RICH RICHER, POOR POORER

The rich got richer, the poor got poorer, and the giant middle class did a bit better than treading water last year, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.

The bureau, in statistics issued last week, said the percentage of people below the poverty line declined slightly from 1995 to 1996.

The bureau also said the earnings gap between men and women was the smallest ever, with women's incomes rising and men's declining after adjustment for inflation.