Mr. DOBBS. Myself and members of the organization who work as my
voluntary office assistants, and I cooperated with the people in charge
of The Militant business office, and the Pioneer Publishing business
office.
Mr. RANKIN. And how complete was that search?
Mr. DOBBS. We made it as thorough as we could, to our best knowledge.
We have given you everything we had in the files.
Mr. RANKIN. As a result of that search, you discovered Dobbs' No. 1,
did you?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. That is a subscription for the 4 months' introductory
subscription of The Militant----
Mr. DOBBS. Yes, that is correct.
Mr. RANKIN. By Lee Harvey Oswald, or Lee H. Oswald?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes, that is correct.
Mr. RANKIN. It is a practice in taking these depositions, Mr. Dobbs,
for the counsel that is examining to initial whatever exhibits are
presented, and also for the witness, so that it can be recognized as
official.
(Witness complies.)
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 2.)
Mr. RANKIN. Did you at that time also discover Dobbs' No. 2?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. And what is that?
Mr. DOBBS. It is a renewal of the trial subscription, and it is stamped
May 28, 1963.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you kindly initial that too?
(Witness complies.)
(Addressograph plate marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 3.)
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you please initial that?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
(Witness complies.)
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 4.)
Mr. RANKIN. Do you recall at that time discovering Dobbs' No. 4?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. What is that?
Mr. DOBBS. It is a notification of change of address sent by Lee H.
Oswald and stamped "Received" on June 17, 1963.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you please initial that?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes (witness complies).
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 5.)
Mr. RANKIN. Then did you discover at that time Dobbs' No. 5?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. That is also a change-of-address notice?
Mr. DOBBS. It is a change of address notice from Lee H. Oswald stamped
"Received" November 14, 1963.
Mr. RANKIN. Changing the address from New Orleans back to Dallas?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you kindly initial that?
(Witness complies.)
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 6.)
Mr. RANKIN. Do you recall receiving Dobbs' No. 6?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. What does that consist of?
Mr. DOBBS. A cash receipt for 25 cents received from Oswald.
Mr. WATTS. Correction, Mr. Rankin. It is not really a cash receipt; it
is a cash office memo.
Mr. RANKIN. Thank you. Is that correct?
Mr. DOBBS. That is correct, yes, under date of August 31, 1962. And the
second item is an order blank requesting a book, The Teachings of Leon
Trotsky, signed by Lee H. Oswald, stamped "Received" August 28, 1962.
A third item is a letter under date of September 29, 1962, to Lee H.
Oswald from Pioneer Publishers, acknowledging receipt of the order and
indicating that the book ordered is out of print and that he will be
given a 25-cent credit on the money he sent in.
Mr. RANKIN. The last item is the envelope?
Mr. DOBBS. The last item is an envelope postmarked Dallas, Tex.,
either January 2 or January 21, it is difficult to discern, 1963, with
Oswald's name in the upper left-hand corner.
Mr. RANKIN. Would you kindly initial that?
Mr. DOBBS. Each separately.
Mr. RANKIN. No, just the first one.
(Witness complies.)
Mr. RANKIN. Did you handle any part of the transactions involved in
Dobbs' No. 6 yourself?
Mr. DOBBS. No, not personally.
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 7.)
Mr. RANKIN. Will you examine Dobbs' No. 7 and tell us what it is,
please?
Mr. DOBBS. An office cash memo acknowledging 35 cents received from L.
H. Oswald, dated January 11, 1963, and a letter to Pioneer Publishers
from Lee H. Oswald under date of January 1, 1963.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you initial that, please, Mr. Dobbs?
(Witness complies.)
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 8.)
Mr. RANKIN. Will you examine Watts' No. 8 and tell us what that is.
Mr. DOBBS. It is a letter to Lee H. Oswald from Pioneer Publishers
under date of April 26, 1963.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you initial that?
(Witness complies.)
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 9.)
Mr. RANKIN. And Dobbs' No. 9, tell us what that is, please.
Mr. DOBBS. A coupon signed "Lee H. Oswald," received under date of
October 31, 1962, in which he indicates, by placing a check in an
appropriate place, that he would like to join the Socialist Workers
Party.
Mr. RANKIN. That is what you have referred to in your prior testimony
when you said that you would have responded to it in the way you have
described if you knew that there was no organization in that locality?
Mr. DOBBS. That is correct.
Mr. RANKIN. Was there a Socialist Workers Party organization in the
Dallas area at that time?
Mr. DOBBS. No, no; there was not.
Mr. RANKIN. You haven't discovered any copy of a communication to Lee
Harvey Oswald along the lines that you have described, have you?
Mr. DOBBS. No, sir; I have not.
Mr. RANKIN. But you know it is a standard practice, and that is the way
you would have responded?
Mr. DOBBS. That is correct.
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 11.)
Mr. RANKIN. Mr. Dobbs, we have what has been marked as Dobbs' No. 11,
which purports to be a copy, photocopy, of a carbon of your response as
of November 5, 1962, to Mr. Oswald's letter. Will you examine that and
see whether or not it is?
Mr. RANKIN. I would like to correct the record to show that this is a
typewritten copy of the original, apparently not the carbon.
Mr. WATTS. Clarify that. You are saying that it is a typewritten copy
of the original of the letter----
Mr. RANKIN. Purportedly.
Mr. WATTS. Purportedly received by Mr. Oswald?
Mr. RANKIN. Yes.
Mr. LIEBELER. Off the record.
(Discussion off the record.)
Mr. RANKIN. Will you first respond, Mr. Dobbs, to whether or not
this Dobbs' No. 11 appears to be a typewritten copy of a letter that
you wrote to Lee Harvey Oswald in response to his inquiry about the
Socialist Workers Party?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes, it appears to be the type of letter I would have
written.
Mr. RANKIN. Do you understand that we are going to secure the original
and submit it to you to see if it is in fact the letter that you did
write, and if you find that it is, then it will be offered as a part of
this deposition?
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you initial now Dobbs' No. 9, please?
(Witness complies.)
Mr. WATTS. Mr. Rankin, in his responding he did not get past that
coupon.
Mr. RANKIN. Yes. Will you describe the balance of Dobbs' No. 9? I
understand you completed with the coupon but not the other two pieces.
Mr. DOBBS. The second item is a letter from Lee H. Oswald, addressed
apparently to the Socialist Workers Party and marked "Received" under
date of August 13, 1962, in which he requests information about the
nature of the party and its policies. The third is a letter to Lee H.
Oswald from the Socialist Workers Party under date of August 23, 1962,
indicating that a pamphlet is being enclosed for him entitled "The
Socialist Workers Party--What It Is, What It Stands For."
Mr. RANKIN. I asked you whether or not the Socialist Workers Party had
any organization in Dallas. What is the fact in regard to Fort Worth
and New Orleans at that time?
Mr. DOBBS. No, we had no organization anywhere in that area.
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 10.)
Mr. RANKIN. Will you examine Dobbs' No. 10 and tell us what that
exhibit consists of.
Mr. DOBBS. A letter signed "Lee H. Oswald" to the Socialist Workers
Party, dated September 1, 1963, stating that he would like to know
if he could get in direct contact with SWP representatives in the
Washington, D.C.-Baltimore area.
Mr. RANKIN. Will you please initial that?
Mr. DOBBS. Right on the envelope?
Mr. RANKIN. That is right.
(Witness complies.)
Mr. RANKIN. I notice that Dobbs' No. 9 refers to a Sherry Finer signed
on the letter, copy of which is dated August 23, 1962.
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. Who is Sherry Finer?
Mr. DOBBS. She is one of the volunteer assistants that helps me
occasionally with office work.
Mr. RANKIN. And No. 11 is a typewritten copy of the original,
purportedly an answer to Lee Harvey Oswald that we have already
referred to, and you have said you thought it would be the type of
letter at least that you would write in answer?
Mr. DOBBS. That is correct.
Mr. RANKIN. And we have said that we would get the original and submit
it to you for your examination. If you find that the original is the
original of Dobbs' No. 11 when it is submitted to you, will you then
initial it and return it to us so we can make it a part of the record
here?
Mr. DOBBS. I will do so.
Mr. RANKIN. Thank you.
(Document marked Dobbs' Exhibit No. 12.)
Mr. RANKIN. I hand you Dobbs' No. 12 and ask you if you know anything
about the person Bob Chester that purportedly signed the original of
that letter.
Mr. DOBBS. Yes.
Mr. RANKIN. Who is that Bob Chester?
Mr. DOBBS. It is an associate of mine, works in collaboration with me,
a day volunteer here in the party office.
Mr. RANKIN. Do you know anything about the blowups, reversal and
reproduction work that he refers to there?