From Our Readers

Slavery Statistics I am irritated by a statement made in the “Watching the World” item entitled “Crime’s Fastest-Growing Business.” (December 22, 2000) The item mentions that 11.5 million slaves were shipped out of Africa during 400 years of slavery. Slavery ended in the United States in 1865. Four hundred years back takes you to the year 1465—long before the Jamestown colony was even settled!

M. B., United States

According to the “Encyclopædia Britannica,” the transport of African slaves began “as early as the 1450s.” Historians say that abducted Africans were taken to plantations on islands in the Atlantic long before the slave trade extended to the Caribbean and the United States.—ED.

Identity Theft I read your article “They Can Steal Your Identity!” (March 22, 2001) with personal interest. Someone stole my checking account number, made counterfeit checks, and spent almost $800! It took a lot of time for me to fix the situation—closing the account, opening a new one, and filing a police report. I’ve learned to be careful about giving out personal information.

D. S., United States

My husband was away on a business trip and had his briefcase stolen with all our credit cards and checkbooks. The article on identity theft told us exactly how to handle matters, including contacting the fraud departments of our local credit bureaus. This prevented the thieves from opening further lines of credit. I would never have thought of doing that on my own.

H. C., United States

The Sun I often thank Jehovah for the sun, the moon, and our beautiful earth, but I usually give little thought to these things. After reading the article “The Exceptional Nature of Our Sun” (March 22, 2001), I was moved to give a heartfelt prayer, thanking God for his generous and priceless gifts.

B. P., United States

I am nine years old, and I want to thank you for writing such interesting articles—like this one about the sun. I really learn a lot of things when I read Awake!

A. B., United States

Hair I work as a hairdresser, and when I read the article “A Closer Look at Your Hair” (April 8, 2001), I was delighted. I gave a copy to my employer. She was impressed and gave it to the other girls at work. Thank you for that practical information.

D. L., Romania

Thank you for the footnote referring to a previous article, “Alopecia—Living in Silence With Hair Loss.” (April 22, 1991) For 17 years I have been living with this problem. In a world where the only thing that counts is appearance and where any who are different are rejected, it is encouraging to know that I have the support of Jehovah and his organization.

M. G., Italy

Artist’s Story I serve as a traveling overseer of Jehovah’s Witnesses, and I know of a family where the father has never progressed much as a Christian. He is a fine person, but he has a hobby of making model war airplanes. He has dogfights on his computer and spends hours shooting down enemy warplanes. We’ve tried to help him see the need to change his attitude about war. Now we have this excellent story about Dorothy Horle called “Glorifying Peace Instead of War.” (April 8, 2001) I plan to share it with him.

P. P., Dominican Republic