Stories from Sunday, June 2, 2002

LOS ANGELES -- Eminem's record label was so nervous about music pirates cannibalizing sales of the rapper's latest CD that it released "The Eminem Show" nine days early, disrupting well-laid marketing plans. But when the CD hit stores Memorial Day weekend, it still managed to debut at No. 1 in record time...

ON THE NET LIBERTY MEMORIAL: www.libertymemorialmuseum.org WANT TO GO? The Liberty Memorial is located near the corner of Pershing Road and Main Street in Kansas City, Mo. The memorial is visible from another Kansas City landmark, Union Station, which sits on the north side of Pershing Road...

PEORIA, Ill. -- Not many exhibits are likely to give more pleasure than "Whirligigs and Weathervanes," which opened this spring in the Lakeview Museum's Folk Art Gallery here and continues through Sept. 2. On display are nearly 40 examples of the early weather forecasters and wind-powered toys -- many cleverly crafted, many whimsical and some remarkably handsome...

CARTHAGE, Mo. -- Pink cheeks. Warm toes. It wouldn't mean much to most moms, but to Barbara Hawkins, seeing those things in her 12-year-old son, Will, means everything. It was 2:30 a.m. Monday, April 29, and she had never seen her son with pink cheeks and warm toes...

Unable to work because of a spinal cord injury, Jim Cleaveland's only income is a monthly Social Security disability check. His wife, Judy, is retired from her bank job and now works at a Kansas City area Wal-Mart to help make ends meet. The Cleavelands say the two of them can get by. But there is an extra expense in their lives: raising a 4-year-old granddaughter...

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- While many Missourians may be familiar with the World War I service records of Harry S. Truman and John J. Pershing, few may know the details of the thousands of others who served during the Great War. In an effort to change that, Missouri has completed work on an online database containing the records of the 145,000 soldiers and Marines who enlisted in the state to serve in the war...

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. -- Gov. George Ryan and key lawmakers moved closer to erasing a $1.35 billion budget deficit Saturday and wrapping up their overtime legislative session. Ryan and legislative leaders emerged from closed-door talks Saturday declaring a "loose" agreement on borrowing $750 million against future proceeds from a national tobacco lawsuit settlement...

ST. LOUIS -- A suspended middle school principal will be back on the job Monday, after an investigation found he did not abuse a student last month. Fanning Middle School principal Frank Muehl-heausler was suspended with pay May 22 after being accused of striking a sixth-grade boy after the student knocked off his eyeglasses...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The city and its firefighters union agreed to extend their labor agreement for another month and submit a dispute over pay to federal mediation. The agreement had been set to expire at midnight Friday. It was extended through June 30...

LIBERTY, Mo. -- The damage caused by a church treasurer's embezzlement goes beyond the stolen money, church members said at the man's sentencing. "Figuratively speaking, he deliberately picked the pockets of his fellow church members, many who helped raise him in the church from childhood," said Thomas E. Sims, a retired Kansas City Municipal Court judge and chairman of the board of First Presbyterian Church in North Kansas City...

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. -- Five fraternity members from Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville have been accused of felony hazing in connection with an alleged initiation beating that hospitalized a pledge. A sixth member was charged with misdemeanor hazing...

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- From the top of the Liberty Memorial's 217-foot tower, visitors can look down onto most of Kansas City. But the real point of a visit to the memorial is looking back. The nation's largest monument to World War I, and among the largest to any of the country's wars, the Liberty Memorial reopened this summer after two years of repairs to its crumbling base, required after decades of neglect. ...

Landscape photographs capture Mother Nature's beauty in all its splendor -- a beauty we can experience again and again when viewing and sharing our images. With the summer travel season approaching, many shutterbugs will be exploring the great outdoors in search of good landscape photographs. If you plan to be one of them, here are a few tips to help you land the perfect landscape picture...

China mine accidents leave 29 miners dead BEIJING -- An explosion rocked one coal mine in China and poison gas filled a second in separate incidents on the same day, killing as many as 29 miners, the official Xinhua News Agency said Saturday. Accidents at China's notoriously unsafe and poorly regulated mines killed more than 5,000 workers last year. In the last month alone, 329 miners died...

MEXICO CITY -- Gunmen ambushed a truckload of people on a mountain road in southern Mexico, killing 26, state police said Saturday. Oaxaca Police Commander Jonas Gutierrez Coro said the Friday evening attack apparently involved a land dispute. According to a news release from the state attorney general's office, truck driver Alberto Antonio Perez said he was driving the passengers from Santiago Sochiltepec when gunmen stopped the truck as it reached a settlement called Agua Fria at about 7 p.m...

ISLAMABAD, Pakistan -- Pakistan's president, stopping short of matching India's pledge not to use nuclear weapons first, said Saturday "any sane individual" would not allow tensions between the two nations to escalate into a nuclear war. However, the growing fear of a wider conflict between the nations prompted the United Nations on Saturday to tell its staffers in the region to send their families home. ...

NABLUS, West Bank -- Israeli troops searched house-to-house Saturday as tanks patrolled deserted streets in four Palestinian cities and towns in a sweep of the West Bank that has rounded up dozens of suspected militants over the past two days. In Nablus, scene of the biggest operation, a Palestinian man was shot dead by Israeli forces, witnesses say...

HOLGUIN, Cuba -- In a blistering speech before hundreds of thousands of people in a drenching rain Saturday, President Fidel Castro said the democracy President Bush wants to see in Cuba would be a corrupt and unfair system that ignores the poor. "For Mr. ...

IBADAN, Nigeria -- Wildlife groups on Saturday demanded the return of four baby gorillas believed to have been illegally captured and flown to a leading Malaysian zoo. Conservationists called it one of the most troubling cases yet in an international smuggling trade threatening Africa's great apes with extinction...

DURMEN VILLAGE, Uzbekistan -- Just three days before a major Islamic holiday, a lamb was born with white patterns on its black fleece resembling the Arabic words for Allah on one side and Mohammed on the other. The phenomenon has caused a sensation among ordinary people in this former Soviet state where most people are Muslims -- and been an annoyance to authorities in the staunchly secular government...

NEW YORK -- Family vacations should be fun -- for everyone. And that's the No. 1 selling point for a trip to the city, says William Travis, an editor at Fodors Travel Publications. "What's good about city vacations is that they're good for any age because there is so much to do," says Travis...

Raised beds are all the rage in gardening these days, but don't revamp your ground just yet. Raised beds are a lot of work, so before you grab your shovel, stop to consider whether they really are necessary or beneficial. First realize that we are talking about two things: raised and beds. You cannot have "raised" without beds, but you can have beds without their being raised...

Television decorating guru Lynette Jennings is a strong advocate of personal style. From her program on the Discovery Channel, "Lynette Jennings Design," to her own diverse two homes, she lives it. "Design is not absolute. Its beauty is in the eye of the beholder," she says. "We need to own up to who we are and what we like and then have the courage to live the way we want, with what we want. Now that's design. Taste is personal. Period."...

POTOMAC, Md. -- The Shark strayed into the creek. Greg Norman, ahead by two strokes after the second round, struggled on almost every hole Saturday in the Kemper Open and lost his lead in the water at the sixth hole. The result was a jumbled leaderboard, with no one taking control and a bevy of players in contention...

ST. LOUIS -- Although Kurt Warner is still wearing a brace on his thumb, he said Saturday the injury that hindered him during his MVP season is history. The St. Louis Rams' quarterback threw for 4,830 yards, second highest in NFL history, and completed 68.7 percent of his passes despite playing with a sprained ligament most of the year. And now he's healthy. He took all the repetitions with the first-stringers at the team's first mandatory minicamp and had plenty of zip on the ball...

PARIS -- Legs churning, his white shirt flecked with clay, Andre Agassi grunted as he stretched to whip a forehand across his body on the 33rd stroke of a pivotal point that seemed destined to last until the sun set. The ball darted to the opposite corner, where Tommy Robredo's lunging swipe hit only air. Winded, Robredo put down his racket, walked to a 2-foot-high gate that leads to the locker room, and sat down. Agassi just bounced in place, ready for more...

STORY GROUPS Toddler Time 18 months to 2 years old (with caregiver) 10 to 10:30 a.m. Mondays Story Time 3 to 5 years old 10 to 10:30 a.m. Tuesdays and Wednesdays Lunch Bag Bunch...

P&G finalizes $1 billion stock deal with Smucker CINCINNATI -- Procter & Gamble Co. finalized a $1 billion stock deal Saturday that transferred its Jif peanut butter and Crisco cooking products lines to J.M. Smucker Co. Steven Ellcessor, the vice president of finance and administration for Smucker, said it had been interested in acquiring Jif for 20 to 25 years...

Cape Girardeau Sunday, June 2 DWIDaniel K. Upchurch, 22, of 918 N. Clark was arrested Friday for driving while intoxicated, an outstanding warrant and several traffic offenses. ArrestsCory Alan Berry, 23, of 1005 Ranney was arrested Friday for open container violations...

Cape Girardeau Sunday, June 2 Firefighters responded to the following calls Friday:At 3:22 p.m., an emergency medical service at 1215 William. At 7:08 p.m., an emergency medical service at Mason and North Main. At 7:30 p.m., an emergency medical service at 3439 William...

The true story is told of a trip to Jefferson City -- a regular errand for college presidents -- to lobby the House and Senate on the budget. Veteran lawmakers, long jaded and more than a few made cynical by political gamesmanship, sat stunned at what they heard...

State budget woes took their toll on Missouri's program of funding river ports this year. All funding for ports was eliminated for the fiscal year 2003 budget that begins July 1. In a year as tight as this one, such action was probably inevitable. And with this year's passage of Senate Bill 915, a transportation funding measure headed for the August primary ballot, voters will be able to decide whether they want increased taxes to go for transportation needs...

A friend who formerly served with this writer in the state legislature tells of a conversation with a friendly labor leader well-known in the St. Louis area. This labor leader told my former colleague excitedly, some three years or so ago, that they had in the works a promising new charter school that would soon open in the inner city. ...

During a time when many Americans were fearful of flying across the country let alone traveling overseas, Ann Ostendorf was touring the nations that were making news headlines: China, India and Pakistan. During her yearlong journey, Ostendorf said she seldom worried about her safety or feared any political wars. She spent time in China, Laos, Thailand, Vietnam, Pakistan and India before returning to the states May 25...

WASHINGTON -- Broccoli and broccoli sprouts contain a chemical that kills the bacteria responsible for most stomach cancer, say researchers, confirming the dietary advice that moms have been handing out for years. In laboratory tests the chemical, sulforaphane, killed helicobacter pylori, a bacteria that causes stomach ulcers and often fatal stomach cancers...

Two new studies on aortic aneurysms -- weak spots in the body's largest blood vessel that can burst and cause a person to drop dead -- suggest that many doctors can safely wait a little longer to operate than they used to. Surgeons have long known that small aneurysms are unlikely to break, and they typically wait until the weak spot gets big enough to worry about. However, they disagreed over whether that should be 4, 5 or 6 centimeters, or anywhere from 1.6 to 2.4 inches...

State Rep. Jason Crowell, R-Cape Girardeau, will be the guest today on KRCU's "Going Public" radio show. Crowell will discuss the economic woes in state government. The public affairs show will air at 3 p.m. on 90.9 FM, the region's Public Radio affiliate station...

WASHINGTON -- A federal court upheld the right to free speech by striking down a 30-year-old ban on demonstrations on the sidewalk by the east steps of the Capitol. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled Friday that maintaining a forum for public expression outweighed security concerns...

MARTZ DENIES RUMORS OF CANDIDATE TRADE ST. LOUIS -- St. Louis Rams coach Mike Martz denied Saturday the club is shopping running back Trung Candidate, the team's No. 1 draft pick in 2000. Rumors fueled by internet speculation brought a chuckle from Martz after the team's first minicamp practice. Canidate played sparingly last season after a costly fumble in a 34-31 loss to the Saints on Oct. 28, but Martz said the team had no plans to trade the running back...

ST. LOUIS -- Edgar Renteria hit a three-run double as the Cardinals staked Darryl Kile to a six-run lead in the first inning Saturday, leading St. Louis to a 9-4 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Kile, who received a team-low average of 3.2 runs of support before this game, pitched seven innings to even his record. He allowed six hits and two walks while striking out two...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- After two weeks of bad burgers, buzzer-beaters and brilliant basketball, the epic Western Conference finals will be decided in one game today in front of the NBA's loudest fans. To Phil Jackson, who knows more about playoff success than just about anyone, it's the only appropriate way for the Los Angeles Lakers and the Sacramento Kings to cap the greatest chapter yet in their thriving rivalry...

CHICAGO -- The Houston Astros handed Mark Prior his first major league loss, roughing up the heralded rookie for three early home runs and beating the Chicago Cubs 7-3 Saturday. Prior (1-1) found out firsthand how tough it can be to pitch at Wrigley Field when the wind is blowing out. With gusts of 22 mph, he was tagged for seven runs and seven hits in only 3 2-3 innings...

NEW YORK -- Enrique Wilson, a late addition to the starting lineup for injured Alfonso Soriano, hit a tiebreaking grand slam in the sixth inning to lead the New York Yankees over the Boston Red Sox 10-2 Saturday. The Yankees backed Mike Mussina (8-2) with four more home runs to win for the 19th time in 24 games...

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. -- The old man still has some fight left in him. Evander Holyfield, showing glimpses of the warrior he was in his prime, pounded Hasim Rahman for most of eight rounds Saturday night before winning a technical decision after a head butt caused a large swelling on Rahman's head...

DOERUN, Ga. -- Amid the yellow, pink and purple flowers, there's a life-and-death struggle going on in pitcher plant bogs, where flies, mosquitos and other pests don't stand much chance against the carnivorous plants that stand watch over the forest...

EVORA, Portugal -- The skulls of hundreds of medieval monks stare out of an ancient chapel's chilly walls in this myth-rich region where Arab fortresses from Crusader times keep watch over an enticing landscape of vineyards and cork and olive trees...

Go a little farther north on your next vacation and spend some time exploring Quebec, a little bit of France with a North American flavor. A little knowledge of French wouldn't hurt, but you can survey the province's offerings and do all your planning in English with several helpful Web sites...

WASHINGTON -- The war on terror is pressing the FBI and CIA, once two solitudes, to mesh in ways their operatives could not have imagined in scrappier days. These agencies have skirmished over everything from political favor to cubbyhole office space. Their prime missions -- using investigation at the FBI to solve crimes, using spies at the CIA to prevent trouble -- have tripped over each other at times...

Everyone wants the best life possible for their children. That's the reason the homeowners at 1146 Oak Ridge Court in Ashland Hills Estates bought this house in the first place. It's a great house in a good school district, and in a neighborhood where there is always something for the kids to do. Now they are ready to let someone else enjoy those advantages...

Running a city is not particularly glamorous work. ABC News, wisely, doesn't try to pretend otherwise in "Boston 24/7," its five-episode series that premieres Tuesday at 9 p.m. It can still inform and entertain television viewers, though. "Boston 24/7" is one of three nonfiction series the network is airing this summer, all of which use a narrative style...

Not that you should necessarily care, but I've been a working stiff at two major league ball games this year. The first was April 5 at Baltimore, a couple of days into the season. The Red Sox were in town for a three-game series. The Red Sox who have historically been a huge draw in the Baltimore-Washington area. The Red Sox who boast Pedro and Manny and Nomar on their payroll...

M.D. and Katheryn Keenan of Beulah, Miss., announce the engagement of their daughter, Morgan Danielle Keenan of Cape Girardeau, to Christopher Ryan Schuette. He is the son of Jim and Vicki Schuette of Cape Girardeau. Keenan is a junior at Mineral Area School of Radiologic Technology. She is a radiologic aide at Mineral Area Hospital in Farmington, Mo...

Don and Carol Hesse of Cape Girardeau announce the engagement of their daughter, Mary Shannon Hesse, to Corey Shane McNew. He is the son of Ivan and Liz McNew Jr. of Sikeston, Mo. Hesse is a 1990 graduate of Sikeston High School. She received a master of natural science in biology from Southeast Missouri State University in 1998. She is a microbiologist at Environment Analysis South Inc. in Jackson, Mo. She is also an adjunct faculty member in the biology department at Southeast University...

COMMERCE, Mo. -- Elizabeth Beardslee Gray, 92, formerly of Commerce, died Friday, May 31, 2002, at Lanore Health Care in Columbia, Mo. Amick-Burnett Funeral Chapel in Scott City, Mo., is in charge of arrangements.

JACKSON, Mo. -- Doyal A. Evans, 86, died Friday, May 31, 2002, at Porters Memorial Hospital in Denver, Colo. Arrangements are pending at McCombs Funeral Home in Jackson.

SCOTT CITY, Mo. -- Noel Hunt, 57, of Bernie, Mo., died Friday, May 31, 2002, at the Lutheran Home in Cape Girardeau. He was born Feb. 3, 1945 in Bernie, Mo., son of Harlen Nelson and Collie Mae Hughes Hunt. Survivors include a brother, Jack Hunt of Cape Girardeau; and a sister, Carron Cruse of Glendale, Ariz...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Danny Keith Stone, 55, of Sikeston died Friday, May 31, 2002, at Missouri Delta Medical Center after a long illness. He was born Dec. 12, 1946, at St. Louis, son of Boyd Clinton and Blanche May Huff Stone. He was a member of the Covenant Christian Center in Fruitland, Mo. He owned and operated Stone's Video for the past 11 years. He previously worked in computer sales and programming...

ADVANCE, Mo. -- Clarence A. Schott, 76, of Advance died Saturday, June 1, 2002, at St. Francis Medical Center. He was born June 24, 1925, in Scott City, Mo., son of Lawrence and Annie Hebenstreit Schott. A retired farmer, Schott was a member of the St. Joseph Catholic Church in Advance and belonged to the Knights of Columbus...

Bernal Clayton Murphy, 93, of Cape Girardeau died Saturday, June 1, 2002, at Ratliff Care Center. Born Feb. 16, 1909, in Bloomfield, Mo., he was the son of Charles Clifford Murphy and Bertha Katherine McGee. Murphy was a member of the First Baptist Church in Cape Girardeau, and worked there as a custodian for 19 years, retiring in 1973...

Trusting teen-agers THE PERSON convinced parents who allow their teen-agers to have alcohol are setting them up for failure, DWIs, lost jobs, multiple marriages and alcoholism needs to wake up. Teen-agers are going to want the forbidden fruit. I'm not suggesting a drink-when-you-want-to attitude, but kids who are allowed controlled, moderate, supervised drinking will not feel the need to sneak out or, worse yet, drive home from a party instead of calling their parents. ...

Game 1:L.A. Lakers 106, Sacramento 99 Game 2:Sacramento 96, L.A. Lakers 90 Game 3:Sacramento 103, L.A. Lakers 90 Game 4:L.A. Lakers 100, Sacramento 99 Game 5:Sacramento 92, L.A. Lakers 91 Game 6:L.A. Lakers 106, Sacramento 102, series tied 3-3 Game 7:...

Den and Kay Swift of Columbia, Ill., announce the engagement of their daughter, Sara Kay Swift, to Chet Hammock, both of Cape Girardeau. He is the son of Don and Jane Hammock Jr. of Matthews, Mo. Swift received a bachelor of science degree in education from Southeast Missouri State University in 2001. She is a second grade teacher at Oak Ridge Schools...

SCOTT CITY, Mo. -- Mike Caldwell of Cape Girardeau and Harold and Mary Crowden of Scott City announce the engagement of their daughter, Rhonda Michele Caldwell, to Todd Anthony Heisserer. He is the son of Tom and Sharon Heisserer of Jackson, Mo. Caldwell is a graduate of Scott City High School. She is employed at Cape Prosthetics-Orthotics Inc...

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- After starting the NCAA Tournament with a stunning upset of mighty Alabama Friday night, the rest of the Tuscaloosa Regional didn't go nearly the way the Indians had hoped as they lost twice Saturday and were eliminated. But on a numerical scale, it would be hard not to rate the Indians' season of firsts a perfect 10...

Every player in Major League Baseball is a law-breaking, cheating, steroid-pumping freakazoid. Of course, by "every player," I mean we're not certain who or how many, exactly, but we're pretty sure it's an awful lot, and since nobody is admitting anything, which means lots of clubhouses are housing lots of liars, then every player is, officially and until further notice, a steroid suspect...

The nightmare came suddenly. Bailey had left her Buddy Bear at her summer day-care center. She wailed at the thought of having to sleep one night without her thread-bare, terry cloth bear. Bailey has been attached to her Buddy Bear for six years now. Buddy has been dropped in mud puddles and bounced around on SEMO District Fair rides. Tattered at times, Buddy still manages to wear a smile...

By Jason Crowell A little more of Sin City came to the Show Me State this week. The Missouri Lottery this week began its newest game in about 470 bars, restaurants, bowling alleys and fraternal organizations. Gov. Bob Holden endorsed keno in his State of the State address back in January and completely sidestepped the legislature and the democratic process entirely, similar to what he did with collective bargaining...

Daily American Republic POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- A Midwestern Powerline Inc. worker is in critical condition in a St. Louis burn unit after he was electrocuted Friday morning. Chris Bristen, 25, of Poplar Bluff was one of a crew working on the power lines along U.S. 60 near Fluechville, said Eddie Ikenberry, Midwestern's area superintendent...

10 years ago: June 2, 1992 Workers have erected road-closed signs at Bloomfield Road bridge over Cape LaCroix Creek; traffic will be rerouted for about four months to allow contractor, Givens Construction of Poplar Bluff, to build new span. March, April and May are normally wettest months of year in Cape Girardeau, providing needed moisture for growing crops during hot, dry summer months; but this year normal weather pattern has been altered, thanks to El Nino; rain at Municipal April during three-month period has totaled only 8.24 inches; long-term average is 13.62 inches.. ...

Binnie Daughter to Tom Edward and Joan Ila Binnie of Marble Hill, Mo., St. Francis Medical Center, 3:01 a.m. Monday, May 27, 2002. Name, Sierra Marie. Weight, 7 pounds 10 ounces. Second daughter. Mrs. Binnie is the former Joan Garber, daughter of Margie Walker of Chillicothe, Mo., and the late Stanley Singleton. She is a mortgage underwriter with Wells Fargo. Binnie is the son of Bruce and Sue Binnie of Marble Hill. He is head of the sewer department at city of Marble Hill...

CAIRO, Ill. -- Mr. and Mrs. Carl E. Thomas of Cairo announce the engagement of their daughter, Kara Alison Thomas, to Brandon Joe Harp. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. William R. Harp of Mound City, Ill. Thomas is a 1995 graduate of Camelot High School. She received an associate of arts degree from Shawnee Community College in Ullin, Ill., in 1997, and is studying to become a massage therapist at Shawnee College...

BIEHLE, Mo. -- David and Rosella Bohnert of Biehle announce the engagement of their daughter, Julie Ann Bohnert, to Greg Michael Wibbenmeyer. He is the son of Mike and Cindy Wibbenmeyer of Friedheim, Mo. Bohnert is a 1998 graduate of Perryville High School, and a 1999 graduate of Mineral Area College. She is a clerk in the Perry County Assessor's Office...

SCOTT CITY, Mo. -- Thomas and Anna Miller and Randy and Diana Armstrong of Scott City announce the engagement of their children, April Miller and Steven Armstrong. Miller is employed at K's Merchandise in Cape Girardeau. Armstrong is employed at Miller's Hardware in Tifton, Ga...

AREA Jenkins places 15th at NCAA meet BATON ROUGE, La. -- Heather Jenkins, Southeast Missouri State University's only qualifier for the NCAA Track and Field Championships, finished 15th in the discus with a throw of 159 feet, 9 inches...

What to do Get fitted for 'shoes The Southeast Missouri Horseshoe Association will hold an event at the Knights of Columbus Hall at Leopold, Mo., at 1 p.m. More local events, Page 4. What's news Age prevails over youth at French Open Fourth-seeded Andre Agassi, the oldest remaining man in the French Open, cruised to a 6-2, 6-4, 6-2 win over No. 25 Tommy Robredo of Spain, the youngest player, to reach the fourth round...

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Revenge was sweet for Alabama Saturday night as the Crimson Tide ended Southeast Missouri State University's season. Alabama, which suffered an upset loss to Southeast Friday night during the first round of the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional, eliminated the Indians 7-4 in the loser's bracket final...

FAIRLEE, Vt. -- No one knows why Edwin Grozier, publisher of the Boston Post, decided in 1909 to give a gold-headed ebony cane to the oldest man in hundreds of New England towns. Almost a century later, Grozier's newspaper is long defunct and many of the original canes are lost...

GOLDEN VALLEY, Minn. -- After helping generations of homemakers collect sets of traditional flatware and dishes, the Betty Crocker catalog is taking a slightly different tack: selling trendier kitchen ware. So along with Oneida knives and forks and English Rose tea sets, consumers leafing through the catalog are now finding silicone spatulas that withstand high heat and stainless steel ball-tip whisks, some of the most popular new kitchen gadgets on the market. ...

BETTY CROCKER CATALOG POINTS PROGRAM Some facts about the Betty Crocker Catalog Points program:

SAN DIEGO -- Carrie Leneweaver likes circuits. The seventh-grader admires the way the small pieces of a circuit board neatly interlock. The way the wires combine to produce a reaction when they are correctly assembled. "I like figuring out how to put it together," says the 13-year-old from Chandler, Ariz. "It's just little pieces of something and you put it together and you make something move or light up."...

DAVIS, Calif. -- Scotland Yard investigators were stumped. A bouncer had been stabbed to death in the alley outside The Paradise Bar in South London. Pools of blood were left behind by the victim, the suspect and someone -- or something -- else. "They swabbed the blood up off the floor, they extracted DNA from it," explained Marcia Eggleston, a researcher at the University of California, Davis. "When they typed it, they couldn't get a result."...

WEST POINT, N.Y. -- The United States will strike pre-emptively against suspected terrorists if necessary to deter attacks on Americans, President Bush told West Point graduates Saturday. "The war on terror will not be won on the defensive," he said...

HAVANA -- Floating aboard the Spanish trawler she chartered to explore the Cuban coast for shipwrecks, Paulina Zelitsky pores over yellowed tomes filled with sketches and tales of lost cities -- just like the one she believes she has found deep off the coast of western Cuba...

GRAPELAND, Texas -- A day after celebrating their youngest son's high school graduation, Ireland and Rena Beazley buried their oldest son, executed for committing a fatal carjacking. Nearly eight years to the day he graduated with honors from Grapeland High School, Napoleon Beazley was executed Tuesday for the April 1994 slaying of Tyler civic leader John Luttig...

WEST MIFFLIN, Pa. -- Cleanup began Saturday at a popular amusement park a day after a storm surprised parents and thousands of children on end-of-school outings, leaving one woman dead. It appeared that a series of lightning bolts had passed the park in the Pittsburgh suburbs, and the sun had even poked through the clouds. Children were in line for the roller coasters when the winds hit, roaring to 80 mph as they tore across Kennywood Park...

Open governor's seats in New Mexico and South Dakota, and an Alabama governor dogged by an ethics investigation, are among the top targets as seven states hold primaries this week for the fall elections. Democrats hope to win in New Mexico with a high-profile candidate. Republicans are eyeing Democratic Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman, who also faces a primary challenge. Spending is breaking records for South Dakota's open governor's seat...

PULLMAN, Wash. -- The soldiers of the future will require more than micro computers, better body armor and lethal firearms. They will also need macaroni and cheese. Uncle Sam wants macaroni and cheese that will remain tasty and nutritious for three years after it is cooked...

A protein that helps control the motion of the human gut may also help the body keep time with the brain's biological clock, researchers say. The hunt for a way to prevent jet lag and other sleep disorders has led to a better understanding of how an internal clock in the brain sets the 24-hour cycle of body activities like sleep and wakefulness, called the circadian rhythm...

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Florida Atlantic University came into the NCAA Tuscaloosa Regional as one of the least heralded teams in the field. But the third-seeded Owls are now the only squad that can win the tournament in three games, that courtesy of Saturday afternoon's 12-6 victory over fourth-seeded Southeast Missouri State University in the winner's bracket final...

Residents of disaster-torn Marble Hill are among Missouri cities hit by tornadoes and flooding that are beginning to get financial assistance to help them restart their lives. As of Friday, the Federal Emergency Management Agency reported 123 requests for assistance from Bollinger County resulting in $120,000 given for emergency housing and $22,000 in individual family grants to pay for debris removal and other cleanup costs...

The Cape Girardeau Public Library kicked off the summer reading program with a carnival Saturday. "Mysterious Summer," the theme of this year's program, aims to take the mystery out of finding a good book, said youth service coordinator Sharon Anderson...

orking conditions at Cape Girardeau have become laughable. City department leaders and their employees can only chuckle about the equipment they use and the facilities where they work. Parks and Recreation director Dan Muser laughed softly when he pulled up next to a rusty pickup at Shawnee Park. ...

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Many of the Bootheel's rural poor routinely go without medical care because they don't have health insurance, can't afford a doctor's bill and feel neglected by county health departments, say those who work with grassroots health coalitions...

CHICAGO -- Male baby boomers are still trying to get to the roots of an issue that bugged Julius Caesar, the ancient Egyptians and before that probably cavemen gaping at their shiny-pated reflections in prehistoric ponds. Millions are "gaining face," as singer Christine Lavin cheerfully euphemized in a tune called "Bald Headed Men," on their advance into and through middle age. ...

PHILADELPHIA -- Joan Reardon McErlane's great-great grandmother moved to a small brick row house on Elfreth's Alley in the 1850s. Her great-grandmother got dressed there on her wedding day. Her mother grew up playing in front of the home. But the family never owned number 117, and after McErlane's mother left in 1968, other people moved in...

ALBANY, N.Y. -- The crows came in squawking, crowding treetops and leaving a mess below -- a jet-black air force invading the city for another night. But this time Ken Preusser was there. He blared a recorded call of a crow in trouble. That agitated the birds. Then he fired four flares into the evening sky with a sharp crack and a shrill whistle. That flushed them from the trees. Preusser, a federal wildlife biologist, jumped back into his truck to do it again...

HUDSON, Wis. -- His mother found Shawn Woolley's body in a rocking chair in front of his computer. His head was slumped to one side -- still facing a screen of the online game that she says had become his obsession. "That damn game," Liz Woolley said to herself as she broke into tears...

Is the amount of time you spend on the computer causing problems for your family? At school? At work? Do you repeatedly break family or work rules about when and how much computer time is allowed? Do you ever lie about the time you spend on the computer or how you're using it? Or do you find yourself sneaking around to do it?...

NEW YORK -- Cleanup at ground zero is complete, but restoration is far from over at nine vacant and scarred office buildings nearby. Owners of several buildings, including a graceful turn-of-the-century landmark skyscraper designed by Cass Gilbert, are still negotiating with insurers. Some buildings will reopen...