Ex-POW Mate Says: Cpl. Claude Batchelor, the POW who recently changed his mind about staying with the Communists in Korea, was described by his former Middletown camp mate yesterday as a "pro — but not a rat." Roland A. Hamilton, 1303 Woodlawn Ave., who spent 28 months in Prison Camp 5 with Batchelor, explained that "progressives" were GIs who believed the Communist line, while "rats" were pros who informed the Chinese of their buddies' activities. "I never knew any case of Batchelor ratting on a guy," Hamilton said. The Middletown POW added that there were very few pros like the Kermit, Tex. soldier. Commenting on an article by Batchelor in Sunday's Journal in which the pro explains his actions, Hamilton pointed out that "as far as my knowledge is concerned, the majority of the things he says are true..."
Ex-POW Mate Says: Cpl. Claude Batchelor, the POW who recently changed his mind about staying with the Communists in Korea, was described by his former Middletown camp mate yesterday as a "pro — but not a rat." Roland A. Hamilton, 1303 Woodlawn Ave., who spent 28 months in Prison Camp 5 with Batchelor, explained that "progressives" were GIs who believed the Communist line, while "rats" were pros who informed the Chinese of their buddies' activities. "I never knew any case of Batchelor ratting on a guy," Hamilton said. The Middletown POW added that there were very few pros like the Kermit, Tex. soldier. Commenting on an article by Batchelor in Sunday's Journal in which the pro explains his actions, Hamilton pointed out that "as far as my knowledge is concerned, the majority of the things he says are true..."
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