May 31, 1962 - Communist guerrillas raided a leprosarium in the central highlands in South Vietnam last night and kidnapped three American missionaries. The Communists ordered 250 lepers to leave the hospital and return to their home villages. Bound and taken away by the guerrillas were Dr. Eleanor Ardel Vietti (center) of Houston, Tex.; the Rev. Archie Mitchell (right) of Bly, Ore.; and Daniel Gerber (left), a young conscientious objector who was serving at the leprosarium to fulfill his obligation under the U.S. military draft law. No ransom demands have been received from the guerrillas. In similar incidents in the past, missionaries have been turned loose unharmed after long lectures on the evils of the Saigon regime and American imperialism.
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