Inside Kaesong

At last the eyes & ears of the Western world could examine Kaesong. Fourth in a convoy of 16 vehicles was a six-by-six truck carrying 20 allied correspondents and photographers.

The only armed Communists they saw were two M.P.s directing traffic with burp guns slung from their shoulders. (Admiral Joy had agreed to a "necessary minimum" of armed Communist soldiers.) Outside the conference building (newly designated by the Communists as "United Nations House") they found two North Korean officers and a woman sergeant, pert in an olive jacket and blue skirt, who turned out to be a Miss Paik of Pyongyang. The three told the U.N. convoy commander they were there to provide any services they could.

Miss Paik of Pyongyang. On the porch of a Korean house nearby were about 20 Communists, half of them North Koreans with shoulder boards and fancy uniforms, half, Chinese with unstarched, unmarked yellow-green uniforms. Some wore badges with "Reception Personnel" inscribed in English and in Chinese or Korean characters , others appeared to be the Chinese press.

Communist and U.N. cameramen opened up on one another. In some cases the lensmen closed to a yard or less; one Chinese movie cameraman got so excited that he fired for half an hour with all three of his lenses capped. Some of the Communists relaxed to the extent of returning a smile. But several refused U.N. cigarettes and one turned away to spit on the ground.

A U.S. corporal going about his communications duties was amazed to hear Miss Paik of Pyongyang call out in English: "How long have you been over here?" He answered, "Thirteen months, almost," and she said, "That's too long." The corporal asked her what her people wanted anyway--maybe a unified Korea with north and south together? Yes, agreed Miss Paik, that was about it. "Who do you want to run it," asked the corporal, "the Communists or the U.N.?" Sergeant Paik smiled discreetly and shook her head.

At the Green Table. The reporters were not admitted to the conference room, but got a detailed picture of what it was like inside. The North Korean delegation head, General Nam II, smoked incessantly at the green baize table. On his right were the two Chinese, Teng Gua and Hsieh Feng, and on his left the two other North Koreans, Lee Song Cho and Chang Pyong San. The U.N. delegation was seated similarly, with Admiral Joy opposite Nam.

Behind the delegates were their aides, and behind them secretaries and short hand reporters. After Joy spoke, always from a manuscript, an interpreter repeated his remarks in Korean, a short paragraph at a time. Nam's words were translated into both English and Chinese for the comrades from behind the Yalu.

Sometimes young Korean girls in uniform gawked in at the windows -- just like people at home gawking into Macy's, said a U.S. briefing officer.

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