The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current, 1952-01-05
Year Ago. City
OF Seoul Was
Abandoned
I'm Those Days Ii Was
Thought That America
Would Have To Give
Up Korea Entirely
By HAL BOYLE

up kOrea Entirely
BY HAL BOYLE
NEW YORK R-lt is a thing of
terror and strange Deauty to see
great city abandoned in wartime.
II was that way year ago this
week in Seoul, when the Allies
yielded the Korean capital to pad
ded Chinese soldiers who came
across the hills like waves of walk
ing quilts.
The fear of their coming spread
invisibly before them. Hundreds
Of thousands of Seoul civilians had
been leaving for days, marching
south in struggling columns of
death and hunger.
But the military decision to eva
cuate came suddenly. One morn
ing the correspondents watched
British battalion make a calm and
studied counter attack against
the enemy Is miles north of the
city. But when we returned late
that afternoon the press camp was
breaking up and the order went
out:
Pack and leave Immediately.
The army is pulling out tonight"
Several correspondents, includ-
ing Dwight Martin of Time maya
zine and myself. decided to remain
overnight and watch the Withdraw
al,
Il gave us an eerie feeling as we
stood at the entrance of the empty
Hotel Chosun, one of the largest
hostelries in Korea, and watched
flames licking at the newspaper
plant across the street.
Fires began TO break out all over
the city and smoke pail quick
ened the twilight. Night fell. The
pavements echoed with the roar of
tanks apd guns being wheeled out
ct the city. 1t seemed impossible
that mere masses of enemy rifle
men on foot could force all that
vast weight of metal armor back
ward - but they were.
The fires mushr0omed into acres
Of singing flame. Outlined against
them we're the pitiful lines Of ref.
ugees. Many too weak TO continue
collapsed and lay unheeded.
We bucked the endless traffic
back up TO the front. II wasn't so
far now. A colonel said:
Were pulling out ourself in
half an hour. You'd better leave"
The hills and paddles held a dark
menace. Everything was lonely and
unreal. and the unfought fires
threw frightening shadows. An or.
phan boy walled. all alone and for
gotten. on the City Hall steps. We
picked him up and drove back TO
the hotel and rifled some blankets
10 keep him warm.
Az the last command post in the
city some soldiers were eating a
Christmas fruitcake that had Just
arrived. They shared ii with us.
ITS a funny thing" said a
young captain. but I courted my
wife In this very room. ] was sta
toned here before the war, and my
wife worked for an American civil.
Ian agency that quartered It's WON.
en- employees in this building.
II used to meet her here TO 90
out on dates. II seems odd to be
back here. wonder what she's
thinking right now"
And ever since then I've won.
dered whether the captain ever rot
70 tell her about his last night in
Seoul.
We bedded down until morning.
We toured Seoul for the last time.
The rattle of small arms could be
heard on the outskirts.
BY noon the last Allied unit had
trundled out Of the smoking city
and across the two bridges span
ming the Han River. About 2 D. m.
U. 5. Army Engineers blew the
final bridge. and one said:
tWell, that's the last well ever
see Of Seoul"
That was the general feeling
among the Allied army then. Many
officers and men then thought we
would have TO give up Korea entire
" and withdraw to Japan. And
there was bitterness in their going.
for while they had known little ioy
IN that weary peninsula they had
no wish TO be pushed from Il.
But they formed a new line and
held Il. Today We hold Seoul again.
too. And If real peace there still
seems far away. well - the situa.
ton Is much better than IL was on
That night of loneliness and defeat
q year ago.
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