The testimony of Ruth Hyde Paine was taken at 9:15 a.m., on March
21, 1964, at 200 Maryland Avenue NE., Washington, D.C., by Messrs.
Albert E. Jenner, Jr., and Norman Redlich, assistant counsels of the
President's Commission.
Mr. JENNER. Let the record show that this is a continuation by
deposition pursuant to leave granted by the Commission of Mrs. Paine's
testimony before the Commission which we had concluded late in the day
yesterday.[1]
[1] The testimony of Mrs. Ruth Paine given before the
Commission appears in another volume, and can be found
by consulting the Index.
I think it might be well, in view of that transition, if Mrs. Paine
were sworn again, or if you were affirmed, rather.
The REPORTER. Do you affirm that the testimony you are about to give
will be the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help
you God?
Mrs. PAINE. I do.
Mr. JENNER. I think we might cover your background to some extent, Mrs.
Paine.
Mr. JENNER. My material indicates that you were born in New York City.
Mrs. PAINE. That is right.
Mr. JENNER. In 1932.
Mrs. PAINE. Yes.
Mr. JENNER. And you remained in New York City until when?
Mrs. PAINE. I think that time I stayed about 2 weeks, just long enough
to get out of the hospital.
Mr. JENNER. I see. Immediately after your birth, or substantially so?
Mrs. PAINE. My family moved to New Jersey.
Mr. JENNER. And your family moved to New Jersey. And you lived where?
Mrs. PAINE. I believe it was Park Ridge, N.J. We had lived there
before, I remember.
Mr. JENNER. But do you recall then moving from Park Ridge, N.J.?
Mrs. PAINE. No; I first recall living in the country not far from
Freehold, N.J.
Mr. JENNER. But you did eventually move to Columbus, Ohio?
Mrs. PAINE. We moved back to New York when I was 8, and from New York
then moved to Columbus, Ohio.
Mr. JENNER. And what age were you when you moved to Columbus, Ohio?
Mrs. PAINE. I must have been 10 or about to be 10.
Mr. JENNER. And you attended elementary schools and high school in
Columbus?
Mrs. PAINE. Yes.
Mr. JENNER. Is my information correct that you entered Antioch College
at Antioch, Ohio, in 1950?
Mrs. PAINE. In Yellow Springs, Ohio, in 1949.
Mr. JENNER. 1949 was it?
Mrs. PAINE. Yes.
Mr. JENNER. And you eventually received a degree from Antioch College?
Mrs. PAINE. I did, in 1955.
Mr. JENNER. You might state for the record what the character of
Antioch College is. It is special in some respect, isn't it?
Mrs. PAINE. Yes; it has a work-study plan, whereby the students study a
portion of the year and then go to jobs all over the country, to work
in special fields, a job of their own interest, and the college helps
to obtain these positions.
Mr. JENNER. And do you receive any kind of credit?
Mrs. PAINE. In order to graduate, you have to have both credit in the
academic work and credit from your job placements.
Mr. JENNER. Does Antioch College--I know you said you were of the
Quaker faith--does Antioch College have any connection with the Quaker
faith?
Mrs. PAINE. No; it doesn't.
Mr. JENNER. What was your major at Antioch College?
Mrs. PAINE. I majored in education.
Mr. JENNER. And seeking to prepare yourself as a teacher?
Mrs. PAINE. That is correct.
Mr. JENNER. And did you pursue that major or at least activities in
connection with that major in your cooperative work?
Mrs. PAINE. Yes; I did. I was also interested in group work and in
recreation work, but there was no major in that field at Antioch, so my
job placements were a combination of both work in elementary schools
and group work.
Mr. JENNER. And have you pursued, really pursued your interests in
group work ever since?
Mrs. PAINE. Yes.
Mr. JENNER. Or group activities, at least?
Mrs. PAINE. I pursued the dual interest of education and group work,
yes, in the jobs I have sought.
Mr. JENNER. You had by that time already embraced the Quaker faith,
hadn't you, when you entered Antioch, at the time you entered Antioch
College?
Mrs. PAINE. At the time I entered I was not yet a member. I joined
in the winter of 1951, so it was still a year and a quarter before I
became a member.