Problems updating to 8.3.5

I have a Slackware 10.2.0 machine which has been happily serving files,
Apache, Pg, etc. across my home network for some time. I had no problem
installing pg 8.2.1 on it. But now when I try to install 8.3.5,
configure dies complaining that gcc can't build an executable. Looking
at the log, it says crt1.o does not exist. I looked, and sure enough, it
doesn't exist. Apart from sounding like a DOS run time package, why does
the new version need it while 8.2 didn't? Where do I get or make a copy
so I can build the latest engine?

Bob McConnell
N2SPP