THE SOUTH: Marching Order

Like many another U.S. school last week, Central High in Little Rock, Ark. ground swiftly toward final examinations and commencement exercises on May 27. But the end of school will have a special meaning to Central High: under an order issued by President Eisenhower last week, it will also mark the end of service for the troops rushed to Little Rock eight months ago when a mob, egged on by Democratic Governor Orval Faubus, rioted against school integration.

At the height of September's riots over the admission of nine Negro students to Central High, 1,000 paratroopers of the 101st Airborne Division were flown into Little Rock to keep order, and 10,000 Arkansas National Guardsmen were federalized to help them. Gradually, the paratroops were withdrawn and the majority of guardsmen demobilized. President Eisenhower's new order affects only 360 National Guard enlisted men and 40 officers still federalized and still on duty at Central High School to bar agitators and prevent incidents among the 2,000 students. Last week, as the last 400 guardsmen prepared to march out on May 29, eight of the nine Negro children were still in school. It had cost the U.S. $4,651,000 to keep them there.