ready to write a book on your so-called defection.
"I had researched it and came to Washington in 1961, and, by the way, asked to see President Kennedy, because I had a lot of extenuating circumstances at the time because of the defection."
He said, "Mother, you are not going to write a book."
I said, "Lee, don't tell me what to do. I cannot write the book now, because, Honey, you are alive and back."
But, at the time, I had no way of knowing whether my son was living or dead, and I planned to write the book.
"But don't tell me what to do. It has nothing to do with you and Marina. It is my life, because of your defection."
He said, "Mother, I tell you you are not to write the book. They could kill her and her family."
That was in the presence of my son Robert Oswald and his wife.
Mr. Rankin. Can you tell us about what date that was?
Mrs. Oswald. Let's see. Lee arrived in New York on June 13, and—now, I have a letter stating, from Lee, that he is arriving in New York on June 13th. However, he plans to go to Washington for a day or two. So I have no way of knowing, Mr. Rankin, whether he came straight from New York to my son's home, or if he stayed in New York and came to Washington a few days.
But I have the letter stating that.
But I have no way of knowing.
Mr. Rankin. Was this conversation within about a week of the time that he came back?
Mrs. Oswald. Yes, approximately. That is correct.
So I stayed in Fort Worth 2 or 3 days. I did not live at Robert's home. I rented a motel. In fact, the lady of the mother I was taking care of paid my motel expenses while I was in Fort Worth. But I went there every day.
While I was there—Marina is a pharmacist. I have a medical book, and Lee was saying that he was losing his hair, and how he had become bald, because of the cold weather in Texas.
So I got the medical book, looking up baldness, and the treatment for baldness, and Marina came by and she read the prescriptions.
So I said, "Lee, she reads English," and he said, "Mother, that is Latin, of course, that is universal."
So because it was a medical conversation, Lee said he had an operation while in the Soviet Union on his throat.
I am sorry—but all of the confusion of myself being there and the daughter-in-law, the Russian girl—that was never gone into. That is all I know.
But that was also said in the presence of my son Robert—that he had an operation on his throat while in the Soviet Union.
Mr. Rankin. Did he say when that was?
Mrs. Oswald. No, sir; that was all that was said.
As I say, with all the confusion of Marina, we were so thrilled with Marina, with the children and all, there was quite a bit of confusion.
Now, I left, and I went back to Crowell on my job.
While I was in Robert's home, Lee immediately was out job-hunting. And I felt very bad about that, because they had come 10,000 miles by ship, by plane, and by train, which was an awfully hard trip with a young baby, and I thought he should at least have a week or two before he would look for work.
But I want you to know that immediately Lee was out looking for work.
And this is the time that Lee had gone to the public stenographer, made the statement that he was writing a book.
You probably have that information. It was highly publicized.
I, myself, gave him the $10 that he gave the public stenographer.
I bought Marina clothes, and brought clothes to her while at my daughter-in-law's house, bought diapers for the baby. And Marina had more clothes when she arrived in the States than I now have.
So what I am trying to state is as we go further into the story, it has been stated that my son neglected Marina, and that she didn't have any clothes. The Russian people have stated that all throughout Texas in the papers. And that is not true. I happen to know, because I, myself, bought Marina three dresses. And my daughter-in-law bought dresses, and my daughter-in-law's sister, which I would like to have as a witness, bought clothes for Marina. So there is this conflicting testimony.
Mr. Rankin. What daughter-in-law was that?
Mrs. Oswald. Robert's wife. And Robert's wife's sister, who is a schoolteacher, bought clothes for Marina.
Mr. Rankin. Is she married?
Mrs. Oswald. No. She is a schoolteacher. She is single.
So that story there is incorrect.
So then I went back to Crowell, Tex., and I was not satisfied in my mind because the way they lived. They only had a two-bedroom house. As you know. Robert has two children. And there was another couple with another child.
So Lee immediately began looking for work.
So I decided that I would quit this job and help the children all I could. So I did. I gave notice. And I came to Fort Worth, and I rented an apartment at the Rotary Apartments, which is on West 7th and Summit. And Lee and Marina then came to live with me.
Mr. Rankin. How long did they stay at Robert's?
Mrs. Oswald. They stayed at Robert's approximately 2 or 3 weeks, sir.
So then they came to live with me.
While there, I said to Lee—I am ahead of my story.
Lee and Marina had sent me wonderful gifts, and I have the gifts, from Russia. A box of tea, very fine tea, a Russian scarf, pure linen napkins, embroidered with my initial, a box of candy for Christmas that has a Russian Santa Claus on it.
I said to Lee. "Lee, I want to know one thing. Why is it you decided to return back to the United States when you had a job in Russia, and as far as I know you seemed to be pretty well off, because of the gifts that you have sent me. And you are married to a Russian girl, and she would be better off in her homeland than here. I want to know."
He said, "Mother, not even Marina knows why I have returned to the United States."
And that is all the information I ever got out of my son.
"Not even Marina knows why I have returned to the United States."
Mr. Rankin. How did you get along when you were there together with Marina and your son?
Mrs. Oswald. Well, that was a very happy month, Mr. Rankin. Marina was very happy. She had the best home, I believe, that she had ever had. And Lee—I was taking Lee out to work every morning, looking for work, through the unemployment commission, and ads in the paper. And I was taking care of the baby and doing the cooking, and Marina was helping clean up. And she would wash the dishes. And Lee and Marina would go for long walks every afternoon, and I would take care of the baby. Marina would sing around the house, and watch
