President's Commission on the Assassination of - The Warren Commission (Complete Edition)

Mr. Rankin. When the decision was made to come to the United States, did you discuss that with your family?

Mrs. Oswald. First when we made the decision, we didn't know what would come of it later, what would happen further. And Lee asked me not to talk about it for the time being.

Mr. Rankin. Later, did you discuss it with your family?

Mrs. Oswald. Later when I went to visit the Embassy, my aunt found out about it, because they had telephoned from work, and she was offended because I had not told her about it. They were against our plan.

Mr. Rankin. Did you tell your friends about your plans after you were trying to arrange to go to the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Was there some opposition by people in the Soviet Union to your going to the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. Somewhat. You can't really call that opposition. There were difficult times.

Mr. Rankin. Can you tell us what you mean by that?

Mrs. Oswald. First, the fact that I was excluded from the Komsomol. This was not a blow for me, but it was, of course, unpleasant. Then all kinds of meetings were arranged and members of the various organizations talked to me. My aunt and uncle would not talk to me for a long time.

Mr. Rankin. And that was all because you were planning to go to the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Were you hospitalized and received medical treatment because of all of these things that happened at that time, about your leaving?

Mrs. Oswald. No.

What?

Mr. Rankin. Did you have any nervous disorder in 1961 that you were hospitalized for?

Mrs. Oswald. I was nervous, but I didn't go to the hospital. I am nervous now, too.

Mr. Rankin. Then you went to Kharkov on a vacation, didn't you?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

If you have a record of the fact that I was in the hospital, yes, I was. But I was in the hospital only as a precaution because I was pregnant. I have a negative Rh factor, blood Rh factor, and if Lee had a positive they thought—they thought that he had positive—even though he doesn't. It turned out that we both had the same Rh factor.

Mr. Rankin. Did you receive a promotion about this time in the work you were doing?

Mrs. Oswald. No, no one gets promoted. You work for 10 years as an assistant. All the assistants were on the same level. There were no sub-managers, except for the manager who was in charge of the pharmacy.

Mr. Rankin. What I am asking is your becoming an assistant druggist. Was that something different?

Mrs. Oswald. At first I was—I have to call it—an analyst. My job was to check prescriptions that had been prepared. There was no vacancy for an assistant, pharmacy assistant at first. But then I liked the work of a pharmacist's assistant better, and I changed to that.

Mr. Rankin. I will hand you Exhibit 22 and ask you if that is a book that shows that you were promoted or became an assistant druggist.

Mrs. Oswald. The entry here said, "Hired as chemist analyst of the pharmacy."

The next entry says, "Transferred to the job of pharmacy assistant."

These are simply different types of work. But one is not any higher than the other—not because one is a type of management and the other is not. If someone prepared a prescription and I checked it, that was no different from the other work. There is a difference, of course, but not in the sense of a grade of service.

Mr. Rankin. I offer in evidence Exhibit 22.

The Chairman. It may be admitted and take the next number.

(The document referred to was marked Commission Exhibit No. 22, and received in evidence.)

Mr. Rankin. Mr. Chairman, I ask leave at this time to substitute photostatic copies of any documentary evidence offered, and photographs of any physical evidence, with the understanding that the originals will be held subject to the further order of the Commission.

The Chairman. Very well. That may be done.

Mr. Rankin. Were you aware of your husband's concern about being prosecuted with regard to his returning to the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes, he told me about it. He told me about it, that perhaps he might even be arrested.

Mr. Rankin. Was he fearful of prosecution by the Soviet Union or by the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. The United States.

Mr. Rankin. Do you recall any time that the Soviet authorities visited your husband while you were trying to go to the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. No.

Mr. Rankin. What was the occasion for your traveling to Kharkov in 1961?

Mrs. Oswald. My mother's sister lives there, and she had invited me to come there for a rest because I was on vacation.

Mr. Rankin. Did anyone go with you?

Mrs. Oswald. No.

Mr. Rankin. How long did you stay?

Mrs. Oswald. Three weeks, I think.

Mr. Rankin. Did you write to your husband while you were gone?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Was your aunt's name Mikhilova?

Mrs. Oswald. Mikhilova, yes.

Mr. Rankin. Was there any reason why you took this vacation alone and not with your husband?

Mrs. Oswald. He was working at that time. He didn't have a vacation. He wanted to go with me, but he could not.

Mr. Rankin. Do you know what delayed your departure to the United States?

Mrs. Oswald. No.

Mr. Rankin. There was some correspondence with the Embassy about your husband returning alone. Did you ever discuss that?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. What did he say about that, and what did you say?

Mrs. Oswald. He said that if he did go alone, he feared that they would not permit me to leave, and that he would, therefore, wait for me.

Mr. Rankin. What did you say?

Mrs. Oswald. I thanked him for the fact that he wanted to wait for me.

Mr. Rankin. Where did you stay in Moscow when you went there about your visa?

Mrs. Oswald. At first, we stopped at the Hotel Ostamkino. And then we moved to the Hotel Berlin, formerly Savoy.

Mr. Rankin. How long were you there on that trip?

Mrs. Oswald. I think about 10 days, perhaps a little longer.

Mr. Rankin. Did you ever have any status in the armed forces of the Soviet Union?

Mrs. Oswald. No. But all medical workers, military, are obligated—all medical workers have a military obligation. In the event of a war, we would be in first place.

Mr. Rankin. Did you ever learn from your husband how he paid his expenses in Moscow for the period prior to the time you went to Minsk?

Mrs. Oswald. No.

Mr. Rankin. I hand you Exhibit 23 and ask you if that is a booklet that records your military status.

Mrs. Oswald. I didn't work. It is simply that I was obligated. There is an indication there "non-Party member".

Mr. Rankin. I offer in evidence Exhibit 23.

The Chairman. It may be received.

(The document referred to was marked Commission Exhibit No. 23, and received in evidence.)

Mr. Rankin. As I understand you, you did not serve in the armed forces of the Soviet Union, but because of your ability as a pharmacist, you were obligated, if the call was ever extended to you, is that right?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes, that is correct.

Mr. Rankin. Do you know any reason why your husband was permitted to stay in the Soviet Union when he first came there?

Mrs. Oswald. I don't know.

Mr. Rankin. Do you know why——

Mrs. Oswald. Many were surprised at that—here and in Russia.

Mr. Rankin. Do you know why he went to Minsk, or was allowed to go to Minsk?

Mrs. Oswald. He was sent to Minsk.

Mr. Rankin. By that, you mean by direction of the government?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes.

Mr. Rankin. Did your husband do any writing while he was in the Soviet Union that you know of?

Mrs. Oswald. Yes, he wrote a diary about his stay in the Soviet Union.

Mr. Rankin. I hand you Exhibit 24 and ask you if that is a photostatic copy of the diary that you have just referred to.