East Hampton is no Billings, Mont. But our town can learn a lot from what Billings residents achieved after a series of hate crimes stunned their community.

With that in mind, the Hamptons International Film Festival and the head of its education committee, Linda Biscardi-Mensch, on Sunday hosted a screening of the nationally acclaimed documentary "Not In Our Town" - a story of triumph over the bigotry of a growing white supremacist movement.

A panel discussion following the Guild Hall screening attempted to bring the lessons home. A healthy audience of students and community members attended.

United Against Hate

Originally aired on public television, "Not In Our Town" looks at how a spate of bias attacks led a whole city to unite and fight back against hate groups.

The 1993 incidents, though disturbing, were nonviolent at first. Ku Klux Klan leaflets were circulated, headstones in a Jewish cemetery were kicked over, swastikas were painted on homes, and skinheads began attending services at an African-American church.

The community responded. The local painters' union mobilized to repaint Dawn Fast Horse's slur-scrawled house, and people of all skin colors and denominations showed up for services at the African Methodist Episcopal Church.

10,000 Menorahs

When a cinder block crashed through a window displaying a menorah at a Jewish couple's house, the city felt attacked as a whole. The Billings Gazette printed a full-page picture of a menorah and urged all residents and merchants to place the nine-branched candelabras, symbolic of Chanukah, in their windows.

Several more windows were broken, and the response grew. More businesses and organizations began distributing menorahs and soon more than 10,000 windows in Billings were displaying them.

"Not In Our Town" became the basis of a grassroots movement last year to spread its message nationwide.

Lived Through It

Irene Shapiro of East Hampton, one of six invited panelists on Sunday, said she and her family had been the victims of continuing anti-Semitic intimidation in their former community of Hillside, N.J. She found the film inspiring, she said, because in Hillside, "nothing happened. In my town no one wanted it to be public."

Ms. Shapiro stressed that education was a key to battling prejudice.

"Prejudice is not inherited," she said. "Prejudice comes from the home. . . . It's one person passing it on to another."

Chris Wikane and Jaylee Lawler, two East Hampton High School seniors, also sat on the panel.

"That film really makes you think about East Hampton," Chris said, adding that he had never seen any "overt" racism. "I feel fortunate for that."

It was the "subtle" racism at school and elsewhere, he said, that bothered him. He noted that in the high school cafeteria, African-American students, white students, and Hispanic students sit separately, and that off-handed remarks go unchecked.

"Whenever I hear a subtle remark, I act on it," he said.

One audience member rejected Chris's assertion that the town was free of "overt" discrimination. He recalled that just last spring, on Yom Hashoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day), graffiti had been found on a restroom at Ditch Plain in Montauk: Los vom elend, Los vom Juden - Freedom from misery, Freedom from Jews - and a swastika.

The man said he had put the incident out of his mind, but now intended to ask the police whether their investigation had turned up any suspects. "We must fight the denial within ourselves," he said.

Panelists

Others on the panel Sunday were Audrey Gaines, East Hampton Town's director of youth services and co-chair of the town's Anti-Bias Task Force, Rabbi Seth Frisch of the Jewish Center of the Hamptons, and the Rev. David Parker of the East Hampton Methodist Church.

Ms. Gaines called bias crimes, even remarks, "wounds to the soul."

"People have to start looking around and asking, 'Does this really happen here?' And it does happen." She agreed that teaching children acceptance and "multicultural harmony" was crucial in fighting discrimination.

"We have a job to do, and that job is to educate those children so they can educate their families."

Disabilities

Others present included Ms. Biscardi-Mensch's eighth-grade Middle School students and members of the East Hampton Town Disabilities Advisory Board, who reminded the audience that disabled persons are discriminated against in a different way, by noncompliance with the Americans With Disabilities Act.

The Film Festival plans to conduct another "Not In Our Town" screening and discussion in Southampton next month, and possibly in other locations afterward.

The South Fork Natural History Society has scheduled an event called "winter birding by car," which brings those who like to view and identify winter birds around by car to special sites.

The program was begun for people who found walking difficult. Birders are advised to bring binoculars or a spotting scope, a field guide, and a snack. Reservations are required and can be made by calling the society headquarters in Amagansett or its Natureline. Callers will be informed as to time and place.

Nancy Kane of the East Hampton Trails Preservation Society will lead hikers along old trails in Cedar Point Park on Saturday beginning at 10 a.m. This hike will make a loop up Scoy's Path to Kirk's Place, along Northwest Harbor beach, then into a rarely traveled section of Cedar Point Park. Hikers have been asked to meet at the schoolhouse plaque on Northwest Road about a quarter mile south of its intersection of Alewife Brook Road.

On Sunday, the society's Richard Lupoletti will lead hikers through the stately beeches and American holly of the Point Woods section of Camp Hero State Park in Montauk. Hikers are asked to meet at 10 a.m. at the entrance to Camp Hero off Montauk Highway.

It's Nancy Kane again in the lead on Wednesday for another trek through the Grace Estate and Cedar Point Park. Hikers will again meet at 10 a.m. at the schoolhouse plaque on Northwest Road.

It seems the whole East End has the blahs, or worse. Lingering chest colds, some cases of pneumonia, hacking coughs, runny noses, sore throats, and fevers have been running rampant on the East End since Thanksgiving.

"It's been big time, phenomenally higher," said Dr. Daniel Lessner of Sag Harbor. "This has been one of the worst years for this flu-like stuff going around."

"It's a particularly sick season," said Kattie Berkoski, the office manager of the Bridgehampton Family Medical Practice, who was coughing herself as she answered the telephone. "All the doctors' offices are loaded with patients. We're seeing this thing which is not really the flu, but is more than a cold."

Not All Flu

"It's very hard," agreed Dr. Gavino Mapula of Montauk, who said he'd "never been busier" treating such symptoms, especially in children and the elderly. He added that three of his patients had been hospitalized with pneumonia.

Indeed, pneumonia is about, and doctors and school nurses say most cases have been caused by a secondary bacterial infection that attacks patients when their immune systems have been laid low by viruses.

"Really one of the complications of flu and flu-like viruses is pneumonia," said Dr. Michael Catapano, who heads the emergency room at Southampton Hospital. "The last few weeks we've seen a lot of cases in the emergency room," he said of both pneumonia and influenza.

Serious Illnesses

Pneumonia shows itself with "fever, coughing up phlegm, shortness of breath, and chest pains," he said. Symptoms of clinical influenza, which he called a "very serious illness," include "high fever and muscle aches that keep you in bed for seven to 10 days."

If you hurt all over you may well have the flu, but mucus-marked problems are more likely sinus or respiratory infections, said Dr. Blake Kerr of Wainscott Walk-In Medical Care. He said flu season had actually been slow so far this year.

The hospital does not test for influenza, so Dr. Catapano could not say how many cases had turned up. But Dr. Martin Mayer of the Suffolk County Health Department said the potentially deadly disease had yet to make a strong appearance.

"Influenza has been isolated in the county," he said. "A portion of those complaining of the flu actually have the flu, but not all do."

Hard To Keep Up

Because it takes some time to build up immunity, people who have waited till now for flu shots can expect to wait to see their benefits. "It's not too late because the flu season may last until the latter part of winter," Dr. Catapano said

With winter right around the corner, Dr. Mayer refused to predict how severe this year's flu season would be. "That's like the equivalent of trying to predict the snow season or the hurricane season," he said.

Each year, scientists studying strains from the previous year's major flu viruses try to tailor a vaccine that will ward off the current strain. "But flu shots do not protect against other viral infections," said Dr. John Oppenheimer of Sag Harbor, who reported a "surge" of patients suffering from viral illnesses in the past week.

Pierson Ailing

School nurses from Bridgehampton to Montauk have reported normal to slightly higher than normal absences for this time of the year, but nothing really unusual, except at Pierson High School in Sag Harbor.

"I've been crazed with the number of kids with the cold or flu, low-grade temperatures, lots of chest pain and trouble breathing," said Sue Denis, the Pierson High School nurse. "There are a couple of things going around."

Early this week, almost 80 Pierson High School and Middle School students were out sick, and more were sent home on Monday, she said.

"If there is a virus in the air, you are probably going to get it," said Carol Ann Spencer, the Sag Harbor Elementary School nurse. She reported normal absences for this time of year.

Springs Stomachs Hit

In Springs, some students have been felled by either a cold and fever or a stomach virus, according to Maryann Roman, the school nurse, and "the stomach virus seems to be winning the contest."

Dori Armbruster, the East Hampton Elementary School nurse, reported approximately 25 absences earlier this week. She noted that some students had come down with bronchitis or pneumonia. Sonia Schofield, the Montauk School nurse, also reported several cases of pneumonia, and a number of colds. "If you're coughing and sneezing, please stay home," she said.

"I can't say it's any worse than usual," said Diane Astorr, the East Hampton High School nurse. She did acknowledge that something was going around, though.

Kathleen Blume, the Bridgehampton School nurse, reported normal absences, and Pat Rogers, the Amagansett School nurse, said her school had been largely spared. "It seems to be mostly adults and older kids who are getting sick," she said.

Lots Of Advice

In fact, "most healthy young people have no trouble" with either flu or pneumonia, according to Dr. Catapano. However, anyone with heart or lung problems, the elderly, or the very young "are the kind of people who do particularly badly with it," he said.

"If it's anything out of the ordinary, people should see a doctor," he advised.

For their part, school nurses have suggested following the hygiene rules taught in health class. "You have to wash your hands well, and after you sneeze into a tissue, throw it away," said Ms. Armbruster. Ms. Denis said people should eat "a good diet" and even air out their houses to improve the flow of fresh air.

Although bacterial pneumonia can be treated with antibiotics, there is not much that can be done for viral infections. "You need lots of fluids and adequate rest," said Ms. Armbruster.

Dr. Lessner suggested another tried-and-true method. "Chicken soup," he said. "That's the Jewish penicillin."

The National Audubon Society is looking for volunteer bird counters to participate in the annual Christmas bird count on the East End.

The tradition of the Christmas bird count dates to Christmas Day in 1900, when 27 naturalists led by Frank Champman conducted a bird count in protest of the traditional "side hunts" in which teams of hunters competed to see who could shoot the most number of birds and other animals in one day.

This year, the Christmas count organized by the Audubon Society will last 16 days beginning Dec. 21. It will include 1,700 individual counts organized throughout all 50 states, the Canadian provinces, parts of Central and South America, the West Indies, and some Pacific Islands. More than 45,000 people are expected to participate.

The East End count is actually four separate counts: Montauk (the count actually extends to East Hampton), Sagaponack and Hook Ponds, Orient, and Quogue-to-Water Mill.

Last year during the Montauk Christmas bird count 55 observers recorded 39,445 individual birds of 131 species from Hog Creek through Amagansett to Montauk Point. Rare birds included a black guillemot found at Ditch Plain, two Barrow's goldeneyes in Lake Montauk, a barnacle goose, a European bird found at Montauk Downs, and a Bohemian waxwing at Camp Hero.

Anyone can participate in the counts, although veteran birders are preferred as the counting gets fast and furious. Anyone who feeds birds can join in as a "feeder watcher," a volunteer who records the numbers and species of birds to visit the feeder on the count day.

Those interested in participating in the Montauk or Sagaponack count are asked to contact Hugh McGuinness at Friends World College at Southampton College. Barbara Scherzer of Hampton Bays is the contact for the Quogue-Water Mill count. The Orient count is compiled by Mary Laura Lamont of Riverhead.

The East Hampton Village Police Department and East Hampton School District officials are eyeing the fallout from a ruling last week that overturned a local teenager's conviction in Town Justice Court for the possession of marijuana.

Village Police Chief Glen Stone metz Jr. said yesterday that the Suffolk District Attorney's office will challenge the ruling in the State Court of Appeals.

The State Appellate Court found that Tricia Anne Reese, who was convicted in Town Justice Court of possession of marijuana, had been searched and detained illegally.

Miss Reese, then 16, was arrested on May 4, 1994, after a car in which she was a passenger was stopped. Police said they found a small amount a marijuana in her backpack.

Community Service

She was found guilty a year later by East Hampton Town Justice Catherine Cahill after a nonjury trial, and ordered to perform 50 hours of community service. She did so.

Now, said Susan Menu, Miss Reese's attorney, her client wants to be paid for the work she did.

Miss Reese reported that she had been handcuffed and detained for more than two hours. Village Police Chief Glen Stonemetz Jr. said attempts had been made to reach the youngster's parents during the time she was being held, but that, because there was a judge sitting at the time, it was decided to take her to court for arraignment.

Ms. Menu, who represented the teenager in the court proceedings, said this week that the police had spoken to Tricia's father, Ted Reese, and had indicated they were going to bring her home.

Law's Intent Cited

She also argued that since Miss Reese was a first-time offender charged with no more than a violation, the police should have issued an appearance ticket and released her.

The whole point of the law was to spare those charged with such violations from being processed and arraigned, the lawyer said.

She had argued unsuccessfully in Justice Court that there was no probable cause to stop the vehicle to begin with, and that the decision to do so had been based on "hearsay."

On Dec. 3, a three-judge panel chaired by Presiding Justice Thomas M. Stark ruled "the search of the knapsack was not reasonably related in scope and intensity to the circumstances which rendered the stop permissible. . . . Her consent to such search was not voluntary." The decision was unanimous and the conviction reversed.

Civil Rights Notice

William F. Farrell, a Riverhead attorney who is an associate of Ms. Menu, represented Miss Reese and another passenger in the car, in notifying both East Hampton Village and East Hampton School District officials after the 1994 arrest that his clients intended to sue for civil rights violations. He is no longer representing the students, but Ms. Menu said yesterday a civil rights suit may be undertaken for Miss Reese alone.

The second student was Ivan Fandino of Amagansett, then 17, who claimed he was "strip searched." Police said he was merely "patted down." He was not charged.

In his notice of claim, Mr. Farrell said the Fandino youth had been "harassed, illegally detained, and assaulted" though he was not charged with wrongdoing.

The Reese girl "suffered substantial damages including severe anxiety, psychological harm, humiliation loss of self-esteem, and emotional distress" as the result of her "traumatic" treatment.

Called Police

Police explained that a school official, later identified in court as James Stewart, a health teacher, called police on the morning of the arrest to ask them to be on the lookout for a car that had left school grounds at about 10:15 a.m. since he suspected its occupants of using marijuana.

A short time later Officer Scott Aldrich spotted the car on Main Street and pulled it over on Pondview Lane.

The Reese youth charged police "intimidated her" into letting them search her backpack; police said she gave her consent. Ms. Menu complained that the quantity of the marijuana found was "minute," and that it was not submitted for testing until eight months later.

Town Response

"It was less than a roach," Ms. Menu told The Star yesterday, holding the tip of her thumbnail. The Reese youth has since moved out of town, Ms. Menu added.

On Tuesday, the Town Board discussed whether to grant Ms. Menu's request that Miss Reese be compensated. Robert Savage, town attorney, said Justice Court equates an hour of community service with $10 in fines, suggesting that the girl could seek $500. John Jilnicki, deputy town attorney, suggested that the town should not agree to anything unless a notice of intent to sue was filed.

Town Supervisor Cathy Lester said she found the situation "aggravating" since the girl actually had marijuana in her possession.

She insisted the town shouldn't pay anything. She added her opinion that Ms. Menu should have asked for a stay of community service if her client meant to appeal. She also said that if the town paid Miss Reese people all over East Hampton would be trying to get arrested so they could work for $10 an hour.

"They should have stopped them, asked, 'Are you supposed to be in school,' followed them back," and let school officials deal with them, Ms. Menu said. "Keep in mind that these are kids who were never in trouble before. They were going to the beach to eat their lunches. Big deal."

The Bridgehampton School's former treasurer, Lyllis Topping, was arrested yesterday and formally charged with a felony count of grand larceny in the misappropriation of nearly $80,000 from the district between January and June of this year.

The charge had been expected for several weeks. Ms. Topping's attorney, John O'Brien, was with her yesterday morning when she appeared voluntarily for arraignment at Southampton Town Justice Court.

She is scheduled to appear in County Criminal Court on Feb. 5, when, according to a spokesman for the Suffolk District Attorney, she is expected to enter a plea of guilty, and be sentenced.

Makes Restitution

The Bridgehampton School District received a check in the amount of $86,145.59 on Tuesday.

The check covered not only missing state aid funds, but money the district had spent on an audit, interest that could have been earned had the stolen funds been deposited, and wages that had been advanced to the treasurer at the time she resigned, in September.

The D.A.'s office is understood to have recommended a sentence of community service, now that restitution has been made. A conviction on a class C felony could bring up to 15 years in prison, but leniency is generally the rule in first offenses and when restitution is secured.

Skimmed P.T.O. Account

Ms. Topping had served on the Bridgehampton School Board for 10 years before becoming the district's treasurer. She was also a part-time main office school secretary and the treasurer of the school's Parent Teacher Organization.

School officials traced the missing money to her in September. Shortly after the D.A.'s Public Integrity Bureau entered the investigation she resigned from all three positions.

The diverted state aid funds were deposited into the P.T.O. bank account, then skimmed out of that account.

"She Got Caught Up"

"She was the treasurer of the School District . . . there were no controls," Mr. O'Brien said after the arraignment, attempting to explain how his client was able to pull off the theft.

He said Ms. Topping had suggested the district implement controls on check-writing, recommending there be two signatures on checks instead of just one.

"I'm sure the first time you take is the hardest," Mr. O'Brien offered. "She got caught up. She made a terrible mistake and she regrets it and hopes no members of the community have been hurt by this."

Ms. Topping was "relieved when it was discovered," her attorney said.

"She knew it was wrong, even though she intended on giving it back." Only after the crime was known did the school treasurer feel she could stop looking over her shoulder, he said.

Used Money "To Live"

Asked to what use Ms. Topping had put the money, Mr. O'Brien said yesterday, there were no extenuating circumstances, no extravagant purchases.

She used it simply for "the cost of everyday living," he said flatly, adding that "she worked long, hard hours and only made $4,000 for her part-time position."

The Bureau of Public Integrity gave Ms. Topping enough lead time before arresting her to enable her to raise the restitution money. Mr. O'Brien said her father mortgaged his house to help his daughter repay the stolen funds.

Speaking to Bridgehampton residents at Monday's School Board meeting, Michael Conlon, the chief of the Public Integrity Bureau, said that "the two months we've had the case is a very small period of time."

Will Stay In Community

Mr. Conlon and five detectives, including investigative auditors, have been working on the case since it was brought to the D.A. He told Monday's gathering that the School District had "acted with great responsibility" from the start.

"I'm satisfied that [the board members] have done the right thing, and we will do that by you," said the detective.

The embezzlement continues to be a hot topic of discussion in the community. Bridgehampton residents were shocked by the initial reports and reluctant to believe the former treasurer was involved. Mr. O'Brien said many in the community had been supportive of her.

Ms. Topping, who has a daughter at the school, plans to stay in Bridgehampton. She has not spoken to the media about the case and apparently will not.

"She wants to try to put it all behind her," Mr. O'Brien said.

Edwards's Dismissal

In other Bridgehampton School news, the board confirmed its Nov. 14 decision to dismiss the District Superintendent, John Edwards, with a unanimous roll-call vote Monday night. Mr. Edwards has been asked to vacate his office at the school, though technically he remains the Superintendent until Jan. 13.

The decision not to renew his contract was independent of the embezzlement, but many residents have seen the two issues as parts of an overall puzzle not yet explained to their satisfaction.

Mario Medio, who has been the acting Superintendent since Mr. Edwards left, was officially appointed Monday to the position of assistant superintendent, a title he had held, along with that of business administrator, before he retired in June. He will become "interim Superintendent" as of Jan. 13.

Search Committee

Mr. Medio is expected to stay through the end of the school year. He stressed that he was indeed "retired," and not in the running for the job of Superintendent.

The board plans to hire a consultant to help in the search. Sam McAleese, the school principal, Debbie Haab, the business administrator, and Mr. Medio will help the board to narrow the field of consultants.

The board discussed including members of the community, teachers, and possibly students in the search process. The last time a superintendent search was done, the board wanted to do this as well.

"We were steered away from what our original feelings were," said John Wyche, the board president. "This time, I refuse to let someone from out of district dictate how we find the proper person for us."

Reading Scores

Questions on the embezzlement may have been at a minimum, but those at Monday's meeting had plenty to say on other school issues.

Responding to a recently published list of New York State schools with below-average reading scores that included Bridgehampton, parents wanted to know how this was possible given the school's small class size and student-teacher ratio.

The list was based on Comprehensive Assessment Reports, which evaluate students' performance and school programs.

Mr. McAleese said small class sizes may actually have put Bridgehampton at a disadvantage in terms of the percent of students scoring above the state reference point, which indicates achievement of minimum basic skills.

Small Classes Skew Numbers

In grade three, for example, all four students scored above the S.R.P. on Pupil Evaluation Program reading tests. For the sixth grade, the percentage was just 88 - eight children were tested, but one scored below the S.R.P.

Firing the School Superintendent was independent of the embezzlement, but many Bridgehampton residents have seen the two issues as parts of an overall puzzle not yet explained to their satisfaction.

The percent scoring above the reference point dropped to 77 on the eighth-grade PEP reading test, which was given to 13 students.

"If a kid has a bad day, we're going to be a school in need of improvement," Mr. McAleese said.

The School Board will discuss the superintendent search at a work session Wednesday. They will also be evaluating some facility changes that may be necessary to accommodate special-education students in the coming years.

The meeting will begin at 7 p.m. in the home economics building.

The High School Playwrights Festival will be held on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Bay Street Theatre in Sag Harbor.

The festival will feature six topical one-act plays written, produced by, and starring high school students from Sag Harbor, Bridgehampton, Southampton, and, a newcomer this year, the Frederick Douglass Academy in Manhattan. East Hampton High School chose not to participate this year.

The plays address issues that interest or concern high school students - previous years have seen drugs, child abuse, friendship, cowardice, and teenage pregnancy addressed, among other subjects both serious and amusing.

Hands-On Training

The event, now in its fourth year, is the culmination of Bay Street's Educational Outreach Program. The program is headed by Bay Street's producer, Murphy Davis, its program administrator, Marilyn Koch, and two instructors, Mary Spitzer and John Martin Green.

The High School Playwrights Festival offers students a chance to experience hands-on-training in all aspects of theater, from writing and acting to production work.

Three-Day Workshop

The course includes a visit to a Manhattan theater production. Working with the theater's professional staff, the students learn about lighting, scenic and costume design, and theater administration, in addition to writing and producing the plays.

The success of the program led to the development of a pilot project for an intensive workshop, held in November, where 26 students from the different schools lived and worked together at the Harbor for Boys and Girls.

A student play from this three-day workshop will be presented along with the other plays, one from each school.

Tickets to the festival can be charged by phone by calling the Bay Street box office.

You've just had a delightful evening dining out with friends. You eat, drink, and happily pay the bill. But in the middle of the night a thought strikes you - if you hadn't been feeling too lazy to cook, you could have done the meal better at home for a quarter the price.

What a treat it is, then, to have not only congenial company but a really outstanding meal that you couldn't achieve at home in your wildest dreams. A meal where it soon becomes apparent that you're in for something special and you anticipate the next course like a child at Christmas - the beautiful presentation of each dish being the gift-wrapping and the first taste the long-awaited gift. The evening becomes a party.

Alison by the Beach is in a little one-story building, shack almost, perched on the edge of the highway on a corner of a potato field where the Wainscott woods end. Even though recommended, I never went to the Potting Shed, Roger's, or Bruce's, the restaurants that were there before, because it looked such an improbable spot. I had this Midwest vision of a few oilcloth-covered tables bearing flies and ketchup bottles, a banging screen door, a waitress with her feet up on a chair reading The National Enquirer, and one very old drunk at the bar crouched over a Jack Daniel's.

Of course it never was like that but, like the time machine in "Dr. Who," the place is deceptive. Inside, it is amazingly spacious. It is also extremely pretty, with sloping floors, exposed beams, and latticed candleholders that cast patterns on the white tablecloths and fill the room with dancing reflections.

On a recent miserable wet evening, our party was particuarly in need of good cheer. One of the group, recently moved to the country after many years as a chef in Manhattan, had that morning taken a grueling driving exam in heavy sleet with a dragon of an instructor, only to have his car wrecked on the celebratory drive home when the steering system failed.

Ah, The Appetizers

Good acoustics, good bread, and a nice white bean dip set the scene for the meal, as did the impressive wine list, which the restaurant can maintain probably because it is a branch of the Manhattan establishment Alison on Dominick Street.

The appetizers we tried included a crisp apple and celery remoulade, a fine green salad, and a wonderful lentil soup that bore absolutely no resemblance to those bowls of murky brown sludge that one usually associates with the dish - these lentils fairly sparkled.

The desserts provided the crowning flourish at the end of a veritable trumpet voluntary of a meal.

Then there was a warm goat cheese and potato terrine, bound in some sort of crisp vegetable wrapping, that produced sighs of delight. It was served with a salad of chopped young beetroots in walnut oil, good enough to have been a dish by themselves.

Silence For The Soup

But it was the soup - of delicata, buttercup, and butternut squashes with curry cream - that reduced the table to a brief moment of awed silence. As Shakespeare undoubtedly meant to say: "Soup that knits up the raveled sleave of care . . . balm of hurt minds, great nature's second course, chief nourisher in life's feast."

Appetizers run from $7 to $9, with a selection of smoked fish or French cheese priced a bit higher.

Entrees are from $21 to $26. They included a tender and unusual sauteed local striped bass in a potato crust with artichokes and a heartwarming traditional lamb stew with pumpkin gnocchi (vegetables are very obviously chosen from what is in season).

The Driver Revives

The stuffed breast of veal was divine, stuffed with a herb-sausagey mix that wasn't too cloying and accompanied by mashed potatoes and a heap of wild mushrooms.

And the braised beef short ribs with horseradish mashed potatoes removed the lines of trauma from the face of our shellshocked new driver - he looked almost ready to face the L.I.E.

One diner, it must be noted, was not so happy with her salmon. It was not medium rare as promised, not hot enough, and she found the accompanying vegetables with smoked salmon lardons too "busy" in flavor.

But she enthused instead about a wonderful halibut dish she had had at Alison's on a previous visit.

Ta-Da! For Dessert

Restaurant desserts are so often a bit of a letdown, but on this occasion they provided the crowning flourish at the end of a veritable trumpet voluntary of a meal.

The chocolate walnut mousse was such a tour de force that it warranted a phone call to the pastry chef to see how he did it - equal parts butter and chocolate, the egg yolks beaten, then the egg whites beaten, very little sugar. It is then partially cooked, rested, then cooked again, which explained the firm crust and the moist inside.

He also confided that the perfect creme brulee with pinenut glaze was a secret recipe he had been working on for years, and that the delicate wafers of pastry in the apple napoleon was brick dough, not phyllo.

The napoleon arrived like a little Spanish galleon, crowned with sails of the thinnest apple slices and floating in a sea of raspberry coulis.

It Was Worth It

Very fresh nuts fried with a glaze were the secret of a delicious cappuccino, chocolate, sundae sort of thing whose title now eludes me but whose taste was memorable.

One diner finished with a selection of French cheeses - a choice that pleased those of us who hadn't finished our wine yet.

Only one other table was occupied when we arrived. As we ate, the room filled completely, then slowly emptied. We lingered over coffee and complimentary cookies until it would have been embarrassing to stay any longer.

Including some cocktails and two bottles of an excellent ChimŠre pinot noir from California - the first ordered with Scrooge-like caution, the second with festive abandon - the bill came to $80 a head. It was, we agreed, worth every penny. Recipe Gremlins

The devilish gremlins got into one of Miriam Ungerer's recipes - again! The fractions in last week's recipe for baked ham went off for a walk, leaving an incomprehensible trail of footprints behind.

Herewith the corrected recipe:

Barbecued Fresh Ham

A fresh ham weighs about 18 pounds and is a great choice for 30 or more people, depending on whether it's a main course or part of a buffet, when it will serve about 50. Order in advance as these huge cuts aren't always available. Most are cured, rather cursorily, and sold as "ham."

Aged country hams will be covered in another column in time for New Year's and more Hoppin' John to keep you lucky. If you prefer, this recipe can be made in a regular oven; however, the meat will need tenting with heavy foil to avoid drying it out.

Dry Marinade:

1 large bay leaf

1 Tbsp. dried sage leaves

1 tsp. dried juniper berries

1 Tbsp. black peppercorns

1 tsp. whole allspice

1 tsp. marjoram or thyme leaves

1/4 tsp. ground mace

1/4 cup coarse (kosher) salt

A fresh ham (about 18 lbs.)

1/2 lb. slab salt pork, sliced in large thin squares

Grind all the herbs and spices together and mix with the salt. Trim the rind from the ham and reserve it - it's very tasty roasted, and useful in giving body to stews and bean casseroles. Trim the fat to quarter-inch thickness. Leave the skin on the hock to hold it in shape. Rub the marinade mix all over the meat and inside along the bone, opening it carefully with a thin boning knife, then pressing it back together. Put it in a large plastic bag and refrigerate it. Turn it every 12 hours for two days. Rinse and then soak the salt pork slices in a large bowl of cool water overnight. You can marinate the fresh ham three days if you prefer.

The day before serving, wipe the ham dry with paper towels and tie it in shape with soft string. Brush it all over with plain oil, then tie the drained, dried salt pork over any areas not protected with the natural fat. Place it on a V rack in an open roasting pan.

Preheat the charcoal or gas grill to 400 degrees (hot). Put the ham with some water in the underpan into the grill and roast for 20 minutes. Reduce the heat to around 325 degrees (medium-low on most grills), brush with oil, and let it while away the time for a total of about 4 hours in a grill, though it can take up to six hours in a conventional oven. Once an hour brush the ham with the drippings under the roast, as quickly as possible. Remove the salt pork an hour before the meat is done and baste well. When the temperature reaches 155 degrees Fahrenheit at the deepest point, the ham is done. Don't attempt to carve it for at least one hour. Fresh ham carves best cold and tastes best at room temperature.

Tiny biscuits or mini corn muffins with mustardy mayonnaise are good cocktail party partners for fresh ham.

Hal McKusick will wish his friend and fellow jazzman Clark Terry a happy birthday in a jazz concert Saturday night at the Old Whaler's (Sag Harbor Presbyterian) Church. The concert, which is the next in the Sag Harbor Jazz Festival series, features Mr. Terry as the guest soloist.

A trumpet legend whose roots stretch back to the Count Basie and Duke Ellington bands, Mr. Terry wowed the audience at the first festival, in 1994. This time around should be even better, Mr. McKusick said.

"He'll be playing trumpet and flugelhorn and shouting the blues, and we'll be leaning on him, since it's his birthday." Mr. Terry turns 76 on Saturday.

Big Bad Band

This concert will be the fifth since the festival was founded. The trumpet player Art Farmer and the vocalist Jonathan Hendricks are among past special guests.

Mr. Terry began his career in the Big Band era, playing with the Duke and the Count, and went on to lead his own unit, Clark Terry's Big Bad Band, for a number of years. He continues to play regularly.

"He loved it here," said Mr. McKusick of the trumpet legend's first visit to the Whaler's Church. "He loved the sound and he loved the response of the crowd. There's a unique vibration in there."

Tight Rhythm

Mr. McKusick's quartet on Saturday will feature the sought-after Don Friedman on piano and two new faces to the festival: Akira Tana on drums and Sante Dibriano on bass. The three musicians recently returned from Japan, where they played as a trio.

"So we have a pretty tight rhythm section," Mr. McKusick observed.

He leads the quartet on saxophone. They performs classic jazz from the likes of Charlie Parker, Thelonius Monk, Bill Evans, and Duke Ellington.

Tickets for Saturday's concert, at $25 each, can be purchased in advance at Long Island Sound and Book Hampton branches, as well as Sylvester & Co. and Kramoris Gallery in Sag Harbor. Tickets will be available at the door as well.

A Letter Home From Boynton Beach

December 3, 1996

Dear Editor:

In the early years of this century up until the beginning of World War II, a sizable number of homes in the Town of East Hampton were heated by wood. A far lesser number were heated by bituminous coal, more commonly known as soft coal. It was picked up along the railroad tracks, especially in the Montauk area, where the steam trains were prepared for their western run to New York.

In the 1930s, due to the Great Depression, there was far less money to buy anthracite, or hard coal, with which to heat a home. Anthracite, which was favored by coal users, wasn't as messy to handle as bituminous. Also, bituminous coal was prone to cause chimney fires due to its hydrocarbon content and volatile nature.

Most of the wood burned in stoves in the East Hampton area came from Northwest. A large portion of the Northwest woods was owned by the Gardiner family. The Osbornes and other old families owned woodland also. But for the generosity of those people, many homeowners would have had difficulty in finding other means of heating their homes. Most likely, Home Relief would have come to their aid, providing coal or wood.

At the time wood was being hauled from the woodlands, the land itself was of little value, so owners did not object to the wood being cut and hauled. In the early years of this century, Jim Gay, a blacksmith, livery stable owner, and general contractor, purchased large parcels of woodlands just for the cordwood.

A crew of woodcutters was sent in to cut down all the trees. After the trees were cut down, they were cut into four-foot lengths and then piled into 4-by-6-by-8-foot stacks which constitute one cord. As one passed by those cleared areas, stacks of wood could be seen throughout the area, awaiting pickup by teams of horses or trucks.

In today's world, I'm sorry to say, most of the wood would have disappeared long before it was hauled. As a boy I remember going down Hand's Creek Road below Long Hill in Grassy Hollow seeing only cleared land where once there had been a large stand of trees.

I have heard old-timers say that after Jim Gay had cleared a parcel of woodland, he'd tack the deed to a stump for anyone who cared to record it at the county seat.

In the town election of November 1923, several propositions were submitted to be voted upon by the electorate. One of the propositions called for the town to raise a sum of $20,000 in each of the years 1923 and 1924 to buy parkland. The money was to be used by the Town Trustees for the purchase of woodland located west of Three Mile Harbor, south of Gardiner's Bay, and east of Northwest Harbor and Northwest Creek. The cost was not to exceed $20 per acre.

The voters opposed the proposition by defeating it by nearly four to one. As one can see, woodland at that time was of little value in the minds of most people. Why would the town require more land for parks? Already we had Maidstone Park and Fresh Pond and access to any shore of our choice.

Cutting and hauling wood in those Depression days required a man to have a reliable car capable of producing extra power when needed, a durable trailer, a keen ax, steel wedges, a sledgehammer, and a sharp two-man saw with a proper set. Without a proper set, a saw would bind and become useless. Axes used by most woodcutters were single edged, balanced, and made by Kelly or Collins. There were some, though, who used a double-edged ax made by Plumb.

Two-wheeled trailers were preferred because they were more easily maneuvered. Usually, they were made from old cars picked up at the junkyard, and, when not used for hauling wood, they carted boats to the shore or debris to the dump.

Also, a man's work was made easier if he had a teenage son or two to help him, for it kept them out of mischief and built up their muscles.

Upon arrival at a predetermined location, they selected a spot to fell the tree. After the tree fell, it was trimmed with an ax. The unwanted branches were piled in an area where they would not interfere with the movement of the car and trailer. After being sawn into 8-to-10-foot lengths, the logs were loaded on the trailer.

When the trailer was fully loaded, all tools were gathered, and it was off to home, where the logs were removed and piled to await the saw-cutting rig. The wood cutting and hauling continued until an amount large enough to last through the winter and well into spring was accumulated.

Cutting wood was not an easy task with all the cutting, sawing, and lifting. Conditions were made much worse when snow was on the ground because cold and wet feet would add to the discomfort. Insulated boots or shoes were unheard of in those days. The rubber bottom and leather top boot made by L.L. Bean helped keep feet warm and dry if they were large enough for three pairs of wool socks.

The trouble with Bean's boots was that most of the woodcutters couldn't afford them. Cold feet made the whole body cold which, in turn, made the day much too long.

When the time came for the wood to be cut, Ludlow Raynor Sr. or Preston Lynch would arrive with the saw-rig. After the engine started, the owner-operator put the large blade into motion. Two men would pick up a log and place it on the movable table, which was pushed forward into the blade. After the stove length pieces of 12 to 16 inches were cut, the person assigned to throwing off heaved it to a predetermined place where later they would be split.

The saw blade was unguarded, and the engine, which rotated, was in close proximity to the throw-off man. It was a miracle that more people were not injured during wood-saw operation. I remember only two people who were severely injured. Billy McGuire was burned very badly when the saw-rig engine caught fire, and Alfonso Cesna was injured so severely when the flywheel disintegrated that one of his legs had to be amputated.

After the wood had been cut, the teenage son had the responsibility of splitting logs during his spare time, which usually was after school and on Saturday mornings. After the wood had been split, it was placed in the woodshed, where it would dry. Also, the son had to fill the woodbox each night and to provide the kindling for the next morning's fire should the fire burn out during the night.

Most homes had a Glenwood or Perfect kitchen stove with a warming oven. The baking oven was located beneath the stove top next to the fire box. Besides being used for baking pies and cakes, ovens were great for warming cold feet. Many cold feet were restored to normalcy after being placed in the open of the oven.

The back of the stove was a good place to have a pot of beans, chowder, or samp simmering. A good meal was available with bread, oleo, and whatever was on the back of the stove.

There were men who made a meager living chopping wood for Jim Gay, Bart Hadel, P.C. Schenck, et al. To survive, a man had to cut at least two cords per day.

That era has passed on, and there aren't many left who have a vivid memory of those trying and difficult times. To many teenage boys it was a time when many autumn hours were spent in the woodland so their homes would be cozy and warm during the coming winter months.

Despite growing up in the adversity of the lean '30s, I have pleasant memories of the bright side of those days and there are many.

Sincerely,

NORTON (BUCKET) DANIELS

Great Soap Opera

Amagansett

December 9, 1996

Dear Editor:

The shenanigans we have been observing recently at the Amagansett School would make a great soap opera.

Scene One: Old School Board holds secret meeting where it gives Superintendent a house at reduced rental; it extends his contract for five years. Reason given for secrecy is concern for Superintendent's personal problems.

Great uproar in the public sector; hot election campaign ensues for openings on the School Board. "Old- timers," staunch supporters of the Superintendent, are defeated by the "good guys," and the new members are in by a comfortable majority.

Scene Two: Differences appear between Superintendent and new board but statements to the press assure us all is well. Both parties are ironing out their differences; both echo their common aim, good education for the children. Everything looks rosy. But no. . . .

Scene Three: Superintendent drops bombshell. He has a new job starting Jan. 1; one wonders about responsibility for contractual obligations; also, since Superintendent makes much of his great feeling for the school and its children, we are surprised to hear nothing about some sort of offer to hang in there until new Superintendent replaces him.

School Board with its members announces it is beginning to make plans for hiring new Superintendent. A group of 20 or so parents begin to organize a campaign against mean old School Board which is not nice to the Superintendent. Look at what they made him do! Quit!

Scene Four: This is the big one. School Board sets a date to meet and discuss the groundwork for replacement of Superintendent. But wait, there is a private meeting going on first, elsewhere - hush-hush stuff. What a scene! At last public meeting is convened, and it turns out to be a howl: a "four-hour emotionally charg ed discussion alternately in public and behind closed doors." Big dramatics.

Organized parents - they're out in the open now - telling the board that it must give the Superintendent the 100-percent support he demands in order to get him to stay. (Shades of some Bronx, New York City, community school boards.)

Differences of opinion begin to cave in with the exception of one member who is maligned, threatened, and abused for maintaining a straightforward, honest point of view. An offer is made to the Superintendent: 90-percent support; no soap. One-hundred percent, or he goes. At last a compromise; 98 percent does it. Our man stays.

Now the wrap-up. It turns out that the Superintendent hasn't signed for the new job anyway. All our board has to do is tell the folks in Glen Cove that he really wasn't using them "as a weapon or lever against this community," and he thinks "Amagansett is a lovely place to work and a lovely school with a lot of fine people."

He's going to offer back the district-owned house that he now occupies in May, but, for the time being, he and his family will live in two houses. And by 2001, when his salary will be $130,000, he will be eligible for retirement. He expects to be in the district until then. (The Star, Nov. 14). No comment.

In the meantime, everyone has had his or her group therapy session. Can you just see it on the screen? The hand-wringing, the tear-jerking, the yelling, the weeping, the shouting, the threats! Wow! Then the reconciliation scene. Love and kisses all around; embraces all around.

This is a school? And this is the renovated School Board? The so-called "young turks" stepped into the cement mold real quick.

But okay, the last scene - Five: More love and kisses reinforced by a well-publicized luncheon. We are united again and, well, 98 percent is not so bad.

But let's not forget Jack Emptage who told The Star, "We've got to sell [a building program] to the community, and we can't do that unless the school is totally united." No question but that's going to make another good scenario.

To clarify the issue, no one is questioning the Superintendent's credentials; they're no better or worse than any others. But let's look at his responsibilities. At the last count, the number of children in the school, including the preschoolers, was in the 200 range.

As a former New York City school- teacher, I am familiar with superintendents' responsibilities at close hand. They supervise the needs of thousands of children. What we have here is a mini-school. How are our children served by the outrageous, preposterous, undisciplined antics we have observed these last months?

Who is running this "private" school that is being paid for with public funds, by the way? Right now it looks like a small, well-organized group of parents with their own agenda are calling the shots. Professionals in education have observed again and again that parents, even with the best intentions, cannot be and are not objective. They have their own agenda, their own children.

That's why a good school board has to be a balanced, hardheaded group that can handle conflicting interests fairly, keeping in the forefront always what it's there for - to see that all the children get the best education possible.

A big thank-you should be given to Joan Plachy, who seems to have been the only member of the board who had the guts to speak out independently and then have to take on the abuse reported in the press.

The entire soap opera is enough to give "As the World Turns" an upset stomach.

BERTHA GLADSTONE

Gracious With Help

Watchung, N.J.

December 2, 1996

To The Editor:

Throughout the entire summer and on weekends during the rest of the year, East Hampton and the surrounding communities are besieged by nonpermanent residents who cover the area like locusts. We are drawn by the tranquillity and extraordinary beauty of the area's natural resources.

Often forgotten, however, is that one of the nicest resources in East Hampton are the local residents who provide the services which make the area work so efficiently and effectively.

I have been boating in the East Hampton area for two decades and recently had occasion to require the assistance of the harbormaster in Three Mile Harbor, Donald Bousson. He was so gracious with his help that he almost made me feel as though I were doing him a favor by permitting him to assist me.

Anyone who uses Three Mile Harbor knows how well the waters are patrolled and the great care and pride taken by the harbor patrol in making the waters fun and safe for all.

I cannot thank the harbormaster enough. I want to share this most pleasant experience with everyone and thank all those who make the Hamptons truly beautiful.

Sincerely,

HOWARD J. BURGER

Please address all correspondence to [email protected]