Daniel Nathans memorial service scheduled for Jan. 5

A memorial service for Daniel Nathans has been scheduled for 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 5, 2000, in Turner Auditorium, School of Medicine. A reception will follow.

Nathans, who died Nov. 16, was University Professor of Molecular Biology and Genetics at the School of Medicine and senior investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute at Hopkins. He served as interim president of the university from June 1995 until August 1996. In 1978 he received the Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine.

University files civil suit against Robert Schuerholz, four others

The university has gone to court seeking repayment of $1.8 million allegedly stolen by a former senior manager through various kickbacks and false billing schemes.

Johns Hopkins is suing Robert J. Schuerholz, former executive director of facilities and real estate, and four co-defendants. In addition to restitution, the university complaint filed in Carroll County Circuit Court seeks $10 million in punitive damages and forfeiture of an Eastern Shore home that allegedly was paid for in significant part with money stolen from Hopkins.

Schuerholz managed the university's construction and maintenance programs until he was fired in 1997, when allegations of his thefts first surfaced. He pleaded guilty in May to federal income tax evasion charges for failing to pay tax on some of the stolen funds. He was sentenced last month to 18 months in prison.

The university waited until the conclusion of the criminal case before filing its civil suit in early December.

Among the co-defendants in the civil case are Donald Schuerholz, Robert's cousin; and Donald's electrical contracting company, Elco Electric, which paid kickbacks to Robert Schuerholz from Hopkins payments on inflated invoices. Also named is Stewart P. Mayo, former president of another contractor implicated in the schemes. Robert Schuerholz's wife, Linda, is also named because of her ownership interest in the Eastern Shore home.

Peabody Library collection looks at books as works of art

Forget what they say about not judging a book by its cover. The George Peabody Library now has on display a collection of magnificent-looking books in a new exhibition, "Decorated Book Covers of the 19th and 20th Century." The exhibit, on display until Feb. 1, 2000, offers examples of books that were treasured both inside and out, for their beauty as well as their content.

With these books, the story begins not on the first page but on the cover. Some beautifully simple, others marvelously intricate, the designs are an array of the types of textures, palettes and styles of cloth and gold-stamped bindings that were used to entice readers of the 19th and 20th centuries.

The exhibit features such works as Madame Henriette Elizabeth de Witt's Les Chroniqueurs de l'Histoire de France depuis les origines jusqu'au XVIe siecle, with a diamond-patterned cover design in fiery reds, rich blues and gold trimmings; Giovanni Boccaccio's Life of Dante, with its cover of bold orange and embossed flowers; and Theodore Child's Wimples and Crisping Pins, in a powdery blue and gilded lettering design. Thirty-five books in all are on display.

The library, at 17 E. Mount Vernon Place, is open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Monday through Friday. Admission is free.

Next issue of 'The Gazette' will appear on Jan. 3

Because of the university's holiday closings, The Gazette will not be published the weeks of Dec. 20 and 27; the next issue will appear on Jan. 3. The deadline for calendar listings and classifieds for that issue is at noon on Wednesday, Dec. 22.