11.   But still, he ended the day on an optimistic note.

12.   But others struck an optimistic note.

13.   DePalma ends his elegant journey on an optimistic note.

14.   Earlier in the day, Clinton sounded an optimistic note about the talks.

15.   Even so, he tries to strike an optimistic note.

16.   Ian C. Shepherdson, chief American economist at High Frequency Economics, an independent research company in Valhalla, N.Y., sounded an optimistic note.

17.   In general, though, Neiss struck a mostly optimistic note.

18.   In tones not unlike those of President Clinton and his national security team, Powell struck an unrelentingly optimistic note.

19.   Indeed, the season begins on a somewhat optimistic note.

20.   It ends on an optimistic note that commercial interests and ecological interests can be reconciled.