It may be only a few minutes shy of 10:30 in the morning, but as
Rocky Magnuson reminds the stream of people walking by, it's never
too early to enjoy a little kettle corn.

It is the crescendoing sound of summer, the shouts and giggles of
children outmatched only by a chorus of tractors and generators humming
and chugging in the distance.

It is the sweet smells of August, of cotton candy, fried dough,
greasy hamburgers and sticky sno-cones mixing in the thick afternoon
air.

It is the centrifugal force of the Sizzler, the lofty arch of the
ferris wheel and the rush of air on the face as bodies move higher and
faster toward the sky.

Fraud Charged in Tax Hearing

Attorneys for William W. Graham File Motion to Exclude Testimony of
Key Witnesses for Town, Cite Ongoing Contradictions

By IAN FEIN

BOSTON - Alleging that West Tisbury assessors and their
counsel may have deliberately withheld vital information from their own
expert appraiser, attorneys for West Tisbury resident William W. Graham
filed a motion yesterday to exclude the testimony of the town's
two key witnesses in a complex legal hearing before the Massachusetts
Appellate Tax Board.

Tashmoo Boaters Bump Up Against Rule Enforcement

By MAX HART

Stricter enforcement of town waterways regulations has caused some
ripples in the boating community in Vineyard Haven in recent weeks.

Among other things, the Tisbury board of selectmen has heard a
litany of complaints over stepped-up boating regulations in Lake
Tashmoo. A new mooring grid system coupled with a more aggressive
enforcement campaign has longtime boaters and residents of this quiet
inland harbor voicing their displeasure.

An August David McCullough Carries Audience Back in Time

By James Kinsella
Gazette Senior Writer

Millions of American minds carry the image: George Washington,
resplendent in uniform, resolute in countenance, gazing steadfastly
ahead, the Stars and Stripes partly unfurled behind him, the boatmen
pushing ice cakes away from the rowboat in which he is standing.

Save the ice cakes, it is an image that is almost totally
inaccurate, historian David McCullough said.

The lack of rainfall this summer has been great for beach vacations, but extremely dry conditions have left trees, gardens and lawns with a powerful thirst and town water companies pumping like mad to keep up with the demand.

Supply is not an issue, but pumps for the Island municipal water systems are working overtime. Edgartown, Oak Bluffs and Tisbury are each pumping over two million gallons a day. It is a record summer for water usage, all tied to the drought-like conditions. The Vineyard has had no significant rainfall since July 9.

Boarding the shuttle from Beetlebung Corner to the starting line of the 28th annual Chilmark Road Race on Saturday, one could smell the excitement.

The excitement, as it happened, smelled like 50 sweaty runners in a school bus. Race officials blared Highway to Hell by AC/DC in the background, a subtle nod to the day's combination of 90 degree heat and 80 per cent humidity.

Anniversary: Conservation Is Crux of Mission Across 40 Years

By IAN FEIN

Forty years ago a group of Island residents formed the Vineyard
Conservation Society to fend off a development threat in the
Lobsterville moors of Aquinnah. The group convinced the state to put a
limited access designation on West Basin Road, effectively prohibiting
any future subdivision or development in the area and preserving the
untouched strip of land that runs along the northern edge of Menemsha
Pond today.

Thea Ruckhaus, 13, stepped onto the deck of the Arabella, tucked her violin under her chin, and began to play The African Reel.

In that moment, as the notes drifted across Cuttyhunk harbor, the world of cell phones and e-mail and computers drifted away, the centuries evaporated, and the Arabella's passengers were on a sailing vessel visiting a small island, cheered by a melody.

Thea Ruckhaus, 13, stepped onto the deck of the Arabella, tucked her violin under her chin, and began to play The African Reel.

In that moment, as the notes drifted across Cuttyhunk harbor, the world of cell phones and e-mail and computers drifted away, the centuries evaporated, and the Arabella's passengers were on a sailing vessel visiting a small island, cheered by a melody.