Evening star., 1953-05-04
By ChorIes J. Yorbrouqh

Oy SUOIISS - IOIOIO0Su
The best medicine an ailing
prisoner of war can have is his
mother.
Corpl. Earl M. Wiseman, a
young-old soldier of 31-two and
a half years of which were spent
in a North Korean prisoner OF
war camp-came back to his
mother, Mrs. Katherine Wise
man. in Walter Reed Hospital al
6:20 am. today.
A grin, frightened down by
rigors of malnutrition and ILL
ness, was all he could muster
for her. but she understood. She
had ridden all night to meet
him after a phone call yesterday
afternoon.
First to Return Here.
Corpl. Wiseman of Ronceverte
w. Va, is the first repatriated
soldier to return to Walter Reed
With II other repatriates, in
cluding Pvt. Melvin D. Wood
house, colored, Of Norfolk, Va;
Pvt. Charles M. Smith of Char
lottesville, Va.s and Pfc. Charles
w. Akres of Bluefleld, w. Va.
Corpl Wiseman arrived at An
dreWS Air Force Base in an air
evacuation C-54 yesterday after
noon.
The Wiseman reunion brought
two brothers, one of them a
former Marine with Korean duty
behind him, a sister and a long
time friend of the family to Wal
ter Reed. Paul Wiseman, %, the
former Marine, got out of service
in December. The other brother
was Russell Wiseman, 20; the
sister, Mrs. Marjorie Hamrick,
all of Ronceverte. There are
two other children, Mrs. Helen
Lynch, of Charles Town w. Va,
and Billie Wiseman, Is, Of Ron
ceverte.
Corpl. Wiseman will return
home in a few days. When he
does, he'll find more than 10C
letters from anxious mothers OF
soldiers who, after reading OF
the corporal's exchange, are
seeking information about their
sons.
Ambulatory, although utterly
weary and weak from malnutri-
ton and dysentery, he was
brought to Walter Reed in an
ambulance.
Searching for words as a man
might after having regained his
voice, Corpl. Wiseman YEARLY
gave a brief account of that two
and a half years. Other than
lack of food and only primitive
accommodations, he said he was
never personally mistreated.
But there were those first two
awful months at the mining
camp"
Two Bowls of Meal.
Many died there, the others
subsisting on two bowls Of meal
a day, to which sometimes was
added a little cracked corn.
1.-THE worst food we had was
none at ALL" he said. "The best
was last Christmas when they
gave US fried chicken-one
chicken to three men.
I'm January, 1851. they herded
us together and began a two-day
march north to a bigger camp
on the Yalu River" the soldier
continued.
"Along the way several men
dropped out or passed out, and
the Chinese just left them there. +"
New experiences awaited them
at the Yalu prison. For one
thing, about 1000 prisoners were
hauled out each day to unload
rice barges.
Work details, he said, included
foraging and cutting Of wood and
building the mud houses they
lived in. Camp routine called for
a roll call at z am. There was
no lights out, he went on. I'VE
had no lights"
Recreation included baseball,
football and basketball.
Attempts at Communist indoc-
trination came three times week.
ly and attendance was compul-
sorry. "They told us certain stuff
we were supposed to believe. We
didn't listen. We just sat there.
Friends Died Daily.
Friends died every day from
wounds and sickness. We had
burial details almost every day
during that first year. Capt.
Anderson "a doctor whom Corpl.