Ted Wilson

With statehood in the balance in 1861, Brigham Young stood before his embattled Mormon followers and spoke candidly of bribing federal officials "to grease the wheels" of justice, as defined by the rough-and-ready pioneer leader. Young justified catering to the corruption of the age in its own tainted coinage as necessary to serve a higher cause--protecting the faith's polygamists while gaining support for statehood.

Utah Gov. Mike Leavitt, nominated by President Bush on Monday to head the Environmental Protection Agency, is the longest-serving governor in the country and a man who devised his own eight-point philosophy for governing. Leavitt, 52, is considered a moderate Republican who has served 11 years as governor and was looking at a fourth term before the announcement.

It was 10 degrees below zero last Saturday and the ground was covered with snow. But the high school band in this sleepy little town--as it has every day for two weeks in weather not much warmer--marched for two icy miles. "We're improving," shouted rosy-cheeked flutist Laura Weideman, 16, between notes as the band played "There's No Place Like Nebraska" while marching down Eldora Avenue through Weeping Water's tiny business section.

TRW Chairman Ruben F. Mettler, rebutting accusations by former employees that his company's overcharging on government contracts was caused by flaws in the aerospace giant's internal policies, told Congress on Thursday that the issue was "a people problem, not a system problem." Mettler denied allegations by two TRW executives who contend that they were fired last December to divert attention from serious irregularities in the company's accounting procedures.

It's an unfortunate fact of life in Southern California: The next major earthquake could be centered under your town. What do you do if you live in the next Northridge? If you reside on a particular street in northwest Pasadena, you swing into action. You know that block lieutenant Louis Jefferson will make sure than someone checks on Selma Stevens, 72, who is partially paralyzed with back problems, and her 73-year-old husband, Booker.

Washington Redskins wide receiver Art Monk, who injured his right knee in last Sunday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals, will miss the rest of the regular season but could be back for the playoffs, team officials said. Monk, a three-time Pro Bowl selection, suffered a partial tear of the medial collateral ligament in his right knee in the third quarter of the Redskins' 34-17 win.

Democrats made a net gain of one governor in a dozen races Tuesday, to make the new national lineup 28 to 22 in their favor. The Democratic victories included the first in 20 years in Indiana and defeat of West Virginia's three-term governor. Republicans scored a breakthrough in Montana, and the GOP governors of Rhode Island and Utah eked out reelection although they had been expected to lose.

Picture a multi-patterned quilt, like the kind hanging on the walls of the Grove Theatre Company's GEM Theatre, and you've grasped Molly Newman's and Barbara Damashek's plan for their elegiac musical, "Quilters." Indeed, the show moves from one "block," or pattern, to another, each described, each with a story to tell. "Quilters," though, is hardly seamless.

It's an unfortunate fact of life in Southern California: The next major earthquake could be named for your town. What do you do if you live in the next Northridge? If you reside on a particular street in northwest Pasadena, you swing into action. You know that block lieutenant Louis Jefferson will make sure that someone checks on Selma Stevens, 72, who is partially paralyzed with back problems, and her 73-year-old husband, Booker.