Mrs. PAINE. I did want to amend my testimony of yesterday in one small
particular. I spoke, indeed, during the testimony I recalled this
incident of Lee having gotten into my car, started it, and did the
driving from my home to the parking lot where we practiced, pretty much
over my objection in a sense but I did not object strongly enough. I
said this was about three blocks. That would appear that it was walking
distance. It was longer than that.
If you have someone out there in time, why I could go with the person
to show just exactly what the distance was.
Representative FORD. What was his reaction when you objected? First,
was your objection just oral, was it strong, was it admonition, of what
kind?
Mrs. PAINE. I felt that, and this is what you are getting at too and I
think something we haven't yet discussed, is the matter of what kind
of person this was or how I reacted to the kind of person he was. He
seemed to me prickly, all sharp points and edgy, and I wished he could
be more relaxed and more at ease. I didn't want to confront him with
a statement of, "Lee, I didn't want you to start this car and take it
yourself", so I simply said, "my father is an insurance man and he
certainly would not want me to be permitting you to drive in the street
when you don't even have a learner's permit yet, and I will certainly
drive it home."
From the time I had first known him he had changed in his attitude
toward me, I felt. I felt in the spring he expected to be disliked,
that he carried a shell of proud disdain around him to protect himself
from human contact, and this was falling away from him at my home.
Mr. JENNER. In the fall you mean?
Mrs. PAINE. In the fall of the year, in October and November. He began
to appear much more at ease, and as if he had some confidence in how he
would be treated. It is a whole subject really.
Representative FORD. Can you give us a little more information on what
you said to him and what he, or how he responded in this incident
involving the car?
Mrs. PAINE. I would say he clearly wanted to do the driving and to
drive in the street. I felt that this, my not permitting him to, was
one of the things that was helping to get him to the office where he
could get a learner's permit, and he was eager to be driving, and to
learn to drive on the street.
Representative FORD. Did he just slough off, so to speak, your
admonition that he shouldn't drive?
Mrs. PAINE. I didn't make it a requirement that he stop right there so
he didn't have to stop.
Representative FORD. You just suggested it might be better?
Mrs. PAINE. I just made it clear I was uncomfortable and on the way
home I would drive.
Mr. McCLOY. There is one thing we haven't had testimony about, I
imagine, except implicitly.
It is alleged that Lee possessed a .38 caliber revolver. Do you, in the
light of hindsight, perhaps, do you have any feeling now that he was
secreting that weapon on your premises?
Mrs. PAINE. I had no idea that it was there or ever was there.
Mr. McCLOY. Nothing now makes you feel that it was there other than the
finding of the rifle?
Mrs. PAINE. That is right.
Representative FORD. Thank you very much, Mrs. Paine.
Senator COOPER. The Commission will recess until 2 o'clock today.
(Whereupon, at 12:20 p.m., the Commission recessed.)