I've been vacationing on your wonderful island since 1963. A recent visit prompts some unhappy thoughts: Your Government seems very pleased with the Island's growing cruise ship business, and I can't for the life of me understand why. The cruise passengers don't stay in your hotels, they don't eat in your restaurants, and they're here and gone in a couple of days, leaving their trash behind. Which brings us to the matter of their habits and behaviour. Have you seen Tobacco Bay lately? Wall to wall bodies, literally, as mobbed as Coney Island! This is not the kind of Bermuda experience anyone wants -- the passengers themselves were complaining about the crowding! And for the first time in nearly 40 years of snorkelling there, I saw garbage (soda cans, paper bags) in the water and on the bottom of the bay! Face it, these cruise ship passengers are the rubes, the slobs, the yobbos of America (just look at them!) The worst thing for Bermuda would be to become a destination for the masses like Nassau and Jamaica. Don't let your Government's greed get the better of your Island. You saw what happened when so many of your big hotels were encouraged to over-expand, and went bust as a result, and now your Government seems to be repeating the same mistake by over-expanding your cruise ship business (Dockyard and Hamilton and St.

George's? -- Good grief, the Island is only 20 miles long! On a more particular note: One of the great treats of Bermuda has always been the ferry, and now I see you've ended evening service, alas. But then, by way of compensation, shouldn't you do something to improve the very problematic taxi service on the island? In two consecutive days recently, I endured waits of one hour, and one hour and a quarter, for taxis that had been ordered in advance! Instead of an explanation for the delay, I was given smiles and shrugs and a variety of excuses. Your taxi drivers themselves are quite courteous and friendly, but the level of service is unacceptably amateurish (and at prices that are far higher than New York City!) Airlines, restaurants and business engagements don't operate on "Island time'' and neither should your taxis, if they are to offer a serious professional service.

JEFFERY WOOD New York City