Thanks for the enlightening story about the shooting death of
Esequiel Hernandez ("Attorney says Marine fired at border teen as
`last resort,' " Chronicle, July 24). Until now, I had failed to
understand how these combat-equipped Marines could have been so
savagely attacked by this teen-ager that they had to defend
themselves or die first.

But now I've got it. The Marines followed Hernandez for over 200
yards so they could show "great restraint" in shooting him as a
"last resort." The homicidal propensities of teen-aged
goatherders, armed with .22 rifles, are well known in Texas
folklore.

Those Marines were indeed lucky to have survived the deadly
threat to their lives. Too bad Hernandez wasn't as lucky.

Arthur R. Sobey
Houston