The Contrarian's View

Vol. XII, #6 January 30, 1998

The Contrarian's View is published 11 times per year on a mostly-irregular schedule, and the views expressed are those of the author and editor, Nick Chase. Because nobody can predict the future, results of past suggestions or recommendations are no guarantee of future results. Material in this publication may be freely quoted provided proper attribution is given to its source. Subscription rate: Free on the Internet through the World-Wide Web service at Assumption College. Using your favorite Web-browsing program, Open URL http://nick.assumption.edu. Mailed paper subscriptions, one year for $39 to The Contrarian's View, 132 Moreland Street, Worcester, Massachusetts 01609. There is a limit of 50 paid subscribers at one time; please check for availability before sending any money. Sorry, Visa and Mastercard are not available. Overseas subscription rate, U.S. $54. Unsolicited material sent to us by UPS or by courier other than the postal service is refused and returned to sender! Phone: (508) 757-2881

THE 'RING OF TRUTH'

First, the woodcutter relates the bandit's testimony at the trial. According to the bandit, he was accosted by the samurai after he ferociously encountered the entourage in the woods, courageously slew him in a fierce battle of honor, and made off with the wife and belongings as booty. Then the woodcutter relates the wife's testimony: The bandit, she says, found her in the woods, raped her and stole her jewels; whereupon the samurai discovered them, bravely engaged the bandit in a battle of honor, but lost the swordfight and was slain.

Then, the woodcutter tells his friends what really happened, for he was hiding in the bushes and saw it all: The samurai and his wife became separated in the woods, and the wife stumbled upon the cowardly bandit hiding in the forest, trying to escape detection. Bored with her husband, the wife cuckolded him by seducing the bandit, whereupon the samurai stumbled upon the pair. The deceptive wife urged her husband to redeem her honor by slaying the bandit, but the samurai was just as cowardly as the bandit and the two of them engaged in elaborate swordplay, trying to lay as few blows on each other as possible, until the samurai tripped, accidently impaled himself on his own sword, and died.

"I do believe that is what happened," a compatriot says, "for it has the 'ring of truth' to it".

So it is with the current soap-opera scandal involving Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky. We have both Clinton's and Lewinsky's reported denials under oath of a sexual relationship; we have high-priced lawyers and spin doctors pretending there was no "improper" relationship; we have Hillary jousting with imaginary right-wing conspiracy nuts; we have denials of favoritism, deal-making, and suborning perjury.

Then we have the tapes, the tapes surreptitiously made by Linda Tripp (and the FBI), of Monica Lewinsky purportedly describing her oral-sex relationship with Bill Clinton, of her intent to lie about it under oath, of Clinton's and Vernon Jordan's exhortations for her to deny the existence of the relationship, and (on paper) the "talking points" for Linda Tripp to "alter" her testimony about Clinton's pass at Kathleen Willey.

We read transcripts of portions of the tapes and are ready and willing to believe their veracity, in spite of official denials. Why? Because they have the "ring of truth" to them.... we know that behind the official veneer of Washington respectability, sex goes on, deals are made, bribes (in some form) are paid. We have caught two participants in unguarded moments, and know that though they may lie to the world, they are unlikely to be lying to each other. We hear the words, and we can say to ourselves, "yes.... that's the way Washington really works".

QUOTES FOR THE MONTH

It sort of surprises me at this point with all of the problems and the scandals that he would be foolish enough to do something like this. You think the boy would learn. - Gennifer Flowers

When it comes to girls, Bill thinks with another part of his anatomy - not his head. He just can't help himself. - Gennifer Flowers

Lewinsky: "What do you need this [Paula Jones suit] headache for? Why don't you just settle and give Jones some cash and the apology she wanted?" Clinton: "I can't." Lewinsky: "Why not?" Clinton: "Because they'll all come forward." Lewinsky: "So what? How many could there be?" Clinton (sighing) "Hundreds." - Monica Lewinsky, recalling conversation with Bill Clinton on tape recorded by Linda Tripp

I was being solicited to participate in a plan to conceal and cover up the true nature of the relationship between Monica Lewinsky and President Clinton. Monica described every detail of the relationship during hundreds of hours of conversations over the past 15 months. In addition, I was present when she received a late night phone call from the president. I have also seen numerous gifts they exchanged and heard several tapes of him. I was also present when Monica made and received numerous phone calls which were of a volatile and contentious nature directly relating to her relationship with the president. - Linda Tripp

There are other women who are being brought forward to be deposed. My agents know the names of several, and we know some of the government jobs that were offered them. Those jobs, by the way, will constitute another scandal. Things will get worse. - R. Emmett Tyrrell, Jr.

Everyone knows he is lying. - William Kristol

We shouldn't say that Bill Clinton is a liar. It's not nice to use that word nowadays. He is simply "factually challenged." After all it isn't nice to say things against someone who obviously suffers from Integrity Deficit Disorder! - Mark E. Howerter

The important thing is to stop lying to yourself. A man who lies to himself, and believes his own lies, becomes unable to recognize the truth, either in himself or in anyone else, and he ends up losing respect for himself as well as for others. When he has no respect for anyone, he can no longer love and, in order to divert himself, having no love in him, he yields to his impulses, indulges in the lowest forms of pleasure, and behaves in the end like an animal, in satisfying his vices. And it all comes from lying -- lying to others and to yourself. - Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

As a parent of children close to Monica's age, I felt and continue to feel horror at the abuse of power and emotional anguish she has endured over a two-year period. I am disturbed by the smear campaign that maligns Monica. She is a bright, caring, generous soul, one who has made poor choices. She was not a stalker, she was invited; she did not embellish, the truth is sensational enough. Monica's moral compass is her own. She, as anyone else, should not be forced to defend her private life as a carefully orchestrated campaign is launched to discredit her. I firmly believe the truth will be her friend as the facts come to light.- Linda Tripp

The vicious personal attacks against me by an administration spokesman, and the general climate of threats, intimidation, McCarthyistic tactics and guilt by association can only serve to deter those who in the future may dare to bring information to law enforcement officials. No one should be forced to deny the truth under oath, not even a political appointee whose livelihood is dependent upon the good favor of those in power. - Linda Tripp

There is the affair, there is the leak, there is the false Clinton denial, there is the intermediary who advises the woman to make a denial as well, there is the offer of a job, there is even the blackening of the woman's character. By her own account, all of these things happened to Miss Lewinsky. If she is believed, the President broke the law, both perjuring himself in his deposition and suborning her perjury. These are criminal offences, and they are impeachable. - William Rees-Mogg

Could an impeachment inquiry lead to a stock market meltdown? Absolutely. The market detests uncertainty, and proceedings against a sitting president will provide it. Look what happened with Richard Nixon. The Dow Jones Industrial Average peaked in January 1973, when the Watergate break-in was first revealed. It had fallen 30% by Aug. 9, 1974, the date Nixon resigned. Of course, there were other reasons as well for this sickening decline, but it took nine years for the Dow to get back to its pre-Watergate level. - James K. Glassman

A man who is devoting this much time to satisfy his sexual appetite can't be devoting the proper time to giving the country the kind of leadership it's entitled to have. With that kind of distraction, it's almost a danger to have him in a position of such great responsibility. And I think that's dawning on the American people at this time. - Jim Johnson, retired Arkansas Supreme Court justice

How do I feel? I am angry. People in high places cannot be perfect, but if they don't expect to conduct themselves in a way-above-average manner, then they should not have chosen a leadership profession. - Audrey Sherman

Clinton has already declared that he is 100% not guilty and his wife is talking about conspiracies. I guess if Clinton gets through this one, he can devote the rest of his term to locating the real perjuring fornicators and bring them to justice. - Marc Sexton (Fiend SuperBear)

I have been vindicated.... They called me a drunk, a wife-beater, a barroom brawler, a womanizer, that I had been guilty of insurance fraud -- you know, any- and everything that they could think of. They went after me big time. But everything I said was true. This man [Clinton] hasn't changed any. He's the same now as when he was governor. I've had people from the Secret Service tell me within the last six months that it's still going on -- that it's as bad or worse now as it was when he was governor. - Larry Patterson, Arkansas state trooper

I've stood the test of time. Now where do I go to get my name back? - Larry Nichols

"We will never let Japan trigger a global crisis. We will do everything to prevent that." - Ryutaro Hashimoto (Prime Minister of Japan), December 17, 1997.

We have now reached a situation where corporate Japan, Nippon banks, and the Japanese government ALL require a massive influx of money. If one of these entities does not get these funds, then the whole system collapses. All three entities are technically bankrupt, all three require money, and except for the printing press at the Bank of Japan, there is no source for this money. Up until the Asian crises, the Japanese banks were able to supply sufficient liquidity to the system. Now the demand for liquidity has DRAMATICALLY increased, but the supply is contracting. Japan will fail in 1998.- John Kutyn

I'm expecting the worst. I've lost everything, and I'm now only holding on to a pile of wastepaper. - Chau Ho-yeung (Hong Kong bank clerk)

In this world where no one should fail, banks rescue bankrupt companies by injecting more loans. And when this action threatens the financial health of the banks, governments are called to rescue the banks. And when this action threatens the financial health of the governments, the IMF is called in. And when problems get too large for the IMF, everything collapses. - John Kutyn

Giving loans to profligate Asians is deeply distasteful. It certainly offends my fierce free market beliefs. The IMF's draconian "rescue" packages have often backfired. Still, it's the best vehicle available. We're facing an unprecedentedly dangerous situation, what the French call "force majeure". Financial and political realpolitik must take precedence over economic ideology. Without the US-mounted rescue, there may be few markets left in Asia, free or otherwise. - Eric Margolis

Ironically, Asian governments' frantic short-term solutions may bring temporary respite from the crisis of recent months, but will ensure that the embattled economies will eventually be destroyed. - John Kutyn

The story we are told goes something like this: The Great Depression happened because President Herbert Hoover and the Federal Reserve failed to flood the economy with liquidity after the stock market crash. A few years later Roosevelt was elected, reversed course and ended the Depression. Extremely oversimplified, but that is the gist of it. Apparently all the excess credit and excess capacity built up during the 1920s were going to magically disappear given the "right" fiscal policies. This is ingenuous nonsense. - Max Moseley

The monetarists have been assuring everyone that deflation is easy to avert. Because deflation is a state of mind, when a monetary system is debt-laden, I don't believe it can be averted. Every action will be interpreted in such a way as to fuel deflationary psychology, which puts the spin on the action. I am sure that the Japanese would like a quick fix to their deflation, don't you think? So far, it has progressed for eight years. - Robert Prechter

There must be a limitation on the amount of paper money printed other than a bunch of old men sitting around a room deciding that they should print 10% more this year, or some other number that they concoct. - James Dines

We do not have money anymore. Only fiat paper. It only functions as money because you are forced to regard it as such. Our money was taken away from us by Congress years ago. President Lincoln asked one of his generals, "If you count a tail as a leg, how many legs does a dog have?" The General replied," Five". To which Lincoln responded, "No, Four. You can call a tail a leg, but it is still a tail". Federal Reserve notes are not money and regardless of the Legal Tender Acts, they are still not money.... court decisions saying that Federal Reserve notes are money are no more than calling a tail a leg. And because of that foolishness, supported by force, when REAL MONEY is called for, then you will find out what money really is. - Paul Milne

I can think of no good reason why people that work for a living would consider a government taxing away 50% of income and a monetary system based on nothing of value to be good. The only reason we appear to be stuck with this bad result is that more people get something for nothing than those who don't. - Eric Turner

It is bad enough that the fools running the global banking system are dumping their gold at fire-sale prices and carrying a lot of non-performing Asian paper in a vain effort to save a bunch of insolvent Korean and Japanese institutions, but Y2K is far worse. I will probably live to see the greatest financial panic in all of human history, and though I am not looking forward to it, I will be prepared. - William T. Coleman

In our local bird cage liner there was an AP story on the IRS and Y2K on page three. FIRST I have ever seen in our paper. It mentioned most of the problem and the 8-10% attrition rate of programmers fleeing government service. I read this over breakfast in a restaurant, sitting next to the guy who runs the local Radio Shack.... I asked him if he had read the piece. "Yes". I asked "Did you notice one major thing they left out of the story ?". He said "What did they leave out ?". I replied "what happens if they DON'T get it fixed ?". He asked "So what happens ?". I said to him "you're a smart guy, extrapolate and answer your own question". After a moment he said "Everything collapses". HOORAY! Easiest conversion I have ever had. Who's next? Next in line, please step up. - Art Welling

My friend's mother-in-law just got her recently-renewed license in the mail here in Missouri. The expiration date had four digits, which was a good start, but the digits were 0000. I guess that it never expires! - Paul Cordes

The sad fact -- the one that regularly takes the wind out of my sails and the sails of the other so-called doomsayers -- is that it is too late to convince anyone who has ignored the problem to do otherwise. It's not that the time for awareness is over; it's that the people who have so far done nothing, in defiance of all the evidence, have deliberately chosen to do nothing. There is nothing you can say to them at this point in time that will convince them to change their course. A case in point: Robin Guenier, who was the director of Taskforce 2000 in the U.K., finally convinced the Labour government that this problem is real and pressing. A week later, his contract with the government was terminated. The lesson? Shooting the messenger is still an acceptable practice.... - Peter DeJager

I do know that I'm going to have to make some personal decisions about my bank account (and my home, and my job, and my telephone, and my car, and a lot of other stuff) in the face of incomplete information and a wall of silence, sometime between now and 12/31/99. That could involve everything from the optimistic extreme of hoping for the best, and leaving my finances in a conventional collection of stocks, bonds, mutual funds, and savings accounts ... all the way to the gloom-and-doom extreme of converting everything to gold and burying it in the back yard. I don't think either extreme is appropriate, but I'd like to have as many options as possible over the next couple of years, so that I can make a more informed decision based on whatever information becomes available. I would much prefer to believe that all of this is going to end well, for the hassle and penalties and risks of unraveling my IRA/Keogh accounts (where most of my long-term assets exist) is going to be quite severe for me, if that turns out to be the prudent option. And in the end, I'll base my decision on my own assessment of the magnitude and duration of the disruptions that I think might occur. - Ed Yourdon

The NRC has publicly stated that a certification of Year 2000 readiness will be required from every nuclear plant in the country. In the absence of that guarantee, the NRC has no recourse, by federal regulations, but to require the shutdown of the plants that aren't Y2K certified. I would expect this requirement to be enforced no later than the 3rd or 4th quarter of 1999. To date, most nuclear plants haven't gone much beyond the 'awareness phase' of the typical Y2K project plan. Very few senior plant managers seem to appreciate the depth of the problem. And, as of right now, I anticipate very few nuclear power facilities will be operational into the Year 2000. - Rick Cowles

The best thing about Medicare's nightmare is that we will wake up on January 1, 2000, knowing that Medicare is no more. Those 80 million checks per month will not be in the mail. (Then there is the question of the mails: the Postal Service is not 2000-compliant.) ....The Welfare State has only a few more months to go. The experiment is just about over. Free at last! Free at last! - Gary North

My brother is an air traffic controller and he said that some of their computer hardware still uses TUBES!! Do we think the software that uses this hardware can even be upgraded???? - Rebecca Kutche

Large corporate firms whose survival is at stake do not like to hire older people who do not like to sit in cubicles. What is the incentive of some program director to change his entire management style? Just about zero. Behemoth organizations do not change. They die, but they do not change. This is why all the media chatter about "big outfits will make it; small ones won't" is ridiculous. It is only the small outfits that are flexible enough to accommodate the old-timers. They may make it. But probably not. It's back to paper and ink, or compliant desktop computers, for managements that intend to survive. Most won't even attempt it. - Gary North

STOCK MARKET OUTLOOK

I think that, from the government's point of view, this may well be the case. If stocks were to correct just to their average trading levels (in relation to underlying value) of the past half-century, the psychological impact would be so great that the economy would rapidly tip into recession; with our Asian trading partners already there, the spectre of a worldwide depression would be looming before us.

People - probably a large majority of people - now think of the money they've put into stocks as "savings", just like putting money into the bank. It's not the government's fault that people think this way, but it certainly is the Federal Reserve's problem if something should suddenly happen to change people's minds en masse, leading to a meltdown, recession or depression, and a threat to the stability of the banking system. Thus, we have the manipulation of last October, and the current "things are just great" rhetoric, to keep the confidence game going and keep stocks (at a minimum) in a trading range. And should "systemic risk" reappear, with a sudden drying up of liquidity in the stock market similar to last October's, no doubt we'll see other interventions and manipulations by the Federal Reserve.

Eventually, the asset deflation that has begun in Asia will get us, for once such a force is unleashed and spreads, it consumes all overindebted nations, just as it did in the 1920s and 1930s. Russia, Japan, Italy and possibly Canada are all good candidates for where the "Asian flu" will strike next. Perhaps we can bail out Russia or Italy; Japan or Canada, I think not.... we simply are, as a nation, too much in debt ourselves to bail out the entire world, even if we do run its reserve currency.

The stock-market meltdown I first wrote about in 1995 looks like it will never arrive; and with the Feds operating in "too big to fail" mode, it's not productive to estimate when it will arrive, because that's trying to outguess the Feds and the extent of their power. It's much more realistic to guess where.... that is, at what level of stock prices.... it will arrive, for here we have history as a guide. When the Dow reaches the vicinity of 7000, particularly after a prolonged profitless period such as we've had since last August, that's where we reach "meltdown territory", and a sudden market plunge is likely to trigger a panic that even the Feds can't thwart.

In the meantime, "cash" (money-markets or T-bills) look pretty good, and modest profits can be made in high grade bonds, though probably not much more than you'll get in cash. Be patient.... just keep reminding yourself, it always pays to wait until the merchandise is on sale before you buy, even if you can't predict just when that will be.

PORTFOLIO REVIEW

A. "Phoenix" -real portfolio, begun on October 1, 1995.

SUMMARY - "Phoenix":

             Original cost:         $ 8,090.45
             Present value:         $ 7,391.62
             Increase:              $-  698.83  [-8.64%]

The performance of this portfolio and its predecessors ("Hedger's Delight", "Present and Future Income", "Crapshooter's Folly") from January 1987 to the present is +3.60%, for a compound annual rate of return of +0.31%.

COMMENT on "Phoenix": The remaining LEAP puts have expired and, given the Federal Reserve's propping up of the stock market and having no idea of when this propping-up will finally fail, I'm not inclined to buy any more unless I intend to eventually own or sell the underlying stock. I am now looking at various gold mining "penny stocks" for possible purchase.

B. "Professors' Investment Group (PIG)" - investment club portfolio.

SUMMARY - "PIG":

             Original cost:         $ 7,580.00
             Present value:         $ 7,455.82
             Increase:              $ - 124.18  [-1.64%]

C. Fidelity IRA - real portfolio, includes commissions:

SUMMARY - IRA:

             Original (1983-86) cost:  $ 8,326.19
             Present value:            $13,833.93
             Increase:                 $ 5,507.74 [66.15%]

The performance of this portfolio (including its predecessors) from January 1, 1987 to the present is +26.14%, for a compound annual rate of return of 2.12%.

COMMENT on IRA: There is no change since last month. Candidates for sale are GF, SFN and TEP, to raise cash for point-skimming.

D. CREF Pension plan; I switch between indexed stock/bond/money funds:

Date           Sold            Bought
13Mar92          stock @ 56.65      MM @ 13.41
29Apr92          MM @ 13.48         bond @ 31.19
19Jun92          bond @ 32.14       MM @ 13.55
29Jun92          MM @ 13.57         stock @ 56.74
24Jul92          stock @ 56.76      MM @ 13.61
29Oct92          MM @ 13.72         stock @ 58.61
23Dec92          stock @ 61.48      MM @ 13.78
16Jan95          MM @ 14.83         equity-index @ 26.44
20Jan95          eq-index @ 26.19   MM @ 14.84
30Oct97          MM@ 17.24          bond@47.56 (27.17%)
30Oct97          MM@ 17.24          i-i bond@26.12 (27.17%)
Values, 30Jan98: stock, 139.41; MM, 17.49; bond, 48.83; inflation-indexed bond, 26.24

Gain, 1988: 18.91%; 1989: 14.48%; 1990: 8.28%; 1991: 27.93%; 1992: 10.20%; 1993: 3.08%; 1994: 4.07%; 1995: 4.80%; 1996: 5.28%
Gain, January 1 through December 31, 1997: 5.38%
Total gain since January 1, 1988 (10 years): 159.20%
Compound annual rate of return: 10.00%   (My long-term target: in excess of 15%)
Gain shown excludes the impact of additional monthly cash contributions.
Buying CREF stock on January 1, 1988 and holding it gained 341.21%, for a compound annual rate of return of 16.01%.

E. Current unfilled portfolio good-til-cancelled orders: None.

COMMENT on "Timer's Trend": We're currently on a BUY signal generated January 28, after many, many whipsaws over the past two months. My opinion? The whipsaws in the blue chips are likely to continue, while the broader market descends lower in a bearish trend that "Timer's Trend" doesn't detect.

______________________________  TIMER'S TREND  _________________________________
Thu 20 Nov 97        .  |  .  #   }| 7826.61  |~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Fri 21 Nov 97        .  |  . #     | 7881.07  |~.+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Mon 24 Nov 97        .# I  .      {| 7767.92  *~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Tue 25 Nov 97        .  I #.       | 7808.95  | +              *
Wed 26 Nov 97        .  |# .      }| 7794.78  | +           *
Fri 28 Nov 97        .  |  .#      | 7823.13  | +                 *
Mon  1 Dec 97        .  |  . #     | 8013.11  |~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Tue  2 Dec 97        .  |  #       | 8018.83  | .+                    *
Wed  3 Dec 97        .  |  .#      | 8032.01  | .+                      *
Thu  4 Dec 97        .  |  #       | 8050.16  | .+                         *
Fri  5 Dec 97        .  |  . #     | 8149.13  |~.~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Mon  8 Dec 97        .  |  .#      | 8110.84  | .+           *
Tue  9 Dec 97        .  |# .       | 8049.66  |~.*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wed 10 Dec 97        . #|  .       | 7978.79  |~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Thu 11 Dec 97       #.  I  . *    {| 7848.99  |+.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fri 12 Dec 97        . #I  .       | 7838.80  |-.    *
Mon 15 Dec 97        .  I #.       | 7922.59  |-.                     *
Tue 16 Dec 97        .  I  #      ]| 7976.31  |-.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Wed 17 Dec 97        .  |  #      }| 7957.41  + .               *
Thu 18 Dec 97        . #I  .      {| 7846.50  |+.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fri 19 Dec 97        #  I  .       | 7756.29* |+.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mon 22 Dec 97        .  I  #       | 7819.31  |+.                  *
Tue 23 Dec 97        .  I# .       | 7691.77 *|+.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Wed 24 Dec 97        .  I# .       | 7660.13  +~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fri 26 Dec 97        .  I# .       | 7679.31  + .         *
Mon 29 Dec 97        .  |  .  #   }| 7792.41  |~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Tue 30 Dec 97        .  |  .   #   | 7915.97  |~.+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Wed 31 Dec 97        .  |  .  #    | 7908.25  | . +                *
Fri  2 Jan 98        .  |  .#      | 7965.04  |~.~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Mon  5 Jan 98        .  |  .#      | 7978.99  | .  +                   *
Tue  6 Jan 98        .  #  .       | 7906.25  | . +     *
Wed  7 Jan 98        .  |# .       | 7902.27  | .+     *
Thu  8 Jan 98        . #I  .       |*7802.62  |+.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fri  9 Jan*98     #  .  I  .      {| 7580.42  |-.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mon 12 Jan 98        .# I  .       | 7647.18  | -                  *
Tue 13 Jan 98        .  I  . #     | 7732.13  |-.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Wed 14 Jan 98        .  I  . #    ]| 7784.69  +~.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Thu 15 Jan 98        .  I# .      [| 7691.77  +~.~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fri 16 Jan 98        .  |  .  #   }| 7753.55  | .+                 *
Tue 20 Jan 98        .  |  .  #    | 7873.12  |~.~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Wed 21 Jan 98        .  |# .       | 7794.40  | .+   *
Thu 22 Jun 98        .  #  .       | 7730.88  |~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Fri 23 Jan 98        .  &  .      {| 7700.74  |~*~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Mon 26 Jan 98        .  I# .       | 7712.94  |+.        *
Tue 27 Jan 98        .  I  #      ]| 7815.08  |+.                           *
Wed 28 Jan 98        .  |  .#     }| 7915.47  |+.~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Thu 29 Jan 98        .  |  .  #    | 7973.02  |~+~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~*
Fri 30 Jan 98        .  |  #       | 7906.50  | .+     *
======================================================================== 

NEXT ISSUE - will appear about February 28.     /Nick Chase