August 29, 1985

The police in this coastal city, using shotguns, whips, rubber bullets and tear gas, today battled thousands of protesters drawn from all of South Africa's racial groups. The immediate cause of the violence here was an official prohibition on a planned march from Cape Town suburbs to Pollsmoor Prison to demand the release of Nelson Mandela, the jailed black nationalist. The unrest was the most extensive in Cape Town since a state of emergency was declared in several other parts of the country on July 21. Five Reported Killed Police reports said at least five people had been killed in today's violence. In addition, officials from a clinic near a black township, Guguletu, reported that 50 people were wounded in other incidents.

THE pharmacy jars have labels indicating their contents: arsenic, belladonna, hemlock, curare, strychnine. Other bottles, glowing a deep cobalt blue, contain embalming fluids. Operating sets, many nestled in handsome cases, contain ivory-handled instruments, attesting to their vintage - before the age of sterilization - and conjuring lurid visions of surgery in earlier eras. A walnut case is filled with cataract knives; a rosewood box has a set of instruments that include a gold-plated corkscrew device with serrated edges. ''To bore a hole in the skull,'' the doctor says cheerfully. ''One of man's oldest operations.'' A doctor's office furnished with such an array might inspire thoughts of time warp. However, in this case the doctor, a Manhattan ophthalmologist named Stanley Burns, practices medicine according to normal modern-day standards. But his surroundings evoke powerful echoes of the 19th century, for Dr. Burns is a history buff and an avid collector of medical antiques, which he has used not only to decorate his offices but also to create a minimuseum of medical history.

Because of an editing error, an article in Business Day about Lorimar Inc. yesterday incorrectly characterized the company's plan to buy shares of Warner Communications. Lorimar said it contemplated buying up to 15 percent of Warner's outstanding common stock, not a takeover.

IN the crafts field, the traditional perception is that of an artisan working alone to create an object - a statement of his personal esthetics made a reality by the skills of his own two hands. Apprentices and trainees have always been a part of the crafts tradition, but today, some of the country's most eminent master craftsmen are using teams of highly skilled, well-paid assistants - accomplished artists themselves - to create their one-of-a-kind pieces. The group works on projects in which the master's concept and style are clearly identifiable, and although the team may sign the finished piece in some cases, generally the only signature will be that of the master. This change is the result of an increased demand for major crafts pieces by collectors. ''There is a very serious coterie of individuals who are responding to the art coming out of the crafts movement,'' said Helen Drutt, a gallery owner in Philadelphia. ''Certainly there is an increase in this collecting.'' Public commissions have also increased. Lois Moran, editor of American Craft Magazine, reports that the publication's listings of craftsmen's commissions, begun two years ago, have doubled in the past 12 months.

The Assembly today passed a bill making $18,500 the minimum salary for all public-school teachers in New Jersey. The legislation, which is backed by Governor Kean and is expected to be approved by the Senate early next month, would make New Jersey the first state to adopt a statewide minimum. The bill, approved by the Assembly by a vote of 74 to 4, also provides money to recognize outstanding teachers in 2,240 schools across the state with $1,000 grants to be used for an education program designated by the teacher. The Governor had summoned both houses of the Legislature back into session from summer vacation to deal with the teachers' salary bill and an environmental package and said the Senate adjourned without considering either measure out of ''stubbornness.'' He said that there were more than enough supporting votes in the Senate to pass the bill when it returned on Sept. 9 and that he would sign it the same day.