War: The Big R

In Korea, when a man gets 40 rotation points he can go home. Last week, when a balding, freckled infantry captain named John R. Fitzpatrick reluctantly said goodbye to his company and regiment, the astounded clerk who checked him out of the 7th Division’s rotation center noted that Fitzpatrick’s card listed 99 points. He actually had more points than that: the I.B.M. machine was preset for only two digits. Captain Fitzpatrick, 29, was headed home with the highest total of rotation points—129—ever amassed by any U.S. soldier in Korea.

A veteran of World War II, he landed at Inchon in September 1950, and has been in Korea ever since. Nervously twirling his green fatigue cap, Old Soldier Fitzpatrick explained: “I just like the Army, so I stayed. Here in Korea I was helping and learning at the same time. Besides, all the friends I have are in the Army.”