November 18, 1991

At first glance, the similarities between 1987 and 1991 are haunting: a long, increasingly exuberant rally in the stock market that abruptly ended, on an autumnal Friday, with a selling frenzy that slashed more than 100 points off the Dow Jones industrial average. But market professionals see telling differences between last Friday and Oct. 16, 1987, which was followed by "Black Monday" on Oct. 19, the worst one-day market crash in the nation's history.

BLACK CHURCHES JOIN THE AIDS FIGHT Faced with the overwhelming reality that minorities account for an alarming proportion of the new AIDS cases being diagnosed, many black churches and mosques are beginning to turn their influence to the fight against the disease. Clergymen and women are speaking out in sermons, starting counseling and support groups and sponsoring housing for homeless people with AIDS. And they are doing so against the powerful traditions of their conservative theology. Page A1. NEW YORK CITY MAYOR DINKINS'S TRIP TO SOUTH AFRICA ENDS In the final hours of a trip he called "one of the most profound experiences I've ever had," Mayor David N. Dinkins accomplished a major goal he had set for his journey to South Africa: announcing a package of economic programs involving New York City businesses. But he failed to accomplish another: meeting with a top government official to press the cause of change. His meeting with Foreign Minister Roelof F. Botha was canceled at the last minute without explanation. Page B3. SAME QUESTIONS, ANOTHER CUOMO Andrew Cuomo, the Governor's son, who has had considerable success over the years in overcoming community opposition and government bureaucracy to build housing for the homeless, has been contemplating whether public office is the most effective vehicle for coping with the growing problem of homelessness. Metro Matters, Page B3. A TRAIL OF RANDOM VIOLENCE IN THE BRONX A man talking with his wife from a pay phone in the South Bronx was shot and killed by an unidentified man with a shotgun -- apparently a random act of violence. Two relatives standing nearby were also sprayed with shotgun pellets. The shooting occurred shortly after a dispute between two groups of men erupted into gunfire a short distance up the street. Page B3. A SHOOTING IN MIDTOWN RESTAURANT A dispute among a dozen men in a Chinese restaurant on Fifth Avenue near 32d Street erupted into gunfire on Saturday evening, leaving one man dead and another seriously injured. The police, who were still trying to identify the victims and learn what prompted the argument, said they believe the incident might have involved Asian gangs. Page B3. A young girl died in a house fire in Queens started by her brother. Page B3. REGION USING CHILDREN TO RUN DRUGS Once or twice a week, the police say, two woman from Plainfield, N.J., loaded their children into a car and drove to the Bronx, where the children hurried out to pick up packets of cocaine and heroin. Then the families drove back to Plainfield, where the children delivered the drugs to dealers. Prosecutors said they broke up the ring on Friday night with the arrest of the two women. Page B5. THE GAPS BETWEEN NEW JERSEY'S CHILDREN The first county-by-county analysis of children's well-being in New Jersey shows "startling extremes" between the richer, generally suburban areas of the state and the poor, mostly urban areas. The survey, which considered 12 factors from infant mortality to high school dropout rate, ranked Bergen County first and Essex County last. Page B5. WHERE DID YOU GET THAT HAMMER? In additions to books and other such things, the public library in Wyandanch, L.I., lends tools. After years of giving borrowers books that told them how to do things, but neglecting to give them the tools carrying them out, the library began the tool-lending program two years ago with a $10,000 Federal grant. It has been a means for the library to be relevant to a painfully poor neighborhood where many people prize a trowel more than a novel. Page B5. THE TRIANGLE CLUB'S 100TH ANNIVERSARY Princeton University threw a three-day party to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Triangle Club, the undergraduate theater troupe almost as well-known for its tradition of men-in-drag chorus lines as for its crisp original productions. With more than 750 past members on hand, nostalgia reigned. Princeton Journal, Page B5. The Traffic Map B4 Chronicle B4

The fight between President Bush and Congress over the Civil Rights Act of 1991 was not just a struggle to write the legislation. It was also an arcane but important battle to establish the legislative history of the measure, which Mr. Bush plans to sign into law in a few days. Judges have traditionally used the legislative history of a bill for guidance in interpreting the law, looking at Congressional committee reports, hearings and statements in the Senate and the House. The legislative history supposedly shows the intent of Congress.

Consumer advocates won a battle in 1976 when New York State passed one of the first laws in the country requiring that virtually every item on supermarket shelves have a price tag. Fifteen years and about a zillion price tags later, what is the newest consumer issue in New York? A drive for "item- pricing" laws in counties across the state.

In one corner of the Jets' locker room, fullback Brad Baxter talked about the improbability of his fumbling twice in a game deep in his team's territory to set up scores for the opponent. A few feet away, Trevor Matich, a 6-foot-4-inch, 297-pound guard pressed into a role as the largest tight end in the league, talked about the improbability of his catching a 3-yard touchdown pass to win the game. But such were the circumstances surrounding the Jets' 28-21 victory today over the Patriots (3-8), who scored 21 points in the fourth quarter to tie the game and were one foot and a few seconds away from sending the Jets into their third overtime game of the season.