[NOT FOR PUBLICATION   NOT TO BE CITED AS PRECEDENT

                                

                 United States Court of Appeals

                     For the First Circuit







No. 96-2369



                      GAIL MERCHANT IRVING,

                      Plaintiff, Appellant,



                                v.



                    UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

                       Defendant, Appellee.







           APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

                FOR THE DISTRICT OF NEW HAMPSHIRE



         [Hon. Steven J. McAuliffe, U.S. District Judge]







                              Before



                     Torruella, Chief Judge,

                 Bownes, Senior Circuit Judge,

     Selya, Boudin, Stahl, Lynch and Lipez, Circuit Judges.

                                





     Paul R. Cox, with whom Matthew B. Cox and Burns, Bryant,

Hinchey, Cox & Rockefeller, P.A. were on brief, for appellant.

     Phyllis J. Pyles, Attorney, Torts Branch, Civil Division, with

whom Frank W. Hunger, Assistant Attorney General, Paul M. Gagnon,

United States Attorney, and Jeffrey Axelrad, Attorney, Torts

Branch, Civil Division, were on brief, for appellee.



                      ______________________



                         OPINION EN BANC

                     _______________________



                       December 18, 1998

                     _______________________  Per Curiam.  We dismiss this appeal as moot in view of

our resolution today of the government's cross-appeal (No. 96-

2368).



  Dismissed.