(Testimony of Bernard William , Accompanied By Weissman)
Mr. Weissman.
President's sedan speeding away, somebody hearing shots and people laying on the ground. In other words, the way the reporters were covering it. I don't recall exactly what they said. And, at this time---we were going to go to the Ducharme Club through downtown Dallas. We were heading for the area about two blocks adjacent to the Houston Street viaduct. And then we heard about the police pulling all sorts of people somebody said they saw somebody and gave a description. And the police were pulling people off the street and so forth. So Bill and I didn't want to get involved in this. So we took a roundabout route. We got lost for a while. Anyway, we finally wound up at the other side of Dallas, and we were at the Ducharme Club.
Mr. Jenner.
When you arrived there, was Mr. Schmidt there?
Mr. Weissman.
He was waiting for me. But Joe Grinnan wasn't there. He had heard this thing and took off. I guess he wanted to hide or something.
Mr. Jenner.
Why?
Mr. Weissman.
Well, because the way it was right away, the announcers, even before it was ascertained that President Kennedy was dead, or that he had really been shot, that it was a rightwing plot and so forth. And he had every reason to be frightened.
Mr. Jenner.
Why did he have every reason to be frightened?
Mr. Weissman.
Because, let's face it, the public feeling would suddenly be very antirightwing, and no telling what would happen if a mob got together and discovered him. They would tear him apart.
Bill and I were frightened to the point because I knew about the ad. And I knew exactly what---at least I felt in my own mind I knew what people would believe. They would read the ad and so forth, and associate you with this thing, somehow, one way or another. So we went to another bar--I don't remember the name of it--the Ducharme Club was closed, by the way, that afternoon.
Mr. Jenner.
When you reached the Ducharme Club, it was closed, but you found Mr. Schmidt there?
Mr. Weissman.
Larrie was waiting on the corner. He got in the car. We sat and talked for a few minutes. We went to another bar a few blocks away. We drank beer and watched television. And we had been in the bar, I guess, about an hour when it come over that this patrolman Tippit had been shot, and they trapped some guy in a movie theater. And maybe half an our, an hour later, it came out this fellow's name was Lee Harvey Oswald. This is the first time I ever heard the name.
Mr. Jenner.
What was said at that time?
Mr. Weissman.
By us?
Mr. Jenner.
Yes. When it was announced it was Lee Harvey Oswald.
Mr. Weissman.
We were relieved.
Mr. Jenner.
Anything said about it?
Mr. Weissman.
I don't recall. First, what was said, like, I hope he is not a member of the Walker group--something like that--I hope he is not one of Walker's boys. Because it is like a clique, and it is guilt by association from thereafter. So it came over later this guy was a Marxist. This was the same afternoon, I believe. It was found out this fellow was a Marxist. And then the announcers--they left the rightwing for a little while, and started going to the left, and I breathed a sigh of relief. After 4 hours in the bar, Bill and I went back to the apartment, and Larrie went to the Ducharme Club. He was afraid to go home.
Mr. Jenner.
I thought the Ducharme Club was closed.
Mr. Weissman.
It was open at that time. We drove by. It was open. Larrie went in. We dropped him off there. And Bill and I went back to our apartment. We just waited. We knew we were going to get involved in this thing because of the ad. And we figured that if anybody at all in Dallas was on the ball, they know who we were and where we were. So we waited. Nothing happened. We waited there until we left. We barely left that house. As a matter of fact----
Mr. Jenner.
You remained in the house all that evening, did you--the apartment?
Mr. Weissman.
I think the-yes; late that evening Larrie came home.
|
