Mr. Jenner.

Was the fact that he had defected prominently displayed in the New Orleans papers?

Mrs. Murret.

Well, not here so much, but in Fort Worth and so forth, over there, they mentioned it; they made quite a to do about it.

Mr. Jenner.

There was nothing in the New Orleans papers about it?

Mrs. Murret.

I don't think. There might have been.

Mr. Jenner.

Well, at least it didn't come to your attention?

Mrs. Murret.

I don't think they had anything here about that at all, but they did have it a lot in the Fort Worth paper.

Mr. Jenner.

Did she send any of those newspaper clippings to you?

Mrs. Murret.

No; she came down here.

Mr. Jenner.

To New Orleans?

Mrs. Murret.

Yes, sir.

Mr. Jenner.

And she told you all about it?

Mrs. Murret.

She told me all about it, what she knew about it. She didn't know too much about it, she said, why he did it or anything like that, but she said that he had a right to go any place he wanted to go, I believe.

Mr. Jenner.

Did she seem to think he was living in the pattern that she had brought him up in?

Mrs. Murret.

What's that?

Mr. Jenner.

Did she seem to think that he was living in the pattern that she had brought him up in, that is, to be independent?

Mrs. Murret.

Well, it's hard to judge that. When you only have one person, or one child, maybe you do have a tendency to feel that way, but who knows what's in a person's mind. I think your mind is what really belongs to you, and I don't think anyone knows what's running through your mind. I really believe that, so I couldn't tell you how she felt about it, or how he felt about it, or what made him do the things he did. I can only tell you what I think, but that doesn't mean that I know, because I really don't. You just can't tell what's running through a person's mind. You may think you know their mind, but you don't, I don't think. I think he went over there because he wasn't satisfied with the life he was living, and maybe he wanted to see how it was over there, I guess; I don't know.

Mr. Jenner.

Did you have any conversations with him about it?

Mrs. Murret.

After he came back?

Mr. Jenner.

Yes.

Mrs. Murret.

No. Oh, I spoke about it, and he might say something once in awhile about how they lived or something, but he never did discuss it.

Mr. Jenner.

Did you have any talks with your sister or with him when he was working as a delivery boy or messenger boy for Tujague's?

Mrs. Murret.

No. I didn't know anything other than he was working there, and he was a runner, and that sort of thing, for them.

Mr. Jenner.

Now, he had not yet graduated from high school; is that right?

Mrs. Murret.

I don't believe he had graduated from high school yet; no, sir. He came out of this junior high, and like I said, I didn't even know he went to Easton. I remember one morning he came over to the house, and he said that he wanted to get on the ball team, but he didn't have any shoes and he didn't have a glove, so I said, "Well, Lee, we can fix you up," and I gave him a glove, but I don't think we had shoes to fit him. Joyce's husband sent him a pair of shoes from Beaumont, a pair of baseball shoes, and I told Lee, I said, "Lee, when you need anything, just ask me for it, and if there's a way to get it for you, we will get it." So then he got on the team, I think, but he got off as quick as he got on. I don't know why. He never discussed that with us as to why that was, and we never found out.

Mr. Jenner.

He never discussed that with you?

Mrs. Murret.

No; I don't think he got on the team though. He never did actually play on it, I don't think. For one thing, I don't think he was the type of boy who was too good an athlete.
Like a lot of boys, I guess they wanted him to be one of those that sit on the bench, and he didn't like to sit on the bench, so when they didn't let him play on the team and wanted him to sit on the bench, I guess he just left, I don't know that though.