Mr. BALL. Armistice Day?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Armistice Day; it was on Monday, was it not?
Mr. BALL. Yes.
Mrs. JOHNSON. That was Monday he wasn't home. He didn't come home until
Tuesday; that's the first time and only time he failed to pay his rent
when it was due. It was due on Monday.
Mr. BALL. When did he pay it?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I would say the next 5 minutes after he walked into the
house from work.
Mr. BALL. What time did he come home from work on Tuesday?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Something like 5 o'clock, 4:30 or 5--5, I think.
Mr. BALL. Did he tell you where he had been?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, no; he didn't tell us anything; no; we didn't ask.
Mr. BALL. Now, in the next weekend, that would be the weekend before
the assassination, he stayed there?
Mrs. JOHNSON. He remained there.
Mr. BALL. Did you or did you not see him go out any that weekend?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I did not see him go out; I did not; no, sir.
(At this point Mr. Johnson left the room.)
Mr. BALL. Let me ask you this: did he, that weekend, that was the
weekend before the assassination, on a Saturday, make a trip to a place
where they wash clothes?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Well, I think that he did go across to that washateria. I
think he did.
Mr. BALL. Did you see him go any place, go out of the house except for
that on that weekend?
Mrs. JOHNSON. That's the only time and I had just forgotten that but I
do remember he carried some clothes out of that house that morning and
the washateria is right across the street, less than a block.
Mr. BALL. But he left his room?
Mrs. JOHNSON. And he wasn't gone long and I didn't see him return with
any clothes but I do know he was gone just about long enough to do a
wash.
Mr. BALL. Did he watch television every evening?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Not every evening but just every time he took a notion
but maybe 95 percent of the time he would sit in his room.
Mr. BALL. Did he have any visitors?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, sir; he never had a visitor.
Mr. BALL. Do you ever remember him spending an evening away from home
except for these times you told us about?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Not an evening that I remember him being away but other
than weekends he would. He would leave on Friday mornings and return
Monday evenings.
Mr. BALL. Did he tell you when he rented your room where he was working?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No; he didn't, but he did tell me he would be returning
to Irving each weekend.
Mr. BALL. Did he ever tell you where he was working?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, sir.
Mr. BALL. Did he ever tell you what his job was?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No; he told me he was anxious to rent the room being on
the busline and near his work and he didn't have a car and he would be
returning to Irving.
Mr. BALL. Did you ever see him in the company of anyone?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Never did see him in the company of nobody.
Mr. BALL. Did he drink?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, sir; no more than sweet milk.
Mr. BALL. He never drink intoxicating liquor?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, sir; I don't believe he drank.
Mr. BALL. You never saw him drink anything?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, sir.
Mr. BALL. You never saw him intoxicated?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, sir.
Mr. BALL. Did he smoke?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I don't believe he did.
Mr. BALL. Miss Earlene Roberts was your housekeeper at this time?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes, she was.
Mr. BALL. How long have you known her?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I have known Mrs. Roberts, oh, I guess it was 6 years,
something like that, 6 years.
Mr. BALL. Where did you first meet her?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I hired her as a housekeeper.
Mr. BALL. At 1026 North Beckley?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes, sir.
Mr. BALL. Has she been working for you for that period of time?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No, sir; I let Mrs. Roberts go a time or two, then I
would hire her back.
Mr. BALL. Was there some reason why you let her go?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Well, she would just get to being disagreeable with
renters and I don't know, she has a lot of handicaps. She has an
overweight problem and she has some habits that some people have to
understand to tolerate.
Mr. BALL. What are they?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Talking, just sitting down and making up tales, you know,
have you ever seen people like that? Just have a creative mind, there's
nothing to it, and just make up and keep talking until she just makes
a lie out of it. Listen, I'm telling you the truth and this isn't to
go any further, understand that? You have to know these things because
you are going to question this lady. I will tell you, she's just as
intelligent--I think she is a person that doesn't mean to do that but
she just does it automatically. It seems as though that she, oh, I
don't know, wants to be attractive or something at times. I just don't
know; I don't understand it myself. I only wish I did.
Mr. BALL. She was working for you in October and November while Oswald
was a renter with you?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes, she was. This Saturday night will be 3 weeks she
left.
Mr. BALL. She quit 3 weeks ago?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes, sir; I didn't know she was going.
Mr. BALL. Where did she go?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I do not know. I called her sister to try to find out. I
don't think she knows.
Mr. BALL. Who is her sister?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Mrs. Bertha Cheek.
Mr. BALL. She lives here in Dallas?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes; on Swiss. I think.
Mr. BALL. Have you talked to her within the last few days?
Mrs. JOHNSON. A number of times I talked to her, trying to find
Earlene. I thought it was important we did come to this Commission
and I wanted to ask Earlene just why she did leave because I didn't
know there was a thing in the world wrong. Well, I carried her to
Pleasant Grove to a doctor and spent a half day that I should have been
even with my brother that had had a heart attack, been assisting my
sister-in-law and her chores that day.
Mr. BALL. When was this?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Three weeks ago Saturday.
Mr. BALL. That's the day you took her to the doctor?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes; I took her every 2 weeks just as regular.
Mr. BALL. She quit that day?
Mrs. JOHNSON. That night, and everything was just as agreeable; I went
and shopped for vegetables and her special meats for her diet. She
is a diabetic, too, while she was in the doctor's office, and I had
everything for another week for her diet.
Mr. BALL. Did she come to you and tell you she was going to quit?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No; she never mentioned such a thing. I thought
everything was just agreeable.
Mr. BALL. What did she do, move out?
Mrs. JOHNSON. After midnight, after everyone was in bed.
Mr. BALL. She didn't tell you she was going?
Mrs. JOHNSON. She didn't tell me she was going.
Mr. BALL. You haven't see her since?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I haven't seen her since.
Mr. BALL. Did a letter come to your house to Earlene Roberts from the
Commission?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes.
Mr. BALL. What did you do with it?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I held it until the last minute and returned it to you.
Mr. BALL. Your letter and your husband's letter came to the house?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes.
Mr. BALL. You called Mrs. Cheek?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes, I did.
Mr. BALL. To find out where Earlene was?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes.
Mr. BALL. What did she tell you?
Mrs. JOHNSON. She told me she had called her and told her she had left
my house and she said, "I just proceeded to tell her what I thought
about it because you are so good and so nice to her. She should never
have quit you like that." She said, "You know how she is, she hasn't
called back. She might swell up and pout and it will be months before
she calls me again."
Mr. BALL. Do you know any reason why she should have left you?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Mrs. Cheek, the sister, says when she was talking to
her she brought up a little old lady that does room with me and she
is a retired woman who is drawing her social security and she was a
housekeeper previous to this last time Mrs. Roberts was there--Katy
Gage, a precious woman, gets along with everybody. She's got children
but doesn't want to live with them. She prefers living with my husband
and I, renting a room and lives with us. She tells--and Mrs. Cheek says
first thing she brought up was Katy. She says she's jealous of Katy and
I don't know why she is. There is no reason to be.
Mr. BALL. Did Earlene Roberts ever talk to Oswald in your presence; did
you ever see them talk to each other?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Listen here, no; I don't believe that Lee talked to
anybody. I just really don't.
Mr. BALL. Did Earlene ever talk to you about Oswald?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No.
Mr. BALL. Say she thought he was a peculiar one?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No.
Mr. BALL. She never mentioned him?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No; she just didn't like him because he wouldn't speak
but that's all.
Mr. BALL. She told you she did not like him?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yeah, she would say "I would like to know if he thinks he
is too good to speak to me when he comes through the kitchen." I said,
"If you speak to him, he will speak," I said, "I will speak to him" and
he says, "Good morning" but he didn't speak if I didn't speak.
Mr. BALL. On the day of the 22d of November, were you home around 1
o'clock?
Mrs. JOHNSON. It must have been 1:30 or 2, something like that.
Mr. BALL. When you came home?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes; after serving lunch.
Mr. BALL. Did Earlene Roberts say anything to you whether or not this
man had returned?
Mrs. JOHNSON. No; after these officers came in, well, then she began
to tell them that he did come rushing in and she had gotten a phone
call or had made one, anyway, she was on the phone--no, there was
someone called her, that's what she said, said someone called her and
she says, "Did you know that the President had been assassinated" and
she says, "Why, no" and she says, "Well, it's on the television now"
and she says, "I will run and turn it on" and she run in and turned
this television on to get this information and this Oswald walked in
hurriedly and she said, she said to him, "You seem to be in a hurry."
She was the only one in that place. She said he didn't say a word but
went on in his room and she said he changed his little zip-up coat, way
I understand it, and just went right back out. He evidently got the
gun; now, we don't know.
Mr. BALL. Did she tell the officers that?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yeah, she told the officers that.
Mr. BALL. When they came out there, did they have a search warrant?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes, surely.
Mr. BALL. Did you permit them to search his room?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes; they taken everything immediately out of his room.
Mr. BALL. Did you look in the room while they were searching it?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I certainly did. It had French doors to it; folding open,
you couldn't help but see everything, the books and all they took out
of these chests of drawers. They was throwin' them down on the bed.
Mr. BALL. Did you see a pistol holster?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes, I did.
Mr. BALL. Where was it?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I don't know; they took it out of one of the drawers of
this chest.
Mr. BALL. It was in a drawer?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Yes.
Mr. BALL. I think that's all. Now, you can look this over and sign
it, if you wish, or you can waive your signature and we will have it
written up and send it on to Washington.
Mrs. JOHNSON. How is this?
Mr. BALL. If you wish, we will have this written up and you can read it
over and sign it or you can waive signature, if you wish, and you won't
need to read it over and sign it. What do you prefer?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I would think that you people--of course, the way I
worded it, it probably sounds terrible.
Mr. BALL. I thought it sounded very good.
Mrs. JOHNSON. I put it just as straight as I could because we did know
such a little about this man but you know I have rented rooms a long
time and I find people, around boys, especially, about this age, some
of them are shy. They don't prefer a lot of yakking and you will get
to where, actually, you appreciate a person that goes in his room and
takes care of his own business rather than sit around and quiz and ask
personal questions and wants to change from one television program to
another. You get tired of that.
Mr. BALL. Are you satisfied to waive your signature, Mrs. Johnson?
Mrs. JOHNSON. Why, yes.
Mr. BALL. And leave it just as you said it?
Mrs. JOHNSON. I have said the truth, nothing but the truth.
Mr. BALL. Then, you won't have to sign it. We will send it on to the
Commission this way.
Mrs. JOHNSON. I have told you the truth.