Europe

In the Oct. 12 article on the subject of foul scents in Philadelphia you mention that the number of public restrooms in the city has declined markedly over the last several decades. Perhaps consideration should be given to reversing this trend. During the more than two years I spent traveling all over England during World War II and in many visits back there since, I was relieved to find that almost every town provides well-marked free public conveniences that were, almost without exception, well-equipped and kept clean.

Villanova's basketball team will play five exhibition games in Europe in August. The Wildcats will play in France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands from Aug. 7 to 16. Villanova last traveled to Europe in August 2001 when they played in Italy. "We're very excited to have this opportunity to travel to Europe as a basketball family," coach Jay Wright said in a statement. "This trip will give us a chance to grow together as a team and experience the culture of some amazing cities.

When it comes to rendering decisions with long-range implications, NHL officials often send mixed signals. For instance, the league isn't thrilled about going to the Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver in 2010 or committing to future Olympics. And yet, the NHL covets Europe. It sees Europe as a vast untapped market of unlimited potential. It would like to see U.S. and Canadian clubs competing there in both regular season games and tournaments. Contrasting views, indeed.

NEW YORK - Small was beautiful this week. The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 15,000 for the first time Tuesday, then held above that milestone for the next three days. But an index of small-company stocks put the blue-chip gauge to shame for the week. On Friday, the Russell 2000 closed the week up 2.2 percent, more than double the Dow's gain. Small stocks stand a greater chance of surging than those of global companies do if the U.S. economy continues to fare better than those of Europe and Asia.

Mary Dewane pondered a trip to Salzburg, Austria, the last five summers, but the value of the dollar compared with the euro was too costly - until this summer. With a more favorable currency exchange rate, Dewane flew from Phoenix to Philadelphia this week on the way to Munich, Germany, and then by train to Austria, to visit her son who is working at the Salzburg music festival. "The other years, it was too expensive," said Dewane, standing at the US Airways Group Inc. ticket counter at Philadelphia International Airport.

Tomorrow, Francois Mitterrand, the son of a railroad stationmaster and France's longest-serving modern president, will be buried in a family tomb in Jarnac, the town in southwestern France where he was born. His nation will put to rest one of its most complex and accomplished politicians; Europe and the West will bid adieu to one of the 20th century's last great leaders. Mr. Mitterrand, who died Monday after a long bout with cancer, leaves a complicated legacy. He brought the socialist left into mainstream politics, but was unable to make its economic theories stick.

Data backup and protection provider PHD Virtual Technologies, of Philadelphia, said it raised $4 million in funding. The company said it secured $2 million in funding from existing investors, Insight Venture Partners and Citrix. Another $2 million in venture debt financing came from Wellington Financial L.P. The money will be used, in part, for expansion into Europe, and for product development.  

A controversy is brewing in Congress over the huge American investment in troops overseas at a time of monumental U.S. budget deficits and a worldwide Soviet peace offensive. Both conservatives and liberals are eyeing the numbers and wondering why it is necessary, in a time of easing tensions, to maintain about 460,000 military personnel in foreign countries. It is one of those slumbering issues just below the political surface that is almost certain to catch fire before the current session of Congress ends.

The United States has many more medium-range nuclear missiles in Europe than previously acknowledged, the Washington Post and the Boston Globe reported today. In a related report, the Los Angeles Times reported that the Soviets had told U.S. officials that about 200 of their medium-range missiles, earlier described as operational, were really just training missiles and that many were filled with concrete. Many of the those missiles apparently were built to deceive U.S. spy satellites, the newspaper said.

Seve Ballesteros, praised and criticized by his players for his hands-on captaincy of Europe's winning Ryder Cup team, won't do it again. At least for a while. Minutes after Spanish King Juan Carlos II called to congratulate him for guiding Europe to victory over the United States, Ballesteros said he wouldn't be back as captain for the next Cup in 1999. Instead, he wants to qualify for the team as a player. "I'm not going to be the captain in 1999 because I want to get my game back," he said.