Mr. Bouhe.

American executives to Russia to set up branch offices in several cities, including what was then already Petrograd, and I, speaking English, was an office boy.
When we finished that thing, I got a little letter of thanks which is now here framed, which is my great pride and joy, in which it says to George Alexandrovich Bouhe, in gratitude and recognition of his faithful efforts to assist the American Relief Commission in its efforts to relieve the suffering of the hungry population in Russia.

Mr. Liebeler.

After you worked for the American Relief Commission, did that lead to your coming to the United States?

Mr. Bouhe.

That is correct. My association with some of the supervisors which were American executives led to numerous discussions with them, including, the now deceased Prof. Frank Colder of Stanford University, Gen. William Haskell, who later commanded the National Guard; one of my supervisors said, "Why don't you come to America?" So after the office closed sometime in August 1923, more or less, I applied for a passport to leave Russia but was refused. Then I went across the little river separating Soviet Russia from Finland in the middle of September at night, and it was cold, and got out.

Mr. Liebeler.

You went into Finland and came to the United States?

Mr. Bouhe.

Through Germany and then to the United States in April 1924.

Mr. Liebeler.

Did you eventually become an American citizen?

Mr. Bouhe.

I became an American citizen on or about June 1939.

Mr. Liebeler.

Did you continue your education when you came to the United States?

Mr. Bouhe.

Not regularly and not formally. I was working for 13 years for what is now the Chase Manhattan Bank, but it had previous mergers. I attended the American Institute of Banking, and that is all I did there, which is not much.

Mr. Liebeler.

Let me ask you where you learned English, Mr. Bouhe.

Mr. Bouhe.

At home. At the age of 5 to age of 7, I had a French governess. At the age of 7 to 9, I had a German governess. At the age of 10 to maybe 11, I had an English governess.

Mr. Liebeler.

You got your first acquaintance with English through the English governess, is that correct?

Mr. Bouhe.

Yes.

Mr. Liebeler.

Your formal education in the Soviet Union was confined to the gymnasium, is that correct?

Mr. Bouhe.

That's correct, which is slightly over the high school here, but it was what is called classical, namely because they taught us Latin and Greek.

Mr. Liebeler.

When did you first come to Dallas?
(Mr. Jenner entered the room.)

Mr. Liebeler.

(continued). Mr. Bouhe, this is Mr. Jenner.

Mr. Bouhe.

On July 4, 1939.

Mr. Liebeler.

Have you lived in Dallas since that time?

Mr. Bouhe.

Yes.

Mr. Liebeler.

It's been indicated to me, Mr. Bouhe, that you are regarded as the leader of a so-called Russian group here in Dallas and the Fort Worth area, and I would like to have you tell us briefly the nature of that group and how you came to be the, shall we say, so-called leader or its actual leader? Let's leave it that way. And particularly, Mr. Bouhe, did there come a time when you formed a congregation of a Russian church here in Dallas? Would you tell us about that?

Mr. Bouhe.

Yes; you have just mentioned some flattering remarks which I appreciate if it is true from the sources which you obtained it, but I would say that if I am so called, it means simply because of a process of elimination, because when I came in 1939, there were absolutely only three Russian-speaking people in Dallas and they were all married people, married to Americans, and so on .
So I did not, so-to-speak, associate with any Russians that might have come or gone through Dallas from 1939 to about 1950.
In 1950, approximately, a great avalanche of displaced persons came to Dallas