1.   Last October, merger negotiations between the Mercantile and Darlington Building Society were called off.

2.   Another issue for Lamadrid was the collapse in early January of merger negotiations between ADL and PA Consulting Group of London.

3.   As an associate hailed a cab, Esrey smiled, offered his hand and politely declined comment on a fevered day of merger negotiations.

4.   Bank shares tumbled after Cie. Financiere de Paribas SA yesterday denied it was in merger negotiations with another bank.

5.   Both firms said it is their policy to decline comment on any merger negotiations.

6.   A Bank of Boston spokesman said the bank did not comment on merger negotiations.

7.   After six months of merger negotiations, sales and earnings reports had actually started to decline just before the deal was announced.

8.   Consider one recent merger negotiation.

9.   Drugs were further boosted by takeover speculation, fueled by merger negotiations between SmithKline and American Home Products Corp.

10.   During merger negotiations, Office Depot lost ground in retail store openings and focused its energy more on direct sales to large companies.