Bug#181310: tetex-base: \t command breaks with babel & Italian

[Thanasis Kinias <tkinias@optimalco.com>]

Package: tetex-base
Version: 1.0.2+20011202-2
Severity: normal

With the Babel package and the Italian language, the `\t' command (the
arc over two letters) breaks.  A nearly-minimal file which exhibits this
is:

==

\documentclass{article}

\usepackage[american,italian]{babel}
\selectlanguage{american}

\begin{document}

\t{ts}erkov

\end{document}

==

The line `\t{ts}erkov' should render the word `tserkov' with an arc over
the `ts'.  If I remove the `italian' option from the \usepackage{babel}

==

! Missing \endcsname inserted.
<to be read again> 
                   \global 
l.8 \t{ts}
          erkov
? 
! You can't use a prefix with `the character /'.
<to be read again> 
                   /
l.8 \t{ts}
          erkov
? 
! Extra \endcsname.
\font@name ...csname\global /cmr/m/n/10\endcsname 

l.8 \t{ts}
          erkov
? 
! Missing \endcsname inserted.
<to be read again> 
                   \global 
l.8 \t{ts}
          erkov
? 
! Extra \endcsname.
\@@enc@update ...sname \f@encoding -cmd\endcsname 
                                                  \@current@cmd \default@T \...
l.8 \t{ts}
          erkov
? 
! Missing \endcsname inserted.
<to be read again> 
                   \global 
l.8 \t{ts}
          erkov
? 
! You can't use a prefix with `\endcsname'.
<to be read again> 
                   \endcsname 
l.8 \t{ts}
          erkov
? 
! Extra \endcsname.
<recently read> \endcsname 

[...]                           

==

-- System Information
Debian Release: 3.0
Architecture: i386
Kernel: Linux glaux 2.4.18-686 #1 Sun Apr 14 11:32:47 EST 2002 i686
Locale: LANG=en_US.UTF-8, LC_CTYPE=en_US.UTF-8

Versions of packages tetex-base depends on:
ii  dpkg                          1.9.21     Package maintenance system for Deb
ii  texinfo                       4.1-2      Documentation system for on-line i