July 6, 1998

Battle for control of House is being fought old fashioned way: candidate by candidate and district by district and could depend less on political themes than on chain of local circumstances; in year marked by pro-incumbent contentment with economy, only 65 races are even considered by Republicans and Democrats to be truly competitive; yet, with Republicans holding one of slimmest majorities of century, Democrats need net gain of just 11 seats to reclaim control; 10 pivotal House races listed; some incumbents comment; photos (M)

Pete Sampras defeats Goran Ivanisevic to win men's singles championship at Wimbledon; photo (M)

Year-old Asian economic crisis is growing more intense, instead of abating as many had hoped, and stands as largest single threat to six-year economic boom in US; while effects on most Americans have been remote, factories are beginning to slow, exports are beginning to pile up and some members of Congress are calling for swift action; from White House to International Monetary Fund, officials are concerned that effects of crisis will be worse and longer-lasting than first thought; what particularly scares Clinton Administration officials is that unpredictable economic contagion is no longer limited to Pacific Rim (M)

Even as wildfires rage in northeastern and central Florida, firefighters--blessed with few scattered rain showers, less dry winds and higher humidity--gain ground in fire-ravaged areas instead of just grimly watching; many residents return to Mims, small town in Brevard County, where at least 30 houses are destroyed and 60 fires continue to burn; mandatory evacuation fo 30,000 residents of Flagler County remains in effect; Federal Emergency Management Agency says 1,946 fires have destroyed 458,288 acres since June 1, causing estimated $276 million in damage; map; photo (M)

California State University, nation's largest college system, has scuttled much-disputed plan to accept $300 million investment from group of high-technology companies to upgrade its networks and other technology infrastructure; group, led by GTE, had included Microsoft Corp and Hughes Electronics, which withdrew in May, and Fujitsu America; companies had been promised revenue opportunities from services and products sold to students and faculty, but feared project would not be profitable (M)