Times Crossword Better

To the editors:

My usual early-morning breakfast companion is The Crimson, which I very much enjoy reading. The Crimson has it all: interesting news articles, good sports coverage, much-needed information on the real world, well-chosen comics, and...a pathetic crossword. I don't know whether it's a result of the significant layout changes from the beginning of this year, but the fact remains that the crossword is different (read: worse) than it was in the 1996-97 school year. It's much easier (certainly able to be completed in less than half a lecture) and often poorly formatted, as Friday's oversized-box blunder demonstrates. It's interesting to note that Joshua Kaufman's column singing the praises of the illustrious crossword ("Viva la Crossword," Feb. 5) made certain to delineate that he was referring to the New York Times Crossword only. All crossword-lovers will agree that the Times crossword is the superior choice; perhaps we could enjoy a well-formatted version of it in The Crimson every day? MARY-BETH A. MUCHMORE '00   Feb. 6, 1998