Mr. Dulles.

Right. I don't know whether that void stamp was put on in 1959--but it is not important as far as we are concerned.
In any event, this passport, as I understand, is perfectly good to travel to Russia without any notification to the State Department, is that correct?

Mr. Snyder.

Oh, yes.

Mr. Coleman.

I should state for the record, sir, actually the application which Oswald filed on September 4, 1959, included Russia as a place where he intended to visit.

Mr. Chayes.

On the other hand, the State Department has no mechanism for notifying posts abroad of ordinary travel to those countries.

Mr. Dulles.

I wonder if it would not be a convenience to you if in the case, let's say, of the Soviet Union, or possibly other Communist countries, just as a routine matter they took off this note from the passport so you would have some record there if anything turned up that this fellow had said he was going to Russia. Maybe that would involve administrative work.

Mr. Snyder.

I can't see what value this would be to a consul.

Mr. Dulles.

Well, if a fellow got into trouble you would turn to his records alphabetically and you would find Lee Harvey Oswald in his application said he was going to go to Russia.

Mr. Snyder.

You mean if he gets in trouble in Russia?

Mr. Dulles.

Yes.

Mr. Snyder.

If he gets in trouble in Russia, we know he is there.

Mr. Dulles.

You might; you might not. They don't always toll you. You don't think that would be of any particular value, though?

Mr. Snyder.

No; I don't, Mr. Dulles. Under any circumstances under which it was useful to the Embassy to know whether a person had said he was coming there, we can have the information by cable within 24 hours. So to attempt---it would seem to me to attempt to notify embassies abroad----

Mr. Dulles.

I am not saying embassies abroad. I am saying the Soviet Union.

Mr. Snyder.

But why the Soviet Union and not Poland, CzechosloVakia, Bulgaria?

Mr. Dulles.

I said the Communist countries, I think, before. I certainly would not do it for Britain, France, and friendly countries. There is no point.

Mr. Snyder.

This would involve a clerical job of major magnitude which from the Embassy's point of view I don't see that it would serve any purpose.

Mr. Dulles.

Well, if a young man 20 years old just out of the Marines says he is going to the Soviet Union, isn't that of some significance?

Mr. Snyder.

Not necessarily. I mean in terms of the thousands of people thousands of Americans who flutter back and forth across the face of the earth----

Mr. Dulles.

I am not talking about people floating back and forth across the earth. I am talking about people going to the Soviet Union.

Mr. Snyder.

In other words, if I had looked at Oswald's application at the time he made it, knowing nothing else about it than he had just gotten out of the Marines, I would not think it was so terribly unusual, or.of great interest to me that this young boy is taking a trip to a number of western European countries, including the Soviet Union. Nor would there be anything in such knowl edge which would in any way I think trigger any action on my part.

Mr. Dulles.

Do you have any special instructions other than the ones that you have referred to about the handling of those that renounce their citizenship, or have you covered that, do you think, quite fully? Are there any special instructions that the Embassy in Moscow prescribed?

Mr. Snyder.

No.

Mr. Dulles.

There are none?

Mr. Snyder.

No; there are none; no, sir. This sort of thing is down to the meat of the consular officer's job. That is, he is out on his own pretty much on something of this sort. He has got to use his judgment, and such experience as he has, and such commonsense as he has.

Mr. Dulles.

He has got to know the law, too---he has to know the law and regulations.

Mr. Snyder.

Oh, yes; if you don't know, the first thing you do is look up the regulation and the law and see what your basic requirement is.