In Memoriam To A Friend: In Memoriam by Joseph Brodsky. It's for you whose name's better omitted-since for them...

Annals of Finance III-FUNNY MONEY by Mark Singer. ANNALS OF FINANCE about the bankruptcy of Penn Square Bank in Oklahoma City in July, 1982. As soon as the liquidation began, upstream banks-larger bankst that, during a 4-yr. period had bought a total of 2 billion dollars' worth of loans initiated & then brokered by Penn Square...

American Chronicles RIGHT-OF-WAY by Calvin Trillin. AMERICAN CHRONICLES about an argument between neighbors in Rappahannock County, Virginia, over a right-of-way, that climaxed in a killing and murder trial that ended in an acquittal. Describes the events leading up to the shooting of Ranee Spellman by Diane Kidwell, and of her two trials. Spellman was...

The Theatre by Edith Oliver.

Comment by William McKibben. A young friend writes. Students sitting on the steps of Columbia's Hamilton Hall had been blocking the entrance for 3 weeks because the university has investments in companies that do business in South Africa. Most felt that they had done enough for the moment and the protest against apartheid was...

Musical Events by Andrew Porter.

Fiction Sofa Art by Charles Dickinson. Fran had to go to a conference with her 12-year-old son's teacher alone, because her husband Stephen works late, managing wholesale exhibitions of "sofa art." Mr. Frobel said that Teddy was smart, but was getting bad grades because he dreamed in class. When Fran got home she found...

The Talk of the Town Lore by Jane Boutwell. Talk story about a conference on John F. Kennedy that took place at Hofstra University. It was attended by historians anf former Kennedy staff members, who spent 3 days discussing the late president's policies and reminiscing fondly about his personal style. McGeorge Bundy, who had been his Special Assistant for...

Around City Hall AROUND CITY HALL SOUNDING BRASS by Andy Logan. Efforts to start up what is known as the Nehemiah Plan began several years ago; eventually 46 Brooklyn-based Catholic &Protestant churches set up the 12 million dollar Nehemiah trust, a revolving fund that is dedicated to the rebuilding of an 82-block area in the Brownsville&East...

Comment by Jonathan Schell. Two men stand in a room looking at the same object. "It's a ferocious lion, about to attack us", says one. "No, it's a tiny rabbit that wants to be fed", says the other. Thus do hawks and doves argue with one another about aid to the Contras, the Nicaraguan...

The Talk of the Town Economic Activity by William McKibben. Third part of talk story. Writer spoke to John Dempster and Frank Doyle of Guernsey Island, who were in a N.Y. hotel conference room encouraging high-tech industry to move to Guernsey. Doyle runs a factory on the island. In recent years the population has grown a little nervous, as...

The Talk of the Town Horticulturist by E. J. Kahn. Talk story about Suzanne Pierot, who was at the New York Flower Show. Pierot is a director of the N.Y. Horticultural Society, a fellow of the Royal Horticultural Society of Great Britain, and the founder and president emireta of the American Ivy Society. Tells about her life, jobs, and three...

Fiction After I Won the Lottery by William Franzen. Driving back to work from Milwaukee this afternoon, writer paid the 35 cents for a car behind him at the toll booth. But after returning to freeway speed, when the car pulled up alongside the writer's VW, instead of giving any sign of thanks, the guy in the passenger's seat...

Poetry In Chandler Country by Dana Gioia. California night. The Devil's wind...