National Guard detachments will arrive at the Martha's Vineyard Airport soon to help strengthen security operations.

The dispute over the right of the Wampanoag Tribe of Gay Head (Aquinnah) to arm its rangers with handguns and establish its own police force is now being hashed out in the offices of the state attorney general in Boston, where state officials are acting as facilitators.

Tisbury Police Department Size Debated

By JOSHUA SABATINI

At a Tisbury police labor management meeting Tuesday afternoon, patrolmen said their own safety and that of the public is jeopardized by having a department of only 11 men.

The union wants an increase in manpower. But selectmen have been considering cutting back the department since more than a month ago, when police chief John McCarthy asked the board's permission to hire a patrolman to replace one who recently retired. Selectman Tristan Israel questioned the need, and the debate was on.

Grounded through February, Island school students can forget about their travel plans to England, Barbados, Cuba, Germany and Russia. School leaders decided this week to cancel flight travel for student trips until March, citing safety concerns in the aftermath of last month's terrorist attacks.

A sluggish economy coupled with a severe lack of affordable housing on the Vineyard may be responsible for stagnant and, in some cases, falling enrollments reported by Island schools this week.

New Bedford Ferry Divides Selectmen

Vineyard Leaders Order SSA Governor to Return for Further Consultations Before Final Decision on Fast Ferry

By JULIA WELLS
Gazette Senior Writer

For the second time in a month, a large group of Vineyard selectmen this week wavered on the subject of high-speed ferry service out of New Bedford, asking the Island Steamship Authority governor to meet with them one more time before he makes any decision on a trial fast ferry project.