LAOS AND THEN THERE WERE THREE IN THE EIGHT MONTHS SINCE THE 
14-NATION GENEVA CONFERENCE ESTABLISHED LAOTIAN NEUTRALITY LAST SUMMER, NEUTRALIST PRINCE SOUVANNA 
PHOUMA'S LEFT-RIGHT-CENTER COALITION GOVERNMENT HAS DISPLAYED A REMARKABLE RECORD OF CONSISTENCY 
: IT HAS FAILED TO CARRY OUT ONE SINGLE PROVISION OF 
THE GENEVA ACCORDS . RENT BY INTERNAL DISSENSION, THE GOVERNMENT HAS 
BEEN UNABLE TO MAINTAIN A CEASE-FIRE, EVICT ALL FOREIGN MILITARY PERSONNEL 
FROM LAOS, INTEGRATE THE THREE MILITARY AND POLITICAL FACTIONS, OR HOLD 
FREE ELECTIONS . BUT THE SUPPOSEDLY " NEUTRALIST " GOVERNMENT HAS 
RECOGNIZED EVERY COUNTRY IN THE COMMUNIST BLOC, AND HAS DONE SO 
LITTLE TO HALT THE RAMPANT INFLATION THAT THE PRICE OF THE 
KIP HAS RISEN FROM 80 TO 180 PER DOLLAR . ON 
THE PLAINE DES JARRES, HEADQUARTERS OF BOTH THE NEUTRALIST AND COMMUNIST 
PATHET LAO ARMIES, THE REDS HAVE BEGUN A CAMPAIGN TO INFILTRATE 
AND SUBVERT THE FORCES OF THEIR ONETIME NEUTRALIST ALLIES . FARTHER 
NORTH, THOUSANDS OF RED CHINESE WORKERS HAVE CROSSED INTO LAOS TO 
BUILD ROADS LINKING CHINA'S YUNNAN PROVINCE WITH COMMUNIST-HELD AREAS OF LAOS 
ITSELF . ARMED WITH NEW RED CHINESE AUTOMATIC WEAPONS, THE PATHET 
LAO IS ATTACKING NEUTRALIST VILLAGES ON THE SUPPLY LINES BETWEEN THE 
PLAINE DES JARRES AND COMMUNIST NORTH VIET NAM TO THE EAST 
. MANY NEUTRALISTS HAVE OPENLY DEFECTED TO THE REDS, ADDING TO 
WESTERNERS' FEARS THAT LAOS IS GOING TO THE COMMUNISTS BY DEFAULT 
. THE REDS' PERSISTENT SUBVERSION IS ALIENATING THE TOP NEUTRALIST COMMANDERS, 
AND LAST WEEK AN OPEN SPLIT SEEMED A POSSIBILITY . WHILE 
SHOWING A MOVIE AT HIS HOUSE ON THE PLAINE DES JARRES, 
THE NEUTRALIST ARMY'S SECOND IN COMMAND, COLONEL KETSANA VONGSOUVANH, WAS SHOT 
IN THE BACK . AT KETSANA'S FUNERAL LAST WEEK, NEUTRALIST ARMY 
LEADER GENERAL KONG LE, WHO ONCE WORKED HAND IN GLOVE WITH 
THE PATHET LAO, MADE NO EFFORT TO CONCEAL HIS DISENCHANTMENT WITH 
HIS FORMER COHORTS . " THIS ODIOUS CRIME, " SAID KONG 
LE, " WAS THE WORK OF THOSE WHO ARE UNDER A 
FOREIGN INFLUENCE . " KONG LE RESTRICTED HIS TROOPS TO THEIR 
BASE, ORDERED THE PATHET LAO TO KEEP OUT OF NEUTRALIST ENCAMPMENTS 
. TOP NEUTRALIST OFFICERS WONDERED WHERE THE REDS WOULD STRIKE NEXT 
. ONE RECALLED THAT A RANKING PATHET LAO OFFICER TOLD HIM 
LAST FALL THAT THE COMMUNISTS HAD PLANS FOR KONG LE'S TOP 
FOUR SUBORDINATES . WE ARE GOING TO THOROUGHLY LIQUIDATE ALL FOUR 
OF YOU . " WITH KETSANA'S DEATH, THERE WAS ONE DOWN 
AND THREE TO GO . 