AMAGANSETT

National City Bank of Kentucky to Gregory Odland and Tracy Schaffzin, Mako Lane, $400,000.

Willett to Arnold and Ann Gatof, Wyandanch Lane, $289,000.

Oliver to Doris Guidi, Whalers Lane, $421,000.

BRIDGEHAMPTON

Vanderveer 3d to Michael and Ivy Chazen, Daylily Lane, $619,500.

Bridge Bldg. Co. to Richard Gasalberti, Tansey Lane, $355,000.

Rojas to Kellis Pond Assoc. L.L.C., Montauk Highway, $1,025,000.

Florin to Andrew Kregar and Oili Tikkanen, Casey Lane, $287,500.

Marek to Jaime Elkoury and Marie Montesinos, Jack and Jill Drive, $750,000.

EAST HAMPTON

Ayer Jr. to Virginia Coleman, Mill Hill Lane, $425,000.

Homes by Arbia to Barbara Lichtenberg, Close Court, $375,000.

Maidstone Estates Ltd. to Starbright L.L.C., Pine Close, $245,000.

Kluger to Timothy Mygind, Route 114, $550,000.

Shanholt to Alice Geller, Georgica Road, $1,850,000.

Lester estate to Taylor Smith and Bernard Krupinski, Pleasant Lane, $240,000.

MONTAUK

Rizzo to James Mattatut, Fort Pond Road, $162,000. NORTH HAVEN

DC Partners to Lisa Perry, Bay View Court, $725,000.

DC Partners to Loren Plotkin (trustee), Bay View Court, $192,000.

Gramlich to Loren Plotkin (trustee), Bay View Court, $775,000.

DC Partners to Loren Plotkin (trustee), Bay View Court, $192,000.

NORTHWEST

National Brand Licensing to Joyce Miner (trustee), Bull Run, $230,000.

Dainow to Gus Yerolemou, Tillinghast Place, $182,000.

Kaplan to Linda Stein, Scallop Avenue, $216,500.

SAG HARBOR

Mayhew to John Louise, Madison Street, $430,000.

Ocean View Farms to Daniel and Katherine Hartnett, Cliff Drive, $220,000.

Santos to Gina Clemente, Wildwood Road, $290,000.

SAGAPONACK

Ocker to Robert Nagle and Jane Chung, Farmview Drive, $750,000.

SPRINGS

Siegel to Jo Ann Virga, Sycamore Drive, $235,000.

Schmalz to Judith McMurdo, Waterhole Road, $165,000.

Smith to Anne and John Mullen 3d, Louse Point Road, $750,000.

WATER MILL

Maran to Mark Epstein, Halsey Lane, $330,000.

Southampton Design Assoc. to Joseph Kundrat, Uncle Leo's Lane, $475,000.

The East Hampton Village Board is expected to adopt its first ever open space planning and management program when it meets next Thursday.

The plan's recommendations, village officials say, point the way to more environmentally sensitive redevelopment here, more aggressive protection of the village's wetlands, dunelands, and public corridors, and preservation of its remaining undeveloped areas - about 10 percent of the residential lands within its 4.8 square miles.

"We are proud to put this in place," Mayor Paul F. Rickenbach Jr. said yesterday, anticipating that his board would pass the plan without a hitch.

Way Is Cleared

Larry Cantwell, the Village Administrator, called the plan's adoption "a very important first step." It will become, he said, the village's "road map for preservation."

The plan details 13 remaining undeveloped village parcels larger than four acres, totaling 160 acres - the only land remaining with subdivision potential. Some smaller parcels also remain undeveloped, according to the plan, but all told only about 100 new village lots can still be created.

First unveiled in draft form last May, the plan was the subject of an informational meeting last spring and a public hearing this month. The board, finding that its implementation would not have a "significant impact on the environment," adopted a negative declaration Friday, in accordance with the State Environmental Quality Review Act and the Village Code. That vote clears the way for the plan's adoption.

Parking Demands

Some objections, however, were raised by the Village Preservation Society and the Circle Association, two residents' groups, about recommendations that the village acquire land near its beaches to expand parking, if needed, in the future. The plan specifically suggests that the village acquire two properties along the Double Dunes next to the parking field at Two Mile Hollow Beach.

Gene E. Cross, the village's planning consultant, responded that demands could increase significantly at village beaches 20 years hence, resulting in "spill-over onto adjoining residential streets." If the village owns the property, he said, parking could go "where the demands are generated."

Mr. Cantwell said the village still has "growth potential" near the beach even without the purchase.

Preservation Monies

The residents' groups also questioned the plan's recommendation to beef up one of the "special permit" sections in the Village Code. The plan suggests "reworking" the special permit procedure to compensate for changes in the State Environmental Quality Review Act the state adopted two years ago that exclude minor projects from its review.

The Village Board has said it will spend up to $1.5 million to acquire land for conservation and has also retained the services of the Peconic Land Trust, a conservation organization, to help identify property owners willing to grant easements.

The village hopes to tap state monies for preservation, too, if the State Legislature again passes, and the Governor signs, a land bank bill, slated for reintroduction next month.

Suggestions Followed

The legislation would put in place a 12-year $35 million program that State Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. estimated could bring East Hampton Town as much as $2.5 million a year though transfer taxes on sales of property. Village properties would be "eligible" for preservation under the bill, Mr. Thiele said yesterday, with the Village and Town Boards negotiating the allocation of the funds, he said.

To qualify for the state funds, the village must have adopted an open space plan.

The Governor vetoed a similar bill last year, but Mr. Thiele said it had been redrafted to cover all five East End towns and an exemption for agricultural lands, provisions the Governor suggested. Mr. Thiele said he was "optimistic" that the bill would pass both the Senate and Assembly, and see the Governor's signature by late spring.

Seeking Easements

The village's plan encourages landowners "to dedicate easements similar to those of their neighbors," where that possiblity exists, and tax reductions are recommended "beyond" what is established by the Village Code.

"The assessors will have to be brought into the loop to see what kind of deals can be cut," said John Halsey, the Land Trust's executive director. Easements, he said, "have to be appealing enough," adding that the plan will help create awareness of "the public costs of despoiling a pond," for example.

When a property owner agrees to move a pre-existing septic system back from a wetland, Mr. Halsey explained, it is "good for the community as a whole."

New District

Mr. Halsey added that each situation is different, and part of his job is to "tailor individually" charitable gifts made by property owners to the Land Trust, or easements to the municipality.

The village would dedicate a new zoning district for all public lands to be called "Greens and Parks," the plan suggests, and enhance enforcement provisions governing it.

The final version of the open space plan has few changes from the original draft, though its language has been tightened, and a few corrections made.

One of its more ambitious recommendations remains - for the village to acquire the former Mark R. Buick dealership on Accabonac Highway and Pantigo Road.

To Vote Thursday

"The recommended course of action is acquisition and demolition," the plan says, as it is located "between two village greens and would provide an important link between them."

The property, however, owned by Generosa Ammon of East Hampton and Manhattan, is said to carry a price tag of more than $2 million.

Ms. Ammon has proposed renovating the building to a single-use retail/office building, and is expected to appear before the Village Design Review Board with her plan Wednesday at 7 p.m. at Village Hall.

The Village Board, meanwhile, will take its vote on the proposed open space plan at a special meeting at 11 a.m. next Thursday, before its work session, at the Emergency Services Building on Cedar Street.

There are many common medications sold over the counter for human use that are also of immense practical value for use in the care of pets and livestock.

However, before we explore this subject any further it must be adamantly stated that no owner, no matter how experienced, should treat their animal without an okay from their veterinarian.

Unapproved, home treatments by owners could mask symptoms of serious ailments, thus making it difficult for the veterinarian to diagnose the illness.

No Aspirin For Cats

Aspirin is a drug that can be very effective in treating osteoarthritis or the aches and pains of a dog that has overexerted itself. Bufferin or Ascriptin are the best choice.

Alleve and ibuprofen drugs such as Advil should not be used. They have been implicated as a cause of serious gastrointestinal problems in dogs.

There is no place for aspirin or related products in the home-care medicine kit of the cat. Aspirin can be very toxic to cats, and, since it is not something that would be particularly useful in minor health problems that are treatable at home, cat owners should eschew its use for their pets.

Tylenol is especially dangerous. Never give it to a cat or leave it where a cat get could into it.

"It can't be said often enough that Tylenol should never be given to cats. It will kill a cat. It binds up their red blood cells; they turn purple and die," says Dr. Mark Davis of the South Fork Animal Hospital.

Pepto-Bismol is another medication that is useful for dogs but should not be given to cats since it contains aspirin. But veterinarians commonly recommend it for use in a dog suffering from minor diarrhea due to dietary overindulgences.

For a cat in the same unfortunate circumstances Dr. Claude Grosjean of Olde Towne Animal Hospital suggests Kaopectate.

Cuts And Scrapes

Topical preparations that are commonly used for human cuts and scrapes can also be helpful for the minor injuries sustained by pets.

Hydrogen peroxide or Betadine can be used to clean scratches and minor cuts, though Dr. Grosjean also feels a mild soap, such as Ivory, and lots of warm water will also do the trick.

A triple antibiotic cream can be applied to the wound after cleansing to ward off further infection. Dr. Jonathan Turetsky of the Veterinary Clinic of East Hampton advises owners to be sparing in their application of ointments to their pets.

"Whatever you put on a cat is going to end up in the cat, because they'll lick it off. The same is true of dogs, but to a lesser extent."

Itchy Skin

Betadine is also useful in combating the common fungal skin condition ringworm. There are also some excellent over-the-counter ointments that combat this infuriating condition.

All vets interviewed recommended cortisone creams for insect bites and other itchy skin conditions, boric acid or a commercially available eyewash for minor eye irritations, and a styptic pencil to stop any bleeding that may occur when claw-clipping.

There are several nondrug items that pet owners should have on hand. A thermometer is an essential piece of equipment. Alas, there is no relief for the squeamish; the best way to get an animal's temperature accurately is to take it rectally.

Neither Dr. Grosjean nor Dr. Davis has found the thermometers that take a temperature reading from the ear to be particularly accurate when used on animals.

Dr. Turetsky does use an ear probe thermometer made especially for veterinary use, but he agrees that thermometers of this type made for human use are not reliable when used in animals.

"Ear wax, debris, and ear mites can interfere with the reading. Also, the probes of the ones made for human use are not usually long enough," he said.

Pocket Pets: Heating Pads

Tweezers for tick, splinter, and thorn removal are helpful items to have around. Nail clippers in the appropriate size are also useful. Cotton balls and gauze pads are very handy for cleaning and swabbing. Eye droppers and small dosing syringes are excellent for administering medications to small animals.

Dr. Grosjean advised owners of "pocket pets," such as gerbils, mice, and hamsters, as well as owners of reptiles to keep a heating pad on hand.

"Small animals lose heat very easily and placing a heating pad under the cage or tank can help them stay warm," he said.

Owners should keep careful watch when they are using a heating pad lest it get too hot.

The Lowly Hairbrush

A low-tech care item that Dr. Turetsky recommends is a hairbrush. "Brushing an animal is extremely good for the skin and coat. Daily brushing can eliminate the problem of hairballs in cats."

For the cat owner who has not been able to keep up with the brushing, Petromalt, a remedy for hairballs that is sold in pet stores, is a good item to have on hand.

But do not get carried away administering it, advised Dr. Turetsky. "Two to three times a week is best. Giving it more frequently can interfere with the cat's ability to absorb nutrients from its food."

There are several other over-the-counter preparations made specifically for animals which have a place in the home health care kit.

Ear washes such as Oti-Clens are very useful. A note of caution voiced by veterinarians: When cleaning ears, do not use Q-tips or any small, probe-like object; there is too great a risk of perforating an ear drum.

Wiping an ear out with cotton balls or cotton gauze wrapped around a finger is safe and effective.

Birds And Ferrets

Dr. Grosjean advised that bird owners keep one of the commercially available "stop-bleed" powders on hand for use on birds that have damaged a blood feather.

He also finds that Nutracal vitamin emulsions, a very good diet supplement, are very useful to ferret owners, often especially useful as a distracting bribe.

"Ferrets love it so much that if you put some of it on one of their paws they'll be so busy licking it off that they'll stay still for grooming and claw-clipping."

Horse Calls

Horses have some different medical requirements from smaller animals.

"Most of our horse calls are colic, injuries, or hoof-related problems," said Dr. John Andresen of the Mattituck-Laurel Veterinary Clinic.

He said the bare essentials in a home health kit for horses would be mineral oil for the relief of colic, Betadine for cleaning wounds, and gauze pads, Vet-Wrap for bandaging them, Epsom Salts for soaking hooves, and a large-animal thermometer.

Around The Barn

Drs. Davis and Andresen both stated that Pepto-Bismol was good to have around the barn, as well as medications that combat thrush, a hoof infection. Fly repellent ointments that are safe to put around wounds were also cited as extremely useful.

"Horse owners should also keep a pair of pliers around the barn, since they may have to remove a shoe that has come partially off," advised Dr. Andresen.

Though informed, hands-on pet owners can take charge of many minor health problems in their animals, it is important to remember that the best resource for the health of the animal is its veterinarian. Always consult with the vet before commencing treatment.

"It looks like it's the beginning of a long and prosperous relationship between New York State and the club," Assemblyman Fred W. Thiele Jr. of Noyac said following the announcement this week that the State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historical Preservation had granted the Sag Harbor Golf Club a three-year lease extension to run the 50-acre nine-hole course off Route 114.

The state, said Mr. Thiele, had cast a hungry look the club's way "ever since 1989 or so, when [coincident with the state's Barcelona Neck purchase], we were almost thrown out on our ears. After that, it seemed that with every new Governor and Parks Commissioner the club's right to exist was threatened."

Mr. Thiele, who learned to play golf at the club, credited its officers, including Jim Schiavoni, Marshall Garypie Jr., and Paul Bailey, with having brought about the thaw in state-club relations.

Better For Everyone

"The key point," said Mr. Thiele, "is that last year we were given a one-year reprieve by the Parks Department," which took over ownership of the course from the State Department of Environmental Conservaton. "And in '97, everything was so positive what with the good weather, the publicity the club received in the media, and because of the Tiger Woods effect, that the club recently turned over $100,000 to the state, which didn't hurt."

"All those things working together helped to convince the state that it was in everybody's interests to have a longer agreement," Mr. Thiele added.

As part of the lease extension, the club has been asked by the state to call its members "annual fee-payers," presumably to underline the fact that visitors may play there (for $10 during the week and $15 on weekends) as well as those paying $240 in annual dues.

Bayfront Tides Breach Bulkheads

Another in a string of almost weekly northeasters struck the East End Monday night and early Tuesday, but, despite abnormally high tides and gusts pushing 60 miles an hour, for the most part the area was spared from major problems.

While the ocean shoreline took the beating in the costly Feb. 5 northeaster, this time the bay side got the worst. Scattered problems were reported from Soundview Avenue in Montauk around to Gerard Drive in Springs, for example.

In Southampton, where erosion has jeopardized oceanfront houses, two especially vulnerable areas, Dune Road in Bridgehampton and Potato Road in Sagaponack, appeared stable. Southampton Town Supervisor Vincent Cannuscio said the town had received no reports of major erosion or flooding.

Gale Force

"It blew up to 60 miles per hour" late Monday and early Tuesday, said Richard Hendrickson of Bridgehampton, an observer for the National Weather Service. He recorded gusts of up to 50 miles per hour on Tuesday morning and 2.5 inches of rain. The Montauk Coast Guard Station reported sustained winds of 40 miles per hour.

The most significant storm-related damage was reported on Soundview Drive. Large wind-driven waves from Block Island Sound pummeled a bulkhead. By yesterday morning, the waves broke through, opening a 20-foot-wide breach and putting one house behind it in jeopardy.

"Once the bulkhead failed, everything behind it just came tumbling out," said James T. Greenbaum, a Soundview Drive resident.

Want More Sand

Mr. Greenbaum, the son of former Town Supervisor Ron Greenbaum, said his family's house shares the bulkhead, which was built jointly by seven Soundview Drive residents. He said he and the Montauk-based Save Our Beach Association had long been urging the town and Army Corps of Engineers to dredge Montauk Harbor and to deposit the dredged sand on the beaches east and west of the channel.

He also noted that a town-owned road drainage pipe runs through the bulkhead, approximately where the damage occurred. He suggested that failure to maintain the pipe may have contributed to the damage.

"Tides were the highest I've seen this winter," said Richard McGowin, who is the East Hampton Town emergency preparedness coordinator. Had the storm itself been more severe, "then, we would have had a problem," he said.

Traffic Signal Down

Water topped the bulkhead at the town marina on Three Mile Harbor Road during high tide, and, in Sag Harbor, water made it up to the edge of Long Wharf and the village docks. East Hampton Town police reported flooding on Gerard Drive, Napeague Meadow Road, and Soak Hides Road. Gerard Drive and Soak Hides Road were closed to traffic briefly yesterday.

Winds yesterday morning were strong enough to debilitate the traffic light at the intersection of Route 114 and Stephen Hand's Path. East Hampton Town police were forced to direct traffic, while State Department of Transportation workers restored the light.

Only scattered power outages were reported over the two-day storm by the Long Island Lighting Company - 75 of them in Montauk, and eight in the rest of East Hampton. Islandwide, LILCO reported 10,200 storm-related outages.

No Problem

"Our system has held up pretty well in these storms," said Stefanie Gossin, a LILCO spokeswoman. She credited the company's tree-trimming program, noting that damage to branches is responsible for 95 percent of outages during storms.

Branches were not a problem for the Town Highway Department. "From a Highway Department point of view, we had absolutely nothing," said Town Highway Superintendent Chris Russo. "The tide was very high and we had flooding on some of the roads that normally flood, and some debris on some of the roads, but that's about it."

El Nino

Mr. Hendrickson placed some of the blame for the recent string of storms on El Ni¤o, the weather pattern that moves in from the Pacific Ocean and has been blamed for stormy weather from California to Florida.

"It comes over the Pacific Coast, makes it way across the Southern U.S. and Northern Mexico, and, when it hits the Gulf and meets that warm air, it drops a bunch of rain," Mr. Hendrickson said.

As the storms move up the coast, they often have "backed up on themselves" as winds shift from easterly to northwesterly, causing continual stormy conditions, he said.

He predicted the East End would be in for a blustery and soggy spring.

Breast cancer rates on the South Fork and in Riverhead among women 54 and under indicate the disease is significantly more prevalent in those areas than in the rest of Suffolk County, according to a new study by the Suffolk County Department of Health Services.

The study, its findings released last week, followed an analysis done by the Brookhaven National Laboratory Environmental Task Force, which found a disproportionate incidence of breast cancer on the East End.

The findings of the County Health Department's study were made public at a press conference in Hauppauge last Thursday at which Suffolk Executive Robert J. Gaffney said that what is next needed is a yet "more detailed follow-up to the results" of the B.N.L. Environmental Task Force report.

Age-Specific Survey

In opening the press conference, Mr. Gaffney reviewed the task force report's findings that the number of "incidents of breast cancer on the East End appeared significantly higher than the rest of the county. This information prompted another survey, this time by the County Health Department."

Using data obtained from the New York State Breast Cancer Registry for the period between 1989 and 1993, the Health Department divided its survey into three specific areas, the North Fork, the South Fork, and Riverhead. "Furthermore," Mr. Gaffney said, "they made the survey age-specific. In other words, they would group breast cancer victims by age: 54 and under, 55 to 64, and 65 and over."

Disturbing Numbers

"The overall results showed that for the entire East End there were 78.8 cases of breast cancer per 100,000 of population in the 54 and under category. The average for the rest of the county was 56.4 cases per 100,000. The rates among age groups 55 to 64 and 65 and over were consistent with the rest of the county. However, in the 54 and under group, the numbers were disturbing."

"The geographical breakdown showed that, in the 54 and under category, the North Fork's incident rate was nearly identical to the rest of the county. However, the Riverhead and South Fork rate was considerably higher," Mr. Gaffney continued. "The Riverhead incident rate was 78.2 per 100,000 population, while on the South Fork the rate was 90.3 per 100,000."

"Percentage-wise, the South Fork had an elevation in cases some 60 percent higher than the rest of the county," said Mr. Gaffney.

More Research

"Now, I have to emphasize at this time that it is far too early to draw any conclusions from these findings," said Mr. Gaffney. He then spoke of the "more in-depth" research that he believes is necessary. This would include asking the state for up-to-date statistics on Suffolk breast cancer rates.

Further, said Mr. Gaffney, "we'll be contacting victims of breast cancer and trying to piece together any particular or unusual patterns. We'll be contrasting those findings to information received from persons not stricken with the disease."

The authors of the epidemiological analysis - Dr. Roger Grimson, chairman of the task force and a biostatistician at the State University at Stony Brook, and a Shirley librarian, Dawn Triche - say in it that the East End breast cancer rate is "not attributable" to B.N.L.

Geographic Breakdown

The executive summary of the report, which was issued on Jan. 26, declares that "geographic patterns" were studied "of the following cancers: thyroid, leukemia, non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, brain and nervous system, female breast, prostate, liver, bone, multiple myeloma, and childhood rhabdomyosarcoma. . . . The decisions regarding the kinds of cancers and malformations to investigate were reached with the assistance of medical and environmental consultants on the basis of the potential for environmental causes and feasibility."

"A circle of a 15-mile radius was inscribed around B.N.L.," the summary continues. The circle was then partitioned into four regions "oriented in north, south, east, and west directions in order to have optimal concordance with predominant groundwater plume directions - south - and wind directions - east."

Unexpected Finding

"The conclusions of the epidemiological study are that (1) cancer rates of all types of cancer studies are not elevated near B.N.L. and (2) there is no evidence that rates among the four sectors are significantly different from each other or are correlated with underground plume or wind directions. Also, there is no evidence that childhood rhabdomyosarcoma incidence is elevated in Suffolk County or in the circle encompassing B.N.L."

"An unexpected finding," the summary goes on, "is that the age-adjusted female breast cancer rate on the 'East End' of Long Island is significantly elevated - 129 per 100,000 women - compared with rates of other areas, e.g., the Nassau County rate of 117 per 100,000 and the New York State rate of 106 per 100,000. This elevated East End rate is not attributable to B.N.L. for reasons discussed in this report."

There are four reasons provided subsequently in the body of the analysis.

Health Care Access

The report states, "Although environmental problems can contribute to elevated cancer rates, some demographic or population dynamic factors that also can lead to high rates could at least partially explain the high rate for the East End."

"First, in general, increases in mammography utilization lead to early diagnoses, grouping what would be later cases into an earlier time period . . . . This would cause a temporary - few years - increase in breast cancer rates, followed by a leveling off or a slight drop in rates. . . ."

"Possibly, access to health care is more restricted on the East End than in the other more densely populated regions of Suffolk County. If that is the case then visits to health care facilities for mammography for early detection of breast cancer would occur less frequently among women residing in this region."

More Possibilities

"Second, it has been observed that breast cancer rates are higher in more affluent geographic regions." But although the summary noted that some wealthy individuals reside on the East End, the median income levels in 1980 and 1990 were lower here than in other parts of the county. "Therefore, it is unlikely that any risk factors which coincide with affluence have elevated the East End breast cancer rates."

"Third, the calculated cancer rate could be inflated by either an overcount of cases and/or an undercount of the population at risk."

"Fourth, the possibility exists that large proportions of women moving to the East End during the past 10 or so years possess known nonenvironmental factors that modify breast cancer risk, such as affluence, genetic risk profiles, personal or familial histories of cancer, and certain reproductive characteristics. A region with an influx of large numbers of women who can be identified with some of these factors will experience increased breast cancer rates," the report states.

Conflict Denied

The vice chairman of the task force, Ronald Stanchfield, disputes that, associating the high rate of East End cancer incidents to a "synergy" involving B.N.L. radioactive emissions, the use of agricultural pesticides here, and radioactive releases from the Millstone nuclear plants. Mr. Stanchfield, of East Hampton, also disputes the finding of no concentration of breast or other cancers near B.N.L.

Mr. Stanchfield says that Dr. Grimson's having been a consultant to B.N.L. and his department at the State University at Stony Brook now having contracts with B.N.L. establishes an "enormous conflict of interest." Mr. Stanchfield was an inspector-turned-whistleblower on the Shoreham nuclear plant project and is now a builder.

Dr. Grimson has emphatically denied any conflict of interest.

Mona Rowe, a public relations person at Brookhaven, said, "Dr. Grimson is a very credible person. He does very good work." She also emphasized that Ms. Triche worked on the epidemiological report with Dr. Grimson. "These are two individuals. And what is speaking is the data."

It took about seven hours Sunday night for East Hampton Village police to count and double-count $750,000 in cash allegedly stolen from the house of an elderly East Hampton man while he lay seriously ill in a New York City hospital.

Michael J. Sorace of Montauk Highway, East Hampton, 29, had been arrested in connection with the incident earlier that day.

The money taken from the Montauk Highway residence of Saul Mauriber, 84, was in bills of denominations from $1 to $100. The bills were in stacks of $1,000, each stack neatly wrapped in tinfoil and placed in a locked metal box. There were 10 boxes altogether, police said. A single key opened all of them.

Several pieces of jewelry were found inside one of the boxes as well.

Jewelry, Too

"I've never seen so much money," said Det. Gerard Larsen.

Lieut. Randall Sarris said the jewelry had not yet been appraised but "looks super expensive" and might be worth almost as much as the cash.

The alleged theft was discovered on Saturday by three friends of Mr. Mauriber's, according to police. Doris Theiler of Manhattan and Harold Levine of the Bronx, who have power of attorney over his estate, and Lester Kushner of the Bronx discovered the money boxes missing.

They "searched the entire house" to no avail, said Lieutenant Sarris, and called police the next morning.

"For Safekeeping"

Mr. Sorace, described as a companion who had lived in the house for the past eight months, was not there on Saturday or on Sunday morning. When he returned Sunday afternoon, police questioned him.

Lieutenant Sarris said Mr. Sorace at first denied taking the money but eventually told police he had removed it "for safekeeping." He brought police to his grandmother's house in Farmingdale, where they retrieved $750,923.25 in currency and about a dozen pieces of jewelry including diamond rings and brace lets.

Police believe Mr. Sorace took the money to Farmingdale on Feb. 15, some time after Mr. Mauriber, who is suffering from a brain tumor, entered the hospital. He has been in and out of consciousness since, police said, and underwent surgery at one point.

Mr. Sorace, said to be a partner in an antiques refinishing business in Southampton, told police doctors did not believe Mr. Mauriber would survive much longer.

Real Estate Investor

Mr. Levine, who signed an affidavit related to the charge against Mr. Sorace, grand larceny, told police he had talked to Mr. Mauriber while he was awake on Saturday and had been told that no one had permission to take anything from the house.

Mr. Mauriber had invested in real estate over the years "and apparently was very successful at it," said Lieutenant Sarris.

The $750,000 may have just been "petty cash," Lieutenant Sarris said. Mr. Mauriber's friends have hired a security company to watch the house in addition to its alarm system, police noted. According to their wishes Mr. Sorace is no longer allowed in the house.

Bail Set Low

Mr. Sorace was charged Sunday with second-degree grand larceny, a class C felony. At his arraignment the next morning, according to police, the District Attorney's office recommended that bail be set at $100,000.

East Hampton Town Justice Roger W. Walker set bail instead at $1,000, and Mr. Sorace was released with a court date of March 26. Bail is meant to insure that a defendant shows up in court.

Village police, meanwhile, were holding the recovered money and jewelry this week. Lieutenant Sarris said he was looking for a more appropriate place to safeguard it while awaiting the District Attorney's permission to turn it over to those who hold legitimate power of attorney.

Dr. John Strong told the following story as part of his Jan. 31 lecture on "Wyandanch, Sachem of the Montauketts," saying it was "one of the earliest recorded instances of an Indian plaintiff seeking damages from an Englishman in an English court."

Wyandanch's generosity to two influential East Hampton men may have served him well . . . when he brought suit in the town courts against a young townsman named Jeremy Vaile for damages to his large canoe. The vessel, probably one used for trips across the Sound, may have been 30 or 40 feet long.

Lion Gardiner testified for Wyandanch against Vaile, and charged him with negligence. Vaile and Anthony Waters, another East Hampton man, borrowed the canoe to carry some goods over to Gardiner's Island and ran into some bad weather. They landed the canoe on the island, but failed to secure it properly.

Gardiner ordered them to return and make sure it was safe, but, by the time they got back, the canoe was damaged and full of water.

The court ruled for the plaintiff and awarded Wyandanch 10 shillings.

Litigants in the East Hampton Airport controversy expressed hope Tuesday that an agreement will be worked in the next few days allowing the main runway repaving project to proceed, in return for a change in town law guaranteeing public scrutiny of any airport projects from now on.

East Hampton Town Supervisor Cathy Lester and other town officials met yesterday morning with Richard Cahn of Melville, their attorney in various airport-related lawsuits filed against the town.

Mr. Cahn, before going into the meeting with Ms. Lester, Councilwoman Pat Mansir, Cynthia Shea, the town attorney, and Pat Ryan, the airport manager, said he was "hopeful we can reach an agreement . . . that will satisfy everyone that the Town Board is being fair."

"We're working very hard to resolve the differences among the parties," said the Supervisor.

Stipulation

The meeting, according to Mr. Ryan, was called to review "a proposed stipulation of agreement sent to the town by Pat Trunzo's group."

Mr. Trunzo 3d, an attorney, represents a dozen or so individuals and two associations who sued on Jan. 22 to prevent the runway work, on the grounds that the Town Board had violated the State Environmental Quality Review Act in issuing the contract.

The suit also contends that the airport layout plan was never properly adopted and demands it be declared null and void.

"A True Compromise"

Mr. Trunzo said Tuesday that the two sides were working on a settlement that would be "a true compromise. We'd be given things we want, and the town would be able to keep the [Federal Aviation Administration] grant to repave the runway." The repaving is to be paid for in large part through $2.7 million in F.A.A. funds.

Last fall, in the days leading up to the town election, Ms. Lester refused to sign the project's contract, and on Jan. 7, the F.A.A. gave the town 60 days to fish or cut bait. That deadline is fast approaching

Should an agreement be signed, Mr. Trunzo said, "our lawsuit would be withdrawn, and the town would call off its appeal and would sign the contract."

A suit filed in November by the project contractor, Hendrickson Brothers of Farmingdale, would presumably be dropped as well.

Ms. Lester, who has maintained the runway project did not receive stringent enough environmental review or public scrutiny, said the town had taken the initiative in resolving the controversy.

She added that "the F.A.A. has said that as long as we're working toward a settlement, it will keep the grant money there."

"I'm confident everything will be resolved amicably," said the Supervisor.

Safety Or Expansion

The airport has been a flashpoint here for years, igniting periodically the tempers of fixed-base operators, pilots, and the increasing number of residents who have come to live near it. It has been the subject of half-a-dozen master plans.

It was a proposal in the latest one, to repave and widen runway 10-28 to its original width of 100 feet, that sparked the present controversy.

Proponents argued that the runway was unsafe as it now stands. Opponents maintained that the work would in fact constitute not a "reconstruction" but an expansion of the airport, fostered, they say, by an expansion-minded F.A.A.

Ordered To Sign

The project's contract was awarded before Election Day by the then Republican-controlled Town Board to Hendrickson Brothers. Two weeks after Ms. Lester was re-elected and refused to sign it, Hendrickson sued.

Over Christmas week, Supreme Court Justice Donald Kitson ordered Ms. Lester, who had previously signed off on environmental checklists, to sign the contract.

But the incoming Town Board, now controlled by Democrats, agreed to appeal the decision and created a "blue-ribbon" panel to review the runway project and others in the plan, which is a 1994 update of a 1989 layout.

The appeal would be called off, Mr. Trunzo said, as part of any settlement.

Airport Users

Last week, the East Hampton Airport Property Owners Association, a group of airport users who want the project to proceed, hired its own attorney and intervened in the Trunzo suit on the side of the town in order to make sure the project's proponents were heard.

Mary O'Connor, an officer of the association, said yesterday that for the town to accede to the demands of "a small amount of people" would be tantamount to blackmail.

Ms. Lester maintained this week that "there probably wouldn't have been a citizens' complaint had there been public hearings and public review of this project in the first place. There were no public hearings. Even though I asked in August or September for a public hearing, the board disagreed."

The present board was agreed, she said, that "there should be open scrutiny of projects like this that affect so many people."

Lawyers Meet

Mr. Ryan, the airport manager, was asked if he thought an agreement were imminent.

"I see the ball bouncing back and forth," he said. "I get the impression that a lot of things they're asking for we couldn't accommodate, like raising the non-based aircraft fees 500 percent, or things we have no power over."

"The next step is for Mr. Cahn to meet with Pat Trunzo" (a meeting that was to have been held yesterday). "Things are moving pretty quickly."

"It's not Iraq," said Ms. Lester, "but the airport issue is probably as close to war as we'll get in this town."

A $29.5 million Federal civil rights suit filed in November by one of the fixed-base operators, alleging political favoritism by the former board in assigning a hangar lease to the other fixed-base operator, is not expected to be affected by any settlement.

Language Of The Unheard

New York City

February 20, 1998

Dear Helen:

Regarding the current war hysteria being fomented regarding Iraq, thanks for continuing to offer us an oasis of sanity.

This is a time when Government officials are trying to reduce a country to a person, so that Iraq, with all of its people and history translated into "Saddam Hussein," are trying to promote the view of anticipated civilian deaths as bloodless "collateral damage" and even our own potential loss of life as a necessary incidental price.

And when practically no air time on the major networks is given to opposition statements, it is small wonder that frustrated students like those at Ohio State express their fears and outrage disruptively. We would do well to recall the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.: "A riot is the language of the unheard."

Sincerely,

D.H. MELHEM

A Poor Track Record

East Hampton

February 23, 1998

To The Editor:

As the U.S. prepares to attack Iraq again it is necessary to review the history of the Gulf War to try and gain some perspective on the current situation.

Prior to the Gulf War Iraq and Saddam Hussein were our allies. They fought Iran with our support. They sold us petroleum. They were the recipients of billions of dollars in aid and arms sales. Hussein fought a brutal war with the Kurds with our support. He brutalized his people with our support. He was a cruel, inhuman dictator with our support.

When Iraq took over Kuwait, supposedly with our okay, it became our enemy. We simplified a complex relationship between the two countries into a case of unilateral aggression. Black and white, good guys and bad guys. (Like white men and Indians.)

We fight a war and are amazed at what we find. The second-biggest army in the world doesn't really exist. Its air force, elite guard, navy, etc., are all a fantasy. Iraq shoots four missiles into Israel and collapses. Virtual reality to unbelievable heights. We turn a war into a video game and nobody feels a thing. Darth Vader becomes Minnie Mouse. Except for 100,000 dead Iraqis and a few hundred dead allies, life goes on.

We analyze the war and realize that Iraq was not a military threat. (The East Hampton High School marching band could have taken over Kuwait.) We liberated Kuwait, an oil- producing, undemocratic ally with a subzero human rights rating. Hussein is still in power. Iraq is severely punished for its transgression, but life doesn't go on. Was the war a scam? Was it about something we didn't understand?

Five years later we have still not begun the rehabilitation of Iraq. Its people are starving and living in pain. We now say that Iraq is in violation of the United Nations resolution and must be punished for it. Iraq now poses a threat to world peace (weapons of mass destruction) and Saddam Hussein must be kicked out.

Weapons of mass destruction. We are the experts. The only one who ever used them is the U.S. Hiroshima and defoliation of Vietnam. If Iraq had them, Israel would be the target. Who really cares? Israel is our ally but our self-interest could change in six months. We know what Iraq has. Every country in the world is capable of producing these weapons.

Undemocratic dictators. It's hard to find one we haven't embraced. Pick a continent. From Franco to Noriega, Marcos to the Shah. Even Hitler was cool when he stayed at home. Do we have the right to intervene in another country's internal affairs? Our track record is poor.

On the other hand, it would be great to get Hussein out of Iraq, China out of Tibet, Khadafi out of Libya, and so on. What is absolutely unquestioned is that the United States is not the vehicle to bring these events to fruition. We don't have the leadership, understanding, experience, or the vision to handle this job. We are always motivated by financial and archaic political concerns.

We must look at ourselves in the mirror. What we see is a 3,000-pound gorilla who only likes other 3,000-pound gorillas. We don't deal well with anyone who isn't huge and hairy. The racism that we exhibit is profound and pervasive. We are great in the jungle but worthless at a conference table. We aren't really leadership material.

What becomes obvious is the need for an international body that has the authority to act. Something like the U.N. maybe. A body that doesn't allow for unilateral actions by its members. A body which we don't sabotage, pay our dues to, and support its initiatives for world peace (i.e., no land mines). It is the only viable solution to the problems in Iraq or anywhere else.

One of the great precepts of American political reality is that the people will believe anything twice. We are in the process of being done in again for a few barrels of oil and a couple of camels. It's time we stand up to our politicians and put an end to this lunacy. Where is Fay Wray when we need her?

NEIL HAUSIG

Who Is Guilty?

Montauk

February 14, 1998

Dear Helen:

While The Star editorial "To Eat or Not to Eat" (Feb. 5) stressed the complexity and difficulty of managing an international fishery, I feel it missed the point as to why many chefs and consumers are choosing to no longer serve swordfish: The resource is plummeting, and people who know the facts are making a moral choice not to participate in the destruction.

For 19 years the stock of North Atlantic swordfish has been declining at a precipitous rate. When put on graph paper, the stock level tracks along a 45-degree declining angle which, when extended, hits zero in 2005.

The International Convention for the Conservation of Atlantic Tuna, the organization which, according to the editorial, has "strict regulations," is the same organization that has mismanaged the fishery since the mid-'70s. (Would you trust a broker who has lost money 20 years straight?) Chefs and consumers who are boycotting swordfish are simply not willing to endorse failed policies.

The editorial also mentioned that "harvesters of North Atlantic swordfish have cut their production by 50 percent since 1989."

Well, if cutbacks have happened, it has not been for a lack of trying or slaughter. The number of U.S. longline hooks in the water increased from 6.5 million hooks in 1987 to 11.1 million hooks in 1995 (the last year numbers are available), or an increase of 70 percent.

The number of dead undersized discards has increased from 363 metric tons in 1992 to 589 tons in 1996 (that's about 40,000 fish). The insanity of the situation is underscored by the fact that nearly 90 percent of all female swordfish caught are not sexually mature, and have not had a chance to breed even once.

Of course ICCAT has never suggested raising the minimum weight to equal breeding weight. But that's because they know that longline fishermen cannot possibly control what bites on their hooks. (Longlining is more or less the ocean equivalent of hunting for deer with a string of land mines - there's no way to control what gets killed.)

Lastly, The Star editorial claimed that if the U.S. did not harvest its ICCAT share of swordfish, it would be reallocated to other nations. Not true, according to Dick Stone, former head of Highly Migratory Species for the National Marine Fisheries Service. The U.S. is free to use its allocation in any way it wants, including by not using it.

Chefs and consumers who are participating in "Give Swordfish a Break" have had enough of politics and promises. In "Killing Mr. Watson," Peter Matthiessen asks, "If no one is innocent, who then is guilty?"

Well, the old boys club that includes longline fishermen, ICCAT officials, and even a few of our government officials at N.M.F.S. would love to have everybody together in the same boat. But some people can no longer stomach the fish or the crew.

Sincerely,

BILL AKIN

P.S. Anyone interested in learning more about what is happening with the world's fisheries should read Carl Safina's amazing new book, "Songs for the Blue Ocean." For the first time someone has told it the way it really is.

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