April 30 -- Flextime becoming popular in workplace: Local workers soon may enjoy freedoms Charles Dickens likely would have considered too lavish to fictionalize in his gloomy classic A Christmas Carol.

April 30 -- Rolling Plains PCA meeting slated for Friday Stamford: The Rolling Plains Production Credit Association's 64th Annual Stockholders Meeting will be tonight in Childress and Friday evening in Stamford.

April 30 -- First Financial raises dividend: First Financial Bankshares Inc. of Abilene raised its cash dividend to shareholders by 10 percent Tuesday.

April 30 -- Bank's goal to make more loans: Independent Bankshares Inc. of Abilene would like to make more loans, especially commercial loans.

April 29 -- Goodbye, Information Superhighway (Brian Bethel Column): Back when people were first starting to get really excited about the Internet, there was an extremely over-used description: "Information Superhighway."

April 29 -- Too early to raise interest rates, analysts say: WASHINGTON -- The inflation-wary Federal Reserve may be starting to worry about inflation dangers down the road, but the Clinton administration's chief economic policy-maker said today the United States appeared headed for another year of solid growth and low inflation.

April 29 -- Annual businesswomen's strut set: The West Texas Heritage chapter of the American Businesswomen's Association will host its 10th annual STRUT noon, Thursday.

April 29 -- Nature, history spotlighted in this week's web picks (Doug Williamson Column): Trees, the Mod Generation, maps and the Titanic highlight this week's venture through the World Wide Web.

April 29 -- Three-day beef and wheat tour to depart Abilene May 11 (J.T. Smith Column): A three-day and two-night "Beef and Wheat Tour" is May 11-13.

April 28 -- Central Texas Cow-Calf Clinic at Brownwood to mark 20th year (J.T. Smith ): A full agenda is slated for the 20th Central Texas Cow-Calf Clinic on May 7 in Brownwood.

April 28 -- Sorting through health information in cyberspace: WASHINGTON (AP) - As the government rolls out its updated guide to health information on the Internet, new polling suggests consumers are turning increasingly to cyberspace for guidance about health and medicine.

April 28 -- Stocks slide, Dow tumbles below 9,000, as interest rates rise in bond market: NEW YORK (AP) - Stocks fell sharply today, extending last week's losses and sending the Dow industrials tumbling more than 200 points to sink below 9,000. The broad selloff came as markets in Asia and Europe stumbled and long-term interest rates shot back above 6 percent in the U.S. bond market.

April 28 -- Boomer generation reshaping the meaning of retirement: WASHINGTON (AP) - Forty-three-year-old Ken Carroll doesn't foresee the day when he can quit work and kick back, not with three children still to put through school.

April 28 -- Fannie Mae launching new mortgage nationwide with small downpayment: WASHINGTON (AP) - Saying it will open home ownership to more Americans, mortgage-market giant Fannie Mae is launching nationwide a new type of mortgage with a small downpayment and flexibility regarding the source of that money.

April 26 -- Scary financial scenario gets more notice: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Forget the nirvana economy. With a stock market surging into the stratosphere and merger mania overtaking the banking system, some people envision a doomsday scenario. They believe America has a bad case of the "bubbles" -- financial froth that eventually will lead to a crackdown by the Federal Reserve and a severe recession.

April 26 -- Family-owned businesses face hard choice: Family-owned businesses are being tempted.

April 26 -- U.S. staggers under weight of farm animal waste problem: Manure happens. Two trillion, 730 million pounds of it every year.

April 26 -- W.I.L.D. About Quail aimed at heldping adults learn more about wildlife (J.T. Smith Column): How much do you know about quail?

April 26 -- Texas Utilities gains clearance to sell unit of utility: Texas Utilities announced yesterday that it has received regulatory approval from the U.S. government for the sale of Peabody Coal, the American subsidiary of a British utility that TU is trying to buy.

April 26 -- Business groups trying to compete better with labor on politics: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Business groups worried about losing friendly House Republicans in fall elections are borrowing a page from organized labor.

April 25 -- Delta's deal with United founders hours before announcement: ATLANTA (AP) -- A planned strategic alliance between United Airlines, the biggest U.S. carrier, and No. 3 Delta Air Lines went into a holding pattern Friday within hours of the official announcement.

April 25 -- Congressman pushing reform of royalty collection: Royalty arrangements between the federal government and those who drill on federally owned land may soon become more straight forward.

April 25 -- Wheat is in great need of timely moisture: Weeks of dry weather -- including a virtually dry April -- is taking a toll on the area wheat crop.

April 24 -- Stamford plant to expand: Duckster, a Stamford manufacturer of nationally-marketed golf outerwear, will soon be expanding and sharing its production facility with an additional 60 workers.

April 24 -- Companies involve girls to keep daughters' day fresh: NEW YORK -- Ernst & Young has canned the tours and speeches. At this year's Take Our Daughters to Work Day on Thursday, girls filled out loan applications, created ads and ran their own small businesses.

April 24 -- Hundreds of environmental service companies closing their doors: TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Companies that clean up pollution and help businesses comply with environmental regulations have fallen on hard times with one in four closing their doors during a recent two-year period.

April 24 -- Munday native Marvin Myers to be honored for ag teaching career (J.T. Smith Column): One of the greatest ag teachers -- and finest men -- to ever walk into a classroom will be recognized on May 2.

April 24 -- Rangers, Stars owner's company to buy former Mavericks' owner's company: DALLAS (AP) -- Hicks, Muse, Tate & Furst, whose principal owner also owns the Texas Rangers baseball team and the Dallas Stars hockey team, is buying most of Home Interiors & Gifts, primarily owned by former Mavericks basketball team owner Don Carter.

April 24 -- Traffic accidents, homicide leading causes of job-related deaths: ATLANTA (AP) -- Job-related deaths dropped sharply from 1980 to 1994, the government reported, while homicides surpassed machinery accidents to rank second only to traffic accidents as the causes of workplace fatalities.

April 24 -- Lockheed Martin says Northrop merger valuable despite govn't opposition: DALLAS (AP) -- Lockheed Martin Corp. told shareholders Thursday that its proposed merger with Northrop Grumman Corp. still has merit, despite the government's attempt to block the $8.3 billion deal.

April 23 -- Despite worries over managed care, doctors' incomes are on the rise: CHICAGO (AP) -- Despite fears that managed care would cost them dearly, doctors' incomes are on the rise, reaching nearly $200,000 a year on average in 1996.

April 23 -- Glickman marks Earth Day with annoucement of water funds: U.S. Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman celebrated "Earth Day" Wednesday by announcing $130 million in USDA Rural Development funds to help with the nation's water needs.

April 23 -- Singers join campaign to rewrite organic food rules: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Singers Willie Nelson, Neil Young and John Mellencamp added their voices Wednesday to those of thousands of people urging the Agriculture Department not to permit such practices as irradiation or genetic engineering in organic foods.

April 23 -- Microsoft reports 28 percent increase in quarterly profit: SEATTLE (AP) -- Microsoft Corp. on Wednesday reported a 28 percent increase in quarterly profit, beating Wall Street expectations, as revenue grew 18 percent amid strong sales of its business software.

April 23 -- Pittsburgh's Mellon rejects $23 billion hostile bid from Bank of New York: NEW YORK (AP) -- The recent friendly wave of bank mergers showed signs of strain Wednesday, as Bank of New York Co. made a $22.6 billion hostile bid for Mellon Bank Corp. just months after talks between the two broke down.

April 23 -- Review: Will The Real Boss Please Stand Up?: Proper credit is rarely awarded secretaries. One day a year, they are treated to flowers and a dinner date with the boss. That, writes Fay, is too much like a dating ritual and poor way to acknowledge the exertions associated with insulating the boss from office minutiae.

April 23 -- Farm Bureau and Extension Service slates ag meeting in Merkel (J.T. Smith Column): The Taylor County Farm Bureau and the Extension Service will co-sponsor a Pesticide Licensing Workshop at 7 p.m. Tuesday in Heritage Hall at Merkel.

April 23 -- Gore: Government will try to get unionized companies contracts: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Vice President Al Gore, declaring the nation's labor unions are recovering their strength and organizing power, said Wednesday that the administration will "aggressively pursue" linking federal construction contracts to unionized companies.

April 23 -- Napping on the job could be good for productivity: Falling asleep on the job can be a great career move.

April 22 -- DVD the wave of the future, not the present: Every so often, folks try to reinvent things.

April 22 -- Microsoft starts legal defense: WASHINGTON -- Microsoft said Tuesday that no computer makers had chosen to leave out its Internet browser software since a court last year ordered it to stop forcing manufacturers to include it with Windows 95.

April 22 -- A hodgepodge of sites to surf: Look up hodgepodge in the dictionary and you'll probably find this week's column.

April 22 -- Nelson retires as Texas Wheat Producers executive: Bill Nelson, 73, executive vice president of the Texas Wheat Producers Association and Producers Board, Amarillo, has retired.

April 21 -- So when are you going to get any work done? (Doug Williamson): You might think this is a holiday week around the office.

April 21 -- Shackelford County lauded for state's Best Wildlife Association (J.T. Smith): Folks at Albany are known for doing things right. So it's no surprise the Shackelford County Range and Wildlife Association has been honored as the "Best Wildlife Association in the State of Texas."

April 21 -- Bill Stevens named new executive director of WCTOGA: Former Abilene oilman Bill Stevens has been named new executive director of the West Central Texas Oil and Gas Association.

April 21 -- Microsoft, Justice Department to argue crucial case in court: WASHINGTON (AP) - In a case that could affect nearly all home computer users, Microsoft and the Justice Department will argue in court Tuesday whether a judge went too far in prohibiting Microsoft from forcing computer makers who offer Windows 95 to also offer its Internet browser.

April 21 -- Microsoft's Bill Gates becomes first billionaire times 50: SEATTLE - Bill Gates, 42, on Monday became the world's first $50 billionaire, at least based on his Microsoft holdings.

April 21 -- Computer crashes as Gates demonstrates Windows 98: CHICAGO (AP) - Microsoft's "perfect tune-up" for its widely used operating system needed a tune-up itself Monday: Windows 98 crashed as Bill Gates provided a glimpse of its features at a computer trade show.

April 19 -- Business Notebook: News and notes of interest to the local business community

April 19 -- Bigger trade deficit shows Asian crisis hurting U.S., analysts say: The U.S. economy is starting to experience more symptoms of the Asian flu, based on government reports issued Friday showing a worsening trade deficit and weaker industrial production.

April 19 -- State lowers estimated "cost" of deregulated electricity market: AUSTIN (AP) -- A potential cost of allowing electric companies to compete to power Texans' homes might not be as high as once estimated, according to a new state report.

April 19 -- Oil first quarter earnings expected to be grim analysts say: HOUSTON (AP) -- The earnings outlook for major oil companies appears to be a grim one, with first-quarter profits for most of these companies expected to be down by 30 to 40 percent from the same period last year, analysts say.

April 19 -- FCC offers proposals aimed at helping local phone competition: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Local phone companies would be encouraged to track how well their computer systems perform for rival operators, under federal proposals offered Friday in an attempt to remove a stumbling block to opening the $110 billion local phone industry.

April 19 -- Offices recycle planes, trains and automobiles as unique furnishings: NEW YORK -- When Foote, Cone & Belding decided to decorate its new offices with a New York theme, the advertising firm faced a logistical hurdle: How to get a taxi into the elevator.

April 19 -- Are credit cards really under control?: NEW YORK (AP) -- It's just not fashionable to say a great many Americans are abusing today's easy credit terms. It's heresy, tantamount to saying that some of those picture-perfect, magazine-style families really aren't good Americans.

April 19 -- May will kick off with R.A. Brown and Pied Piper cattle sales: Folks from throughout the United States and foreign countries are expected to converge on Throckmorton on May 2 for the R.A. Brown Ranch "The Cowman's Sale."

April 19 -- South Asia continues to be a growing market for U.S. wheat: Good moisture in the Abilene area has paved the way for possibly another good wheat harvest this spring.

April 18 -- Sales to Japan drop, trade deficit soars: WASHINGTON (AP) -- America's trade deficit climbed to a monthly record of $12.1 billion in February as sales to Japan plummeted. The Clinton administration, worried about a political backlash from soaring deficits, said Japan must do more to restart its economy and create markets.

April 18 -- Net income for Independent Bankshares falls: Net income for Independent Bankshares Inc. fell 11 percent last quarter due to loan loss provisions.

April 18 -- Pride Refining reports loss: Pride Refining Inc. Friday reported a $45 million loss for 1997, mostly due to the closure of its refining operation.

April 18 -- Robert Cox is Mitchell SWCD "Farmer of the Year" (J.T. Smith Column): The Mitchell County Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) has selected Robert Cox of Colorado City as its "1997 Resident Conservation Farmer of the Year."

April 17 -- Not a bad place to live (Doug Williamson Column): Abilene is an easy place to live. It has a good climate, good people and a good cost of living.

April 17 -- PCCA announces intent to acquire Mission Valley Textiles (J.T. Smith Column): Plains Cotton Cooperative Association (PCCA) of Lubbock has signed a letter of intent to purchase Mission Valley Textiles.

April 17 -- H-E-B sues IRS: SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- H-E-B Food Stores has filed a federal lawsuit against the Internal Revenue Service claiming the grocery company is owed an overdue tax refund of $1.3 million.

April 17 -- Texas unemployment rate down again: AUSTIN (AP) -- The Texas unemployment rate dipped two-tenths of a percentage point while the Abilene area's rate fell one-tenth in March, the Texas Workforce Commission reported Thursday.

April 17 -- SWB says long distance service would add 61,000 jobs: AUSTIN (AP) -- Southwestern Bell says the state would gain more than 61,000 jobs in less than 10 years if Bell were allowed to offer full long distance services.

April 17 -- Taylor Electric Cooperative chooses directors for three zones: Some 1,150 from the eight counties represented by the Taylor Electric Cooperative turned out for the co-op's 59th annual meeting in the Taylor County Coliseum Thursday in Abilene.

April 16 -- Open House shows off new Extension Center in grand style: "Wow! -- This is a great facility."

April 16 -- Report: Traffic, commerce on Internet growing by leaps and bounds: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Traffic on the Internet is doubling every 100 days, the government said Wednesday in the latest snapshot of the exploding information technology industry. Business use is growing fastest, but as many as 62 million Americans are now using the worldwide network and are even getting comfortable making credit card purchases.

April 16 -- Area FFA judging contests results announced: The Area IV State Qualifying Career Development Event was held this week at Tarleton State University in Stephenville.

April 16 -- Watch the questions asked when hiring a new employee: If you think working short-handed is bad, hiring a new employee can be worse.

April 16 -- Floyd McComas Ranch at Albany honored during Cattlemen's Centennial: A Shackelford County ranch has been recognized for its contributions to the nation's cattle industry.

April 16 -- Furadan 4F insecticide approved for Texas cotton in emergencies: More clear evidence that EPA is taking a more reasonable look at common chemicals used by farmers.

April 15 -- How the Internet can liven up classroom teaching: MIAMI -- If stowaways had the luxury of a laptop computer and a cellular phone aboard a departing ship, what would they be worth?

April 15 -- Don't worry about changing computer world; plunge in (Brian Bethel Column): In the world of computers, there's one thing that's always going to be true -- there's always going to be something better.

April 15 -- Intel, world's largest chip maker, cutting 3,000 jobs: NEW YORK (AP) -- Intel Corp., stung by a drop in quarterly profits amid surprisingly weak demand for its computer chips, said Tuesday it was cutting 3,000 jobs in its broadest work force reduction in a decade.

April 15 -- Next Internet so fast that even experts aren't sure of its potential: WASHINGTON (AP) -- The next generation of the Internet, so fast that even top experts aren't sure exactly how it might be used, got a boost Tuesday from three companies that will contribute an ultra-fast data pipeline and some of the needed network equipment.

April 15 -- First Financial reports rise in earnings (Doug Williamson Column): First Financial Bankshares Inc. of Abilene Tuesday reported a 10.1-percent rise in net earnings for the first quarter.

April 15 -- Vegetable growers urged to market -- not just sell crop (J.T. Smith Column): Texas produces a wide variety of quality vegetables.

April 14 -- Dublin FFA'er Mark Perrin grew up to make the big time (J.T. Smith): Mark Perrin was raised in Dublin as the son of a Baptist preacher and an English teacher. Perrin will assume the presidency of the National Agricultural Marketing Association during the 1998 National NAMA Convention in Dallas Wednesday through Friday this week. His parents have every right to be proud.

April 14 -- Bank industry's mega mergers trend hits Abilene: Carrying on with the bank industry's mega mergers trend, financial power-houses NationsBank and BankAmerica as well as Banc One, Corp. and First Chicago announced each couple would combine their operations.

April 14 -- Coast-to-coast bank merger, new Midwest giant set stage for more huge deals: The aptly named NationsBank Corp. and BankAmerica Corp. took a giant leap for the banking industry Monday in a $62.5 billion merger creating the country's first coast-to-coast bank.

April 14 -- Billy Dunavant: "We just don't need 13.2 million acres of cotton": LAMESA - The Dawson County Ag Annex Building was once a church on North First Street here. But it seemed the perfect setting for Billy Dunavant as he brought a sermon to the Lamesa Cotton Growers annual meeting Monday. Drinking bottled water at the lectern to help him speak, the clearly tired Memphis, Tenn., merchant seemed like a preacher trying to convert sinners.

April 14 -- Taylor Electric to hold annual meeting Thursday in Abilene: The Taylor Electric Cooperative will stage its 59th Annual Membership Meeting Thursday at the Taylor County Coliseum in Abilene.

April 14 -- GTE to offer high-speed links to Internet: WASHINGTON (AP) - GTE Corp. will provide some of its telephone customers high-speed links to the Internet, becoming the latest phone company to join the race against cable TV companies to provide such access.

April 14 -- Last-minute tips for taxpayers: WASHINGTON - The Internal Revenue Service and the Senate Finance Committee don't always see eye to eye but both agree: File your taxes by April 15 or request an extension, even if you don't have the money to pay.

April 12 -- Are credit cards really under control?: NEW YORK (AP) -- It's just not fashionable to say a great many Americans are abusing today's easy credit terms. It's heresy, tantamount to saying that some of those picture-perfect, magazine-style families really aren't good Americans.

April 12 -- Texas utility to sell electric bikes, trikes, scooters: A Dallas-based utility is now peddling pedaling.

April 12 -- World's top cotton merchant visits Texas on Monday: W.B. "Billy" Dunavant will be in Texas to speak to the Lamesa Cotton Growers at 1:30 p.m. Monday.

April 12 -- State regulators identify leading fraud schemes: WASHINGTON (AP) -- State securities regulators have identified the top 10 frauds ensnaring average investors these days, including high-pressure telemarketing of risky stocks and scams using the Internet.

April 12 -- Business Notebook: News and notes of interest to the local business community

April 12 -- Learn to resolve conflicts (Doug Williamson Column): K.H. "Skip" Wilson, training coordinator and performance improvement consultant for Central and South West Corp., will speak on conflict resolution at a luncheon meeting Thursday.

April 12 -- Aggie Muster reservations in Abilene needed by April 16 (J.T. Smith Column): As has long been traditional, students and former students of Texas A&M University will hold Aggie Muster on April 21 throughout the world.

April 12 -- A few favorite Internet sites: The following list is my attempt to show off some of the highlights of the World Wide Web. These are my favorite sites. Many are useful, many are useless.

April 11 -- SEC delays stock-trading halt until Dow loses 10 percent: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Starting Wednesday, the nation's stock markets won't be forced to close as quickly if stock prices go into a tailspin.

April 11 -- Local choclatier finds Easter business hopping: Easter, like Christmas, features a commercial component.

April 11 -- Heads of top woman-owned businesses fail key criterion: NEW YORK -- Four-hundred-and-ninety-eight business owners were thrilled to make Working Woman magazine's list of the 500 largest woman-owned companies.

April 10 -- AFL-CIO research links rising executive pay to 'rigged' boardrooms: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Pointing to reports of a 38 percent increase in compensation top American executives received last year, the AFL-CIO released a report Thursday that asserted "boardrooms are rigged to overpay CEOs."

April 10 -- Merger talks to have little effect on local FirstCare members: Merger talks between Blue Cross-Blue Shield of Texas and Austin-based HMO First Care will have little impact for the Abilene area's 17,400 First Care policyholders.

April 10 -- Employment law seminar to give participants latest information (Doug Williamson Column): The pre-registration deadline for an April 30th employment law seminar is Wednesday.

April 10 -- Video auctions are moving many cattle nowadays (J.T. Smith Column): More than 36,000 head of calves, feeder cattle and breeding stock were offered the past weekend over the Superior Livestock Auction's regularly scheduled video cattle auction.

April 10 -- Real estate market lures buyers with high-speed Internet access: NEW YORK (AP) - For John Moon, the Internet is not a hobby. An international stock manager, Moon relies on cyberspace at work and at home to communicate with clients, associates and friends and to survive in the fast-paced financial world.

April 10 -- Pentagon decides builder for new generation of missiles: WASHINGTON (AP) -- The Pentagon picked Lockheed Martin Corp. on Thursday to build its next generation of stealthy, air-launched cruise missiles in a deal that could be worth up to $3 billion.

April 10 -- OSHA: Employers must provide restrooms, let workers use them: WASHINGTON -- If you have to go, the government says the boss must let you.

April 10 -- Perot Systems changes insurance policy for newly-hired domestic partners: DALLAS (AP) -- Newly-hired gays at Perot Systems Inc. will no longer be allowed to get health insurance for their partners, according to a policy instituted by Ross Perot, who has moved back into the chief executive role at the company he founded.

April 10 -- Less than a week to tax time, IRS reports smooth filing season: WASHINGTON -- With the tax deadline less than a week away, the IRS and watchdog groups say this year's filing season is going smoothly -- except for the poor souls who have to figure capital gains taxes under complex new rules.

April 9 -- Ford to offer side air bags in all cars: NEW YORK (AP) -- Ford Motor Co. plans to offer side impact air bags on all its cars within three years, becoming the first major American automaker to make the safety feature widely available.

April 9 -- Environmental officials say feedlots should be strictly regulated: AUSTIN -- Dozens of Texans told environmental officials this week that feedlots statewide cause problems ranging from pollution to water contamination and should be more strictly regulated.

April 9 -- Plan developed to reduce fire ant problem: AUSTIN -- Fire ants could be chased out of Texas by their natural predators -- Brazilian phorid flies -- under a plan designed to reduce the fire ant problem in the southeast.

April 9 -- Hiring expert shares humorous mistakes in resumes: Sometimes humor gets the point across.

April 9 -- Technostress? Cut yourself some slack: CHICAGO -- People who cringe when their kids, brothers-in-law or co-workers glibly toss around incomprehensible computer terms shouldn't feel stupid. They should feel angry at an industry that is about as user-friendly as Attila the Hun.

April 9 -- Taylor Electric Cooperative has doubts on utility restructuring (J.T. Smith Column): "We are skeptical of the benefits of restructuring for our co-op customers."

April 9 -- Finding right workers vital to business success: The most important asset to any business is its employees.

April 8 -- Spam guardians take a break (Brian Bethel Column): Usenet, those loveable forums in which you can air your views and news about any of thousands of topics, may be getting a bit crowded pretty soon.

April 8 -- From the CIA to useless facts (Doug Williamson Column): Spring has sprung, and a whole new crop of fun and interesting sites are on the Internet. This week's journey takes us from the CIA to Y2K and from whales to useless pieces of information.

April 8 -- First offspring from super-cooled pig embryos (J.T. Smith Column): USDA researchers have produced the first live offspring from "super-cooled" pig embryos.

April 8 -- Farmers could lose many pesticides Stallman tells overflow crowd: SEYMOUR -- Many commonly used chemicals in production agriculture soon could be scrapped.

April 8 -- Investment firm head says stocks place to put money: Investing in stocks is about the only good place to put money these days, according to the head of a national investment firm.

April 7 -- After surging past 9,000, is Dow en route to 10,000 or 8,000? NEW YORK (AP) - Bulling past a new milestone, the Dow industrials on Monday closed above 9,000 for the first time, extending a relentless climb that got its final nudge from the biggest business merger ever.

April 7 -- Fortune 500 profit growth slows, but stocks continue climb: NEW YORK (AP) - Profit growth for the Fortune 500 companies slowed dramatically last year, as many of America's corporate titans found fewer costs to slash and battled the ill effects of Asia's economic crisis. The Top 100

April 7 -- Citicorp, Travelers agree on mammoth merger: NEW YORK (AP) - Travelers Group's trademark red umbrella was supposed to mean the insurance company can protect you from rainy days. Now the umbrella is taking on a different meaning.

April 7 -- Trail ride on Matthews Ranch is rare opportunity (J.T. Smith): The wildflowers should dot the countryside and the birds should be singing their tunes on April 17-19 for the "Spring Trail Ride for Rehab" on the historic Lambshead ranching operation north of Albany.

April 7 -- Coke Southwest acquired by Atlanta enterprise (Doug Williamson): Monday's merger mania hit close to home. Coca-Cola Enterprises Inc. in Atlanta announced plans to acquire Coke Southwest, which includes Coke's bottling and sales operations in Abilene.

April 5 -- Abilene company in the business of saving lives: A 30-year-old Abilene company is flying high these days.

April 5 -- Business Notebook: News and notes of interest to the local business community

April 5 -- Corporations ditching skyscrapers for private homes on the range: PLANO, Texas (AP) -- On the fringe of Dallas, colossal corporate headquarters squat on the rolling landscape, each developed as its own community.

April 5 -- Drought's over? That's news to Valley farmers: EDINBURG, Texas (AP) -- Last year, farmers and agriculture experts were cheering the wetter-than-usual year that finally pulled Texas out of a devastating three-year drought.

April 5 -- Ruling allows NationsBank to operate in 16 states as single bank: CHARLOTTE (AP) -- Federal regulators have decided to let NationsBank operate in 16 states -- from Maryland to New Mexico -- as a single bank.

April 5 -- PC makers wage price war: For years, the computer industry has thrived on a most improbable combination of circumstances: The prices for its wares have dropped steadily, but its profits have remained strong.

April 5 -- Beef Advantage shows trend to integration of beef industry (J.T. Smith Column): The partners of an independent research and information projected called the "Beef Advantage Project" have formed a business to expand the study into a commercial venture.

April 4 -- FCC considers fees for Internet long-distance calls: WASHINGTON (AP) -- The small but growing number of people who make long-distance calls over the Internet could face higher charges under an idea being discussed by regulators.

April 4 -- ACU grad elected president of Texas Auctioneers Association (J.T. Smith Column): Pat Long of Brady is the new president of the Texas Auctioneers Association.

April 4 -- Young workers want to invest their Social Security taxes: WASHINGTON (AP) -- America's youngest adults are the most enthusiastic about letting workers shift some Social Security taxes into private accounts they could invest on their own, according to an Associated Press poll.

April 4 -- As Dow temporarily cracks 9000, investors refuse to go 'hog wild': The stock market's brief push beyond another millennial milestone Friday is warming the hearts of American investors, but don't expect a stampede to the Cadillac dealer.

April 3 -- Senators pledge prompt action on credit union bill: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Key senators on Thursday promised quick action on a popular House-passed measure to help credit unions, and the banking industry girded for another fight before the legislation reaches President Clinton.

April 3 -- Glickman changing crop insurance, backing boost in farm loans: WASHINGTON (AP) -- Under pressure from farm-state Democrats, Agriculture Secretary Dan Glickman today endorsed an increase in government loan rates and announced some changes in the crop insurance system to soften premium increases.

April 3 -- Texas Agritech Corridor brainstorms business opportunities here: Texas produces a mind-boggling amount of raw agricultural products. That's good.

April 3 -- El Niño means more rain for some -- but far less for Aussies (J.T. Smith Column): El Niño -- that cyclic phenomenon from the warming of the Pacific Ocean -- means some folks get much wetter than usual.

April 3 -- Where's Jay Leno? Silence is deafening around Windows 98: NEW YORK (AP) -- Three years ago, Microsoft Corp. hired Jay Leno and bought a Rolling Stones song to blast Windows 95 into the public consciousness. Americans lined up at midnight for a copy of the latest software for running computers.

April 2 -- Time to file that income tax return again: Let go of your wallets, folks. It's time to make your annual donation to the federal government ... that is, if you haven't had enough withheld from your paycheck already.

April 2 -- Agency to discuss major agribusiness initiative today in Abilene: A public meeting will focus on a new economic development initiative spearheaded by the Texas Department of Economic Development from 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. today in Abilene.

April 2 -- Cattle market extremely strong this spring (J.T. Smith Column): It's sure good to see some smiling faces out at the sale barns nowadays.

April 1 -- Cheap Internet access going the way of 10-cent pay phone call: NEW YORK (AP) -- Barely two years after exploding on the scene, cheap Internet access is fast going the way of the 10-cent pay phone call.

April 1 -- Time to play ball (Doug Williamson Column): It is difficult to carry on any sort of conversation today without at least some reference to the beginning of baseball season. This week's column is dedicated to all aspects of the sport, for both the fan and the non-enthusiast.

April 1 -- How to keep someone from reading your e-mail (Brian Bethel Column): Creating and cracking codes has been a long-time obsession for the mathematically minded.

April 1 -- Fed leaves interest rates unchanged: The Federal Reserve decided to keep short-term interest rates at 5.5 percent Tuesday.

April 1 -- Eltos Dudley was a solid gentleman at Dudley Bros.: When Eltos Dudley passed away this past Thursday at 88, it also marked the passing of the last of the three brothers who built Dudley Bros. Herefords into an internationally respected and admired ranching operation.