Mr. Jenner.

of President Kennedy was anticipated and that the practice instructions issued to Captain Cloy and his unit were in anticipation of, in fact, not the possible death of Hoover but the assassination of the President of the United States?

Mr. Oliver.

That is not what I intended to imply. I did not intend to exclude that possibility, of course.

Mr. Jenner.

And the source and sole source of that sentence which you have now read from your speech was the newspaper clipping from the Jackson, Miss., Clarion-Ledger, of February 21, 1964, now identified as Oliver Exhibit No. 8?

Mr. Oliver.

Except insofar as concerns the actual date. Cloy, you see, says merely that they had just finished a rehearsal. The date as being a week before either the funeral or the assassination, I got from this letter.

Mr. Jenner.

What letter was that?

Mr. Oliver.

This was a letter that I had received some time in February, probably early in February.

Mr. Jenner.

But the line in your speech as of last week was based on the material contained in Oliver Exhibit No. 8?

Mr. Oliver.

That letter and Oliver No. 8.

Mr. Jenner.

Do you have the letter?

Mr. Oliver.

No; I do not.

Mr. Jenner.

And the letter was from whom?

Mr. Oliver.

I do not recall the name.

Mr. Jenner.

Do you have the letter on which you relied?

Mr. Oliver.

Probably. I have such a mass of undigested correspondence that I probably have it some place in that mass. On the other hand, I may not, because I recently searched for an entirely different letter and wasn't able to find it. Possibly I Just overlooked it.

Mr. Jenner.

The letter was, I take it, from a person with whom you had not sufficient contact so that you can recall his or her name.

Mr. Oliver.

So far as I know, it was a name unknown to me. It could conceivably have been somebody that I met some time but, as I recall, there was no allusion to such a meeting. It was simply offering information.

Mr. Jenner.

Did that--I take it from what you said that the letter made reference to the item that was about to be published which is now identified as Oliver Exhibit No. 8?

Mr. Oliver.

So far as I know, the writer of the letter had no knowledge of that interview at all.

Mr. Jenner.

What did the writer of the letter say as you now recall?

Mr. Oliver.

The writer of the letter implied that the Army had rehearsed for the funeral of Kennedy--that was the implication in the letter--as I say, more than a week either before the funeral or the assassination, I am not quite sure which word was used.

Mr. Jenner.

Did you attempt to verify the statement made by a source which was therefore unknown to you?

Mr. Oliver.

As I say, I simply put the letter aside and for all practical purpose, I should say I forgot it until I received this clipping.

Mr. Jenner.

Then for all practical purposes, Doctor, in making your speech last week you relied on Oliver Exhibit No.

Mr. Oliver.

Plus the letter for the date.

Mr. Jenner.

For what date?

Mr. Oliver.

The date of the rehearsal.

Mr. Jenner.

I see. Did you make any attempt to determine whether there was such a person who purported to write you a letter?

Mr. Oliver.

As the writer of the letter, you mean?

Mr. Jenner.

Yes.

Mr. Oliver.

No; I did nothing with the letter.

Mr. Jenner.

You Just put it aside?

Mr. Oliver.

Yes; as for Captain Cloy, I did ascertain that there was such a person.

Mr. Jenner.

How did you do that ?

Mr. Oliver.

By trying to reach him by telephone.

Mr. Jenner.

Where?

Mr. Oliver.

In McComb, Miss., which is a small town some distance south