HANOVER, N.H.--In their first face-to-face debate of the presidential campaign, Vice President Al Gore '69 and former New Jersey senator Bill Bradley wrestled last night for control of voter momentum in the Democratic party.

Continuing a tactic he has pursued successfully for two weeks, Gore attacked Bradley, criticizing the cost of his health care program, his support for school vouchers and his opposition to U.S. intervention in East Timor.

But Bradley declined to criticize his opponent, and the debate remained free of acrimony.

The audience at Dartmouth College, mostly white and full of students and professors, asked the two men about their positions on everything from violence in schools and gay rights to more obscure issues like care for Alzheimer's patients and increased funding for special education, trying to draw out specific proposals from the candidates.

At one point, Gore was contrite about the state of his campaign. Two polls taken within the past week show Bradley with a nine-point lead in New Hampshire, and Gore has been roundly criticized for not taking control of an unwieldy campaign staff.

Although Bradley has spent more time shaking hands in the Granite State, Gore has blitzed through the region in the past several days, making sure to visit working class neighborhoods and adopting an air of spontaneity in the process.

"We probably learn more from our mistakes than our successes," he said last night. "In the last six or eight weeks, I've had a learning experience in New Hampshire and Iowa. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the people of New Hampshire for telling me about your hopes and dreams for this country."

The vice president told one questioner that the biggest mistake of his political career was his claim that he "invented" the Internet. "There are so many to choose from," he joked.