War-Weary Pair Offer to Surrender Children to Peace

War-torn Lebanon is no place for their children to grow up, said a Beirut couple who have offered their three children for adoption. “They are prisoners of war . . . they only think of terror and fear. It is very important for my children to leave this country to any European country where the value of human life is important,” said Fayez Awarki, a 38-year-old bank employee who, with his wife, Siham, 28, made the plea for a new home for their youngsters. In the last nine months, the Awarkis are the third family known to have offered their children for adoption so they can leave Lebanon, which has been devastated by 12 years of civil war and an inflation rate of 200%. The Awarkis said their decision came after they were unable to emigrate and failed to increase Fayez’s $41 monthly salary in a country where a 12-ounce can of powdered milk costs $3.25.

--They’re calling it “Buttergate,” and the issue has Vermonters all churned up. But a Vermont butter maker is arguing that yuppie demand for premium ice cream has his firm competing unsuccessfully for what little cream is still available in the tiny state. As a result, Cabot Cooperative Creamery has found itself caught in a fib, acknowledging that for the last five years its “Vermont Butter” has really been from Wisconsin and Ohio. But federal programs that pay farmers to slaughter herds for meat have caused a shortage of cream in the state, and the growth of Vermont-based Ben & Jerry’s ice cream has cut into supplies, said Cabot spokesman Alan Parker. The butter maker has agreed to change its label and the state has agreed not to press charges.

--For the final 300 yards she had to stop and rest in a camp chair every few minutes, but just before dawn, 91-year-old Hulda Crooks of Loma Linda, Calif., became the oldest woman to reach the top of Japan’s Mt. Fuji. “It’s wonderful,” said Crooks, waving a U.S. flag tied to her walking stick. “You always feel good when you make a goal.” Crooks, who began climbing on the advice of her doctor, also said she scales mountains for the contact with nature. “You climb high mountains and you look down at those steep valleys and it inspires you to do something,” she said.

--Prince Andrew and his wife, the former Sarah Ferguson, celebrated their first wedding anniversary in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, an occasion that put them in a “party mood,” the prince said. “I hope it’ll continue for the next few days,” he added. The Duke and Duchess of York, who will travel through Canada for three weeks, were presented with surprise anniversary gifts by Alberta Premier Don Getty--a fox jacket for her and a leather and beaver jacket for him.