Lt. Font Seeks Military Discharge

Lieutenant Louis P. Font, who transferred from the Kennedy School of Government to Fort Meade, Md., last year when his application for conscientious objector status was rejected, wants to leave the U. S. Army after a year of constant controversy at the Maryland base.

If he is granted a discharge-which seems probable-the army will drop a five-count court martial pending against him. Nevertheless. Font will pursue charges against four superior officers which include "dereliction of duty" and "assault and battery."

Most of the trouble stemmed from Font's attempt to submit a 106-page report on the conditions of barracks at Fort Meade, which he termed "unfit for human habitation." Font, who was telephoned yesterday at his home near Fort Meade, said that when he gave the report to Maj. General R. G. Ciccolella, "he grabbed me by the arm and pushed and shoved me towards the door."

On February 23, Colonel A. W. Alexander, Commander of Fort Meade, wrote Font and asked for his resignation on the grounds that he had been late for work and had used the telephone too much.

Font said he will probably be allowed to leave the Army because of the charges he has filed against the four officers, "so that one or two months from now, when they begin dropping them, I won't begin hollering."

In a joint statement issued yesterday with North Vietnam, China promised "to give all-out support and assistance to the Vietnamese and other Indochinese peoples" in the event that United States or South Vietnamese troops invade North Vietnam.

The communique was published following a weekend visit to Hanoi by Chinese Premier. Chou En-Lai. Chinese military leaders accompanied Chou to Hanoi.

The statement said the invasion of Laos had produced a "new and extremely grave escalation" which directly menaced the security of North Vietnam and China and caused a threat to world peace. It also said, however, that the condition of the National Liberation Front and the Pathet Lao was "excellent."

In Washington, a State Department spokesman said yesterday that the U. S. is not considering "any action that would pose a threat to the People's Republic of China."