News In Brief

WHEN ONCE IS NOT ENOUGH

If you're not aboard, it's already too late to take advantage of perhaps the ultimate Y2K celebration. A cruise ship, Legends of the Sea, left Greece Monday for the South Pacific, where it's scheduled to sail along the western side of the International Date Line - the first place clocks will strike 12:01 a.m. Jan. 1. Then, as passengers wind down their New Year's Eve party, the ship will cross the line, where it's still 1999, to do the same thing all over again.

OK, WE'LL STAY HOME THEN

But if you'll be in London when the Big Moment arrives, finding a way to celebrate may be difficult. Unless it's by watching a rented video. The Times newspaper surveyed the city's top-rated restaurants and hotels and found 80 of the former and 50 of the latter plan no parties. Nor do hundreds of pubs. Reasons: a lack of bookings or unwillingness to meet staff demands for a wage premium. Said a video-rental chain spokesman: "Everyone is fed up because the millennium is so hyped."

Salvation Army again ranked top charity for fund-raising

The Salvation Army raised $1.2 billion in 1998, making it No. 1 among US charities for the seventh straight year, The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported this week. The journal tallies only private donations - not government grants or fees charged by organizations. Overall, charitable giving was 16 percent higher than in 1997. Most groups attributed that to a booming economy and stock market. The top 10 charities and their income from private contributions (in millions):

1. Salvation Army $1.2 billion

2. YMCA of the USA 629

3. Fidelity Investments Charitable Gift Fund 572

4. American Cancer Society 556

5. American Red Cross 543

6. Harvard University 463

7. Catholic Charities USA 446

8. Boys and Girls Clubs of America 431

9. Emory University 423

10. America's Second Harvest 392

- Associated Press

(c) Copyright 1999. The Christian Science Publishing Society