BY FRANK DAVIES

 WASHINGTON -- In unusually personal remarks that drew on her childhood
 and long career in Miami-Dade County, Attorney General Janet Reno on Thursday
 appealed to the Cuban-American community to remain calm, adhere to the rule of
 law and accept the return of Elian Gonzalez to his father.

 ``This case has been heartbreaking for everybody involved,'' Reno said during a
 weekly press briefing. ``But we believe that the law is clear. Elian should be
 reunited with his father.''

 Reno also acknowledged that the community she grew up in and served as state
 attorney was torn by the emotional controversy over the boy's fate: ``It is a
 community I was born in, raised in. It's a community I love. And when it's hurting,
 it hurts me.''

 Reno twice refused to criticize Miami-Dade County Mayor Alex Penelas or other
 local officials who said they will not cooperate in any move to return Elian. But in
 a lengthy prepared statement, she implicitly admonished Penelas and others for
 saying they held President Clinton and Reno responsible for any violence that
 may break out.

 ``Some officials yesterday suggested that if we take action, it is a provocation, a
 provoking of people that would produce risk, that could contribute to violence.
 They said that they would not be responsible for that, that I would be,'' she said.

 ``The people I know in the Cuban community came to this country and have
 contributed so much to it because they believe in the rule of law. I don't think they
 came to this country to incite violence.''

 As government officials and lawyers for Elian's relatives met in Miami and the
 Cuban government said Elian's father and relatives were prepared to come to the
 United States, Reno defended her decision to return the boy with analogies and
 folksy stories about her own memories as a 6-year-old.

 But when asked if she was ready to enforce her order if the various sides can't
 agree, her response was terse: ``You bet.''

 PROCEDURES UNCLEAR

 Reno refused to speculate about how the return of Elian will be accomplished.
 Gregory Craig, the lawyer for Elian's father, said Juan Miguel Gonzalez is ready to
 come to Washington if the INS will assure him of custody of his son while the
 appeals process is completed.

 Reno said it was an option but added: ``I don't do what-ifs.'' She said it was
 premature to discuss what role Craig might play in negotiations and refused to
 talk about details of the discussions Thursday in Miami with lawyers for the boy's
 relatives.

 Later on Thursday, U.S. Sen. Bob Graham, a Florida Democrat and friend of
 Reno, said he would oppose any move to turn the boy over to his father while
 waiting for the appeals process to run its course.

 During her briefing, the attorney general cited her own experience as
 Miami-Dade's chief prosecutor during a variety of crises to call for continued
 cooperation between federal officials and local authorities.

 GOVERNMENT LAUDED

 ``I have been there when I wondered whether the federal government was going to
 support us, and then in the middle of Hurricane Andrew's recovery, when local
 government couldn't do it, the federal government was there,'' she said.

 ``I have been there when drugs seemed to be overwhelming the community, and
 the federal government was there. I think in this great country, which is operated
 on principles of federalism, the government in Miami will continue to uphold the
 law and work with other law enforcement to see that the law is honored the right
 way.''

 When she was asked why Elian should go back to ``Castro's prison'' to grow up,
 Reno recalled people she knows in South Florida:

 ``I have known a lot of people in the Cuban community who were raised in
 Castro's Cuba, who had come to this country and who, when they came, were
 perfectly wonderful people.''

 CHILDHOOD ANALOGY

 Reno talked about her own childhood when quizzed about whether the boy's
 wishes should be followed. According to an ABC News interview conducted last
 week, Elian said he did not want to return to Cuba.

 ``I think most people understand a 6-year-old,'' she said. ``And I can remember, I
 loved to go to my grandmother's house. She had such a wonderful house, and
 she cooked us biscuits just right, and she loved us. And she took us to the
 movie, and she got us French vanilla ice cream. And she read to us, and she
 taught us how to play cards. She was a wonderful lady.

 ``And it came Sunday afternoon, and I'd run around behind the house and hide
 because I didn't want to go home.''

 Asked if her reminiscence meant she didn't believe Elian's words expressed his
 true feelings, Reno added: ``I think they are his own feelings. They were certainly
 my feelings when I ran behind the house and cried and didn't want to go home,
 and I think we've got to understand that this is a very special, wonderful 6-year-old
 boy who has been taken in by relatives who love him dearly and who cared for
 him.''

                     Copyright 2000 Miami Herald