European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - July 20, 1991, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Page 6 a the stars and stripes saturday july 20, 1991thomas foes focus on1 Lav amp a r. T map supreme court nominee Clarence Thomas accompanied by sen. Alan Simpson a Wyo. Washington apr supreme court nominee Clarence Thomas support for a natural Law does not mean he opposes abortion rights his chief Senate supporter said thursday. A i asked him whether he intended to apply natural Law theory to abortion a said sen. John c. Danforth a to. A judge Thomas assured me that he has not prejudged any Case that might come before the supreme court and that he has formulated Novice amp on the relationship Between natural Law and abortion a he said. _ Danforth a remarks came As supporters and critics of the conservative appeals judge escalated their rhetoric. The congressional Black caucus a 26 Black House members who Are nearly unanimous in opposing Thomas a told a news conference that the Black nominee has turned his Back on the aspirations of minorities. The debate Over Thomas stand on Abor. Tion focused on a speech four years ago in which he praised an essay attacking the 1973 Roe is. Wade decision in which the supreme court said women have a right to end their pregnancies. In that speech Thomas said the essay by former new York gubernatorial candidate Lewis Lehrman was a a splendid example of applying natural  women a rights groups have called the speech a a smoking gun and urged defeat of the nomination. Danforth said thursday that Thomas opponents arc misrepresenting his remarks. A the single sentence from which so much has been made was in fact a throwaway line a Danforth said. A it is the kind of compliment uttered by members of the Senate every Day. To make it into a full blown jurisprudence is not unlike turning a its the Public s right to know Stltt truth. It s not the Public s right to know innuendo gossip a a sen. Al it Simpson i Wyo. Reference to a my distinguished colleagues into a full fledged endorsement of every thin your colleague has Ever  Danforth said the nominee relies on principles of natural Law spelled out in the declaration of Independence to support racial Equality. Natural Law philosophers hold that certain principles of Law Are inherent in relations among human beings. An example is one proposition of the declaration a we hold these truths to be self evident that All men Are created equal that they Are endowed by their creator with certain unalienable  Bush named Thomas on july 1 to succeed retiring Liberal Justice Thurgood Marshall the courts Only Black. Sen. Alan k. Simpson r-Wyo., accused the Media of going a beyond the Bounds of propriety and personal  he said reporters attempted to interview the nominees former wife and wandered into Thomas garage when his son left the door open. A a it a the Public a right to know the truth. Its not the Public a right to know innuendo   captures More Public interest Survey finds Washington a americans arc paying much More attention to news about supreme court nominee Clarence Thomas than they did to other recent nominations to the High court a news Industry Survey showed thursday. The Survey by the times Mirror Center for the people and the press reported that 33 percent of the Public said they were following stories about Thomas very closely. By contrast Only 16 percent said the same tiding last year about president Bush a nomination of David h. Sou Ter to the High court and his confirmation by the Senate. Only 17 percent said they closely followed the news of president Reagan a nomination of Robert h. Bork and his rejection by the Senate four years ago. Among Blacks 46 percent said they were closely following the Story of Thomas the. Black conservative nominated by Bush to succeed Liberal Justice Thurgood Marshall the first Black on the court. Among Whites the figure was 32 percent. The Survey found that 48 percent of the Public at Large and 45 percent of Blacks favor the Thomas nomination with 17 percent of the general Public and 21 percent of Blacks opposed. The rest were undecided. Among those who said they closely followed the Story 5f percent were in favor of Thomas. Of those who did no to pay much attention 44 percent favored the nomination. Fifty eight percent said they thought the press had treated Thomas fairly. Of the 20 percent who thought he was being treated unfairly 18 percent said the press was too critical. Only a few thought it was too supportive. Even among those who opposed the nomination twice As Many people believed the press was too critical As those who found it too supportive. The Telephone interviews conducted from july 11 through july 14, also showed that the Best followed Story was the Economy. That Story Drew close attention from 35 percent of the nationwide Sample of 1,212 adults. It was the sixth Survey in a Row in which More than a third of the people showed Strong interest in economic news. Bush a approval rating continued to decline dropping to 67 percent. It was 84 percent in March and 77 percent in May.7877 College capsule gives glimpse into past Amherst mass. Apr when 17 students at Massachusetts agricultural College buried their a message to the Ages Quot in a Copper Box 114 years ago the concept of a time capsule was relatively new. The nation was barely a Century old when the Junior class at what later became the University of Massachusetts gathered on a Barren Hill to Plant a Pine tree. 1 he glee club Sang. There were poems speeches and a seven gun Salute before the students planted the class tree and the Box containing a documents of great importance to the Ages Quot in the ground. The evidence of the event is in the stained fragments of notes found in the time capsule and copies of old programs and other documents pieced together by University archivist Michael Milewski. The Case was found after the 75-foot Pine was shattered by a windstorm in october. The Little agricultural College founded in 1869, sprouted around the Pine into a 25,000-student state University. The demise of the old Pine piqued Milewskiy a curiosity. Using que a Otoshi Ete Nitim mate age and discovered through class records that students had buried a Lime capsule when they planted it. The University a anthropology and archaeology departments joined the Hunt on a Rainy May afternoon. After nearly six hours of digging by hand and machine they uncovered the dented shoe Box size Copper Container that Cost the students 70 cents in 1877. A it was getting dark and they decided to take two More scoops with the Backhoe before giving up Quot Milewski recalled a the first scoop turned up nothing. Then on the last try there it  Milweski said the Only document in the time capsule that Wasny to in the school archives was the a message to the  unfortunately it suffered considerable water damage. A if we apply ourselves to this development of our agriculture manufacture and Commerce and Quot elevate the moral and intellectual tone of the people then we May indulge the Hope that our country will Ever be the abode or peace and Prosperity the seat of learning and the arts a reads the Only Clear paragraph remaining in the speech penned by Henry Gustave Heath Koch of new York City. A your nation has but begun to work out her  the class history and yearbook copies of which were also tucked into the capsule offer lighter glimpses of the Young men who found the new England Campus a More dreary than Ever Quot after returning from thanksgiving vacation. Quot All Are resolved to study hard and make Good use of our time a they said. A but alas every evening is spent in playing whist euchre bisque or at an Oyster Stew or else a trip is taken to  Little is known about the Fate of the 17 Young men who planted the tree. A a that a one of our next projects Quot Milewski said. Uni verify of Massachusetts archivist Michael Milews inspects items discovered in a student time capsule