(Testimony of Robert Edward Oswald Lee Resumed)
Mr. Oswald.
No, sir; she did not. She did not go into any particular detail other than she tried to impress on me she had seen some, as she put it, some very important and influential people in Washington. And that was about the text of the conversation in reference to that.
Representative Ford.
Did she volunteer this or did you ask her about it?
Mr. Oswald.
She volunteered this because I did not know of the trip to Washington until after she returned from the trip to Washington. She volunteered information to me that she had been in Washington and saw numbers of people, different people.
Representative FORD. The principal information you have about Lee's return from the Soviet Union is included in the letters that you have from Lee?
Mr. Oswald.
Yes, sir; that is correct.
Representative Ford.
Those will be submitted subsequently.
Mr. Mckenzie.
They have been submitted already, Mr. Ford.
Mr. Jenner.
Excuse me, did you address me?
Mr. Mckenzie.
The Commission has copies of the letters.
Representative Ford.
The Commission has copies and they will be submitted for the record.
Would you care to comment in addition on what you found out from Lee subsequently of his experiences in the Soviet Union. Why he wanted to come back?
Mr. Oswald.
No, sir; I never questioned him about that because we covered it, I believe quite fully in our letters. I was, of course, thoroughly convinced and quite happy that he did want to return to the United States and I felt there was no need to go into the reason why he changed his mind because I believe we had covered that in the letters.
Representative Ford.
At the time he indicated a desire to come back to the United States, did he ever contact you about funds for that purpose?
Mr. Oswald.
No, sir; I volunteered to help him any way I could on that. He turned down the offer. He turned it down one time I believe in letters offering him to come stay at our house when he returned with his wife and the baby.
Representative Ford.
When he did return, after having borrowed money from the Federal Government, did he ever ask you for any help and assistance in repaying the loan?
Mr. Oswald.
On his arrival in New York City, I believe the date to be June 13, back in 1962, my wife received a telephone call from Special Services Welfare Center located at New York City stating that Lee and his family were present and that they needed funds to reach their destination, Fort Worth, Tex., and the lady that talked to my wife put it to the extent they were unable to help them and if some member of the family was going to help them, they had better do so then. My wife didn't know anything else to say but of course that we would, and this is what I wanted her to say. She called me at my office that day. The banks had closed but I do have a friend in Fort Worth who was employed at a bank, cashier, I believe his title, and I called him and asked him if it would be possible to withdraw $200. This was not at my bank, I would give him a check on my checking account, and at which time I wired the money to the welfare bureau in New York, care of Lee Harvey Oswald.
Representative Ford.
And that was the money that they, Marina and Lee, used to get to Fort Worth.
Mr. Oswald.
That is correct, sir.
Representative Ford.
Did Lee ever repay you for that?
Mr. Oswald.
Yes, sir; he did. He had actually spent a little over $100 for the plane tickets and, of course, we met him at Dallas, Love Field, on their arrival there. The next day even though I insisted that he keep it, he returned what he had left from the $200 and he said he would pay me back as soon as he was able to and I told him not to worry about that, but just to take his time.
Representative Ford.
How long did it take him to repay the remainder?
Mr. Oswald.
I say approximately $110 to $115 during the period he first started to work there in Fort Worth and prior to their departure to Dallas he repaid this $10-$20 a week from his pay check.
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