New Jersey: Anthrax scare closes office

Authorities in New Jersey, where at least five anthrax-laden letters were mailed in 2001, closed another post office after brown powder fell from a package containing a threatening letter.

An initial test was negative for anthrax, but a second test was inconclusive, Postal Service spokesman Tony Esposito said Sunday.

One employee in Long Hill Township came in contact with the powder but didn’t appear to have symptoms, and five workers in the building were given prescriptions for the antibiotic Cipro, Esposito said. He said the post office was closed, pending test results expected Tuesday from the state health department.

Chicago: Daley family matriarch dies

Eleanor “Sis” Daley, widow of former Chicago Mayor Richard J. Daley and matriarch of a political family that includes former U.S. Commerce Secretary William Daley, died Sunday at age 95.

The mother of Chicago Mayor Richard M. Daley died at home surrounded by members of her family shortly before 5 p.m., said Jacqueline Heard, a spokesman for her son. A Chicago native, she lived her entire life in the tight-knit Bridgeport neighborhood long associated with the political clan.

Her son Richard, who has his father’s popularity without the reputation of political bossism, has been mayor since 1989.

Three other sons and two daughters are among the survivors.

Venezuela: Lower interest rates sought

Venezuela’s interest rates should be fixed at certain levels to reverse the nation’s deteriorating economic situation, President Hugo Chavez said Sunday, just days after imposing exchange and price controls for the same reason.

Chavez suggested a maximum rate of 30 percent for commercial banks’ lending rates, compared with more than 40 percent at present. This would give small companies and farmers better access to credit, he said.

The central bank’s current lending rate is 37 percent.

“I want interest rates to be lowered,” Chavez said. “I want the interest rates to be fixed … and I call on the Central Bank of Venezuela to fix them.”