Clinton is said to be doing well

NEW YORK -- Former President Clinton was talking and taking liquids yesterday, a day after undergoing an operation to relieve four severely clogged arteries, a hospital source said.

Clinton remained in intensive care at New York Presbyterian Hospital/Columbia, and his spirits were ''fine," the source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

The former president was taken off his respirator Monday night, a crucial step in his recovery, said Dr. Bob Kelly, a member of Clinton's surgery team.

Doctors performed the four-hour quadruple bypass operation on Monday and found that Clinton's heart disease was extensive, with blockages in some arteries well over 90 percent. Doctors said Clinton was in grave danger of suffering a heart attack in the near future.