent (7,7)
Dr Hamish Maclaren, Stirling.
Cone pioneers
BY way of some clarification on when the first cone appeared on the Duke’s head ("Those were the days: Duke of Wellington, 1950 and 1959 (NB: No cone)" The Herald, December 12), I attended the Glasgow College of Building over the period 1967-1972 and attest that the first placement took place during this period, although I cannot be more specific. We used to walk to the college from Central Station each weekday and the cone was usually in place on a Monday morning with it being removed by the authorities usually by the Tuesday/Wednesday and then the weekly cycle of on/off continued. Being students ourselves, we had heard that students were responsible at that time.
Andrew Carlyle, Prestwick.
Intrepid traveller
I NOTE that Alan Simpson found the Forth crossing confusing ("Mr Men are not sexist, the Forth Bridge is confusing", The Herald, December 12) pity my four-year-old granddaughter in Surrey.
Her mother has informed her that they are going to France for the weekend and that will involve travelling in the car, on a train, under the sea.
Poor soul.
Duncan Shaw, Kilwinning.
Give it a rest
I NOTE that even your cartoons are adopting American expressions. Steven Camley captioned his effort on Tuesday with "Several short sprints to the restroom."
Most of us use the well-tried "toilets" rather than "restrooms".
If it's not the clumsy expression "the get-go" instead of "the start" it's another silly Americanism. Maybe this is preparing the country for our trade deals after Brexit.
Ivor Matheson, Dumfries.
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