Memories just wont die

See the article in its original context from March 1, 2001 Section Page Buy Reprints View on timesmachine TimesMachine is an exclusive benefit for home delivery and digital subscribers. Up on Malabar Hill, in the midst of this teeming, polyglot metropolis, breezes off the Arabian Sea caress the bungalows of the rich and rustle into a 50-acre forest that has for centuries been the place where Parsis, followers of the ancient prophet Zoroaster, brought their dead to be devoured by vultures. Since the 17th century, Parsi descendants of the Persians who found religious freedom in India a millennium ago have carried their dead up Malabar Hill. And until a few years ago, more than 100 of the shambling, unkempt birds would watch from the treetops to see whether pallbearers forked left or right. Then the vultures would soar over the dense, tangled greenery to the walls of the chosen Tower of Silence, a stone amphitheater where the corpse was to be laid. The ''jostling, … [Read more...] about Bombay Journal; In Death, the Unlovely Vulture Is Sorely Missed

Roger Craig, who pitched or managed in five World Series and changed the face of pitching in the 1980s as the guru of the split-fingered fastball, died on Sunday. He was 93. His family said the death came after a short illness, according to a spokesman for The San Francisco Giants, a team Craig managed for eight seasons, leading them to the National League pennant in 1989. A family member said Craig died in San Diego, a team spokesman told The Associated Press. For some, Craig was a figure in baseball trivia: He was the starting pitcher for the Dodgers in their final game before moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, and five years later, in 1962, he threw the first pitch in the Mets’ history. He was the loser both times. He lost 24 games and then 22 for the dreadful Mets in their first two seasons, including 18 in a row in 1963. But he had his moments when backed by good-hitting lineups. A lanky 6-foot-4 right-hander who, it was often noted, bore a remarkable resemblance to … [Read more...] about Roger Craig, Teacher of an Era-Defining Pitch, Is Dead at 93

T he bald eagle, a bird that lives only in North America, is sometimes mistaken for an idea. Take the Great Seal of the United States: The eagle clutches an olive branch in one claw, a set of 13 arrows in the other. His wings stretch out tall and wide from behind a shield, and his fulsome beak holds a ribbon inscribed with Latin: “ E pluribus unum .” That is a collage of symbols about peace and war and history and unity, not a bird. A real bald eagle is made of flesh and feathers and talons — a thing of nature, not a pastiche of concepts. Noble virtues do not map neatly onto apex predators, a fact that troubled Benjamin Franklin as early as 1784. In a letter to his daughter, he wrote: “I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen as the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly.” But the first time Will Harris saw a bald eagle on his farm, six years ago, Franklin’s lesson was one he had not yet learned. Harris, the owner … [Read more...] about When the National Bird Is a Burden

Two decades ago, Kathleen Folbigg was convicted of smothering all four of her young children. Australian tabloids called her the country’s worst female serial killer. But Ms. Folbigg, who was serving a 30-year term, insisted she was innocent. And in recent years, a growing number of scientists began to argue that she was telling the truth. Genetic evidence, they said, indicated that the children had very likely died of natural causes. On Monday, the attorney general of New South Wales, Michael Daley, announced that Ms. Folbigg, 55, had been given a full pardon and released from prison. He cited an official inquiry’s preliminary conclusion that there was “reasonable doubt” about her guilt. “What is the difference between today and what has transpired in the past is that new evidence has come to light,” Mr. Daley said. “It is appropriate that we do have the mechanisms to reconsider the source of questions in light of new evidence.” The Australian Academy of Science, which … [Read more...] about Citing Doubt, Officials Free Woman Convicted in 4 Children’s Deaths in 2003

NEW DELHI, March 27 - Until recently the vulture was an integral part of the Indian landscape. Vultures were so abundant that ornithologists never even thought to monitor their population. But conservationists are now warning that a drug used to treat sick cows in South Asia is killing the scavenging vultures by the millions. They say the drug is responsible for a 97 percent decline in the species in India during the past decade. Wildlife experts have criticized what they call the government's lethargic approach to a promised ban on the drug, diclofenac, a cheap painkiller for cattle that is poisonous to vultures. "The government's failure to act is increasingly frustrating," said Chris Bowden, the head of the vulture conservation program of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, in Britain. "This delay is making full extinction of these birds much more likely." Vibhu Prakash, the principal scientist at the Bombay Natural History Society, agreed that "the … [Read more...] about India’s Vultures Fall Prey to a Drug in the Cattle They Feed On

NEWSLETTERS Royalist Want even more Royals news? Sign up for The Royalist newsletter for all things Royal Family. By Clicking "Subscribe" you agree to have read the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy Prince Harry has his day in court This coming week, Prince Harry is due to become the first senior member of the royal family to give evidence, and be cross-examined, in open court since the then-Prince of Wales (later Edward VII) gave evidence in a trial about an alleged incident of card-cheating by an acquaintance in the 1890s. Harry will be expecting a very different experience in court to his dissolute ancestor, whose evidence was hardly challenged, as he alleges that Mirror Group Newspapers, publishers of British tabloids, the Daily Mirror , the Sunday Mirror , and the People , used illegal methods to publish a string of stories about him. Harry is expected to take the stand on Tuesday and Wednesday. He is also expected to attend … [Read more...] about Prince Harry Takes the Stand in Phone-Hacking Case: What to Expect