Stories from Monday, December 1, 2003

How much credence to give to this, Drosnin's second volume concerning messages uncovered by computer "between the lines" within the original language of the Bible? For the Christian, Drosnin's story of mystery and intrigue against remarkable odds is probably beside the point. Still, one has to wonder if he and scholar Eliyahu Rips have truly uncovered messages sent across time 4,000 years ago...

HERBERT B. WEST, a resident of Berryville, was born Dec. 8, 1909, in Berryville, a son of Digby John and Fannie (Clarke) West. He died Friday, Nov. 21, 2003, in Berryville at the age of 93. Mr. West was a banker who began his career on Oct. 31, 1934 at the First National Bank of Berryville. ...

AULTA P. METZ, a resident of Calico Rock, Ark., formerly of Oak Grove, was born July 14, 1909, in Pond Creek, Okla., a daughter of Rufus Perry and Martha Elizabeth (Russell) Jeffries. She died Sunday, Nov. 23, 2003, in Calico Rock, at the age of 94...

The Highlander gym was packed, the action was intense and rough, but sportsmanlike, so it had to be the annual Highlander-Bobcat rivalry, a highlight of every basketball season. Tuesday night saw the four senior high teams battle it out, with the Eureka senior boys, ranked 7th in Class AA, using a 19-0 run in the third quarter to take a 64-45 victory. The Bobcat senior girls (1-1) used brutal, bumping defense to smother the Lady Highlanders and take a 39-28 win in their game...

Three Green Forest Tiger teams traveled to Omaha to give it their best shot against the Eagles, but all three came up dry as the hosts earned a victory in all three games. Coach Mike Hampton's senior boys played better and stayed close, but lost 65-54. His junior boys missed shots inside and fell 39-25. Coach Jim Goins' senior girls were shorthanded with two out due to illness and lost 56-27...

From the seventh-grade teams right through to the end, the four basketball battles between the Berryville junior high Bobcats and Eureka Springs junior high Highlanders kept a big crowd wound up in Bobcat gym last Monday night. Eureka athletics director Aaron Hall reported that the Highlander seventh-grade girls won, 24-22, and that the Berryville seventh boys won 30-28 in two games that went down to the last shot...

Carroll County had not officially reported a case of influenza as of Wednesday afternoon, but a spokesman for the Arkansas Health Department warned it would be "unsafe to assume that the flu had not hit" here. "We have positive indications of flu all around you," said Ed Barham, public information officer with the health department. "It's being reported in Benton, Washington, Madison, and Boone counties."...

BERRYVILLE ---- A domestic violence victims' advocate is now on staff at St. John's Hospital----Berryville, to provide 24-hour assistance to victims in need. The position was established using federal grant funds from the Victim Justice and Assistance program and with matching funds provided by St. John's...

Carroll County's criminal case numbers continued to rise as arraignments on Monday in Berryville neared the 200 level. All of Monday's arraignments came from the county's Eastern District. As of Tuesday, the Western District was 12 cases away from tying its 1998 record of 60 cases...