May 11, 2005

Article on Taller Lenateros (Woodlanders' Workshop), paper- and book-making collective in Chiapas city of San Cristobal de las Casas, Mex, and its founder, American-born Mexican poet Ambar Past; Past, who moved to Chiapas in 1973, encountered Mayan women who sometimes spoke in poetry, echoing verses and phrases spoken or written 500 years ago; collective has produced Incantations, volume of women's poetry created almost entirely by them and translated into English and Spanish, made of recycled and handmade paper with silk-screened illustrations; excerpts; photos (M)

Edgar Bronfman Jr and group of private equity firms raise about $554 million in initial offering of 32.6 million shares of Warner Music Group after cutting price to $17 a share from planned range of $22 to $24; offering puts Warner Music initial market capitalization around $2.4 billion, not counting debt; that represents premium over price they paid Time Warner for unit, but whether stock market investors will be won over is another question; price drop keeps offering from generating enough money to fulfill plans for reducing debt and bolstering existing operations; photo (M)

JOE GILLUM of Harlem fell from the sky last week. He plummeted silently through the air of a Silk Stocking neighborhood and broke upon impact, as did that extra appendage of his, a squeegee. He washed windows for a living, often working so high above the ground that your hands perspire just thinking of it. At 68, he was still strapping on his trusty old belt -- too old, it turned out, and not so trusty -- and suspending himself in the air, his back to the world, his silhouette reflected in the soot-caked windows of others.

Defense Sec Donald H Rumsfeld discusses his plans to overhaul military, interview; his full list of policy initiatives and future travel plans is comfounding those who predicted his early departure from Bush administration; officials across Pentagon say twin tasks of building Iraqi security forces and defeating insurgency stand in way of his longstanding ambitions to modernize military and make it leaner and more agile; photo (M)

Congress Tries to Revive Mandatory Sentencing Months after the Supreme Court struck down mandatory sentencing formulas, Congress is moving to institute new minimum sentences, beginning with a sweeping House bill to fight street gangs. Also pending are bills that would apply new mandatory minimums to all federal drug offenses and to some crimes against the federal judiciary. Judges and human rights groups criticize the mandatory sentences as unfair and ineffective. PAGE A14 U.N. Looks East (to Brooklyn) Angry American critics have suggested that the United Nations pack up and move to, perhaps, France. But Secretary General Kofi Annan has an idea closer to home for the organization's temporary location during renovations at its 53-year-old East Side headquarters: Downtown Brooklyn. PAGE B1 Cooking in the Can That Wolfgang Puck introduced a new latte line may not be surprising, but the container, which heats itself, is. Pressing a button on the bottom mixes water with quicklime, producing a chemical reaction that heats the coffee to 145 degrees. DINING, PAGE F1 'Spamalot' Nominated a Lot ''Spamalot,'' the goofy musical adaptation of the 1975 film ''Monty Python and the Holy Grail,'' led all productions with 14 Tony Award nominations. Some well-known actors, including Denzel Washington, were not nominated. THE ARTS, PAGE E1 Bush Ends European Trip With Praise for Georgia President Bush, right, with President Mikheil Saakashvili at Georgia's Parliament in Tbilisi, told a cheering crowd that the United States would stand with the former Soviet republic as it built its democracy. PAGE A3 Bellamy Road Is Sidelined Bellamy Road, the George Steinbrenner colt who finished seventh as the Kentucky Derby favorite, has an injury and will miss the Preakness Stakes. SPORTSWEDNESDAY, PAGE D1 Face to Face With King Tut Teams of artists and scientists, using computer scans to reconstruct the face of King Tut, say he had buck teeth and a long skull. PAGE A4