It was Tuesday rather than Wednesday 2 weeks ago that I first became
acquainted with Mrs. Ford.
At that time, Mrs. Ford acted as an interpreter between Mr. Thorne and
myself to relate to Mrs. Marina Oswald what we were talking about.
Mr. JENNER. Excuse me, sir. You mentioned a Mr. Thorne?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. That is Mr. John Thorne who at that time was the attorney
for Mrs. Marina Oswald?
Mr. OSWALD. That is correct.
Mr. JENNER. And where did this take place?
Mr. OSWALD. At my residence, at 1009 Sierra Drive, Denton, Tex.
Mr. JENNER. Who was present at that time in addition to yourself, Mr.
Thorne, and Mrs. Ford?
Mr. OSWALD. My wife, Vada Marie Oswald, was present.
Mr. JENNER. And your acquaintance with Mr. Ford, you say, was the
following day?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; that is correct.
Mr. JENNER. Where did that take place, and in whose presence?
Mr. OSWALD. At my residence, again, in Denton, Tex., in the presence of
my wife, Vada, Mrs. Marina Oswald, and Mrs. Kathy Ford.
Mr. JENNER. As to Mrs. Ford, it is 2 weeks ago last Tuesday, or 2 weeks
ago today?
Mr. OSWALD. Pardon me just a minute.
Mr. McKENZIE. Two weeks ago this past Tuesday.
Mr. OSWALD. Pardon me.
Mr. JENNER. I wish you would hesitate and make reasonably certain of
this.
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; I believe I have erred here.
Instead of being 2 weeks ago this past Tuesday, it was a week ago
Tuesday that I first met Kathy Ford. And it was the following day, on
that Wednesday, that I met Mr. Ford. In other words, I wish to correct
it was not 2 weeks ago, but 1 week ago.
Mr. JENNER. Now that you have a calendar before you, would you give us
the date so we will have it in the record now?
Mr. OSWALD. On Tuesday, February 11, 1964, was the day I first met Mrs.
Kathy Ford in the presence of Mr. John Thorne and my wife, Vada, in my
home in Denton, Tex.
On February 12th I met Mr. Ford in the presence of my wife in my
residence at Denton, Tex.
Mr. JENNER. Returning to the exhibit to which you have been directing
your attention, which is No. 273, you were able to identify Mrs. Marina
Oswald's signature, and Miss Connelly's?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes.
Mr. JENNER. The others you were unable to identify?
Mr. OSWALD. That is correct.
Mr. JENNER. All right.
Would you turn, then, to the next exhibit, give us the number?
Mr. OSWALD. Commission Exhibit No. 274.
Mr. JENNER. Is it signed on its face?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Well, then, directing your attention to the first page of
the exhibit, does it bear a signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; it does.
Mr. JENNER. Are you familiar with that signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; I am.
Mr. JENNER. Whose signature is it?
Mr. OSWALD. Mr. William A. McKenzie.
Mr. JENNER. This is the Mr. McKenzie present here representing you?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And does that exhibit consist of more than 1 page?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; it does.
Mr. JENNER. Turn to the second page. Does it bear a signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; it does.
Mr. JENNER. Are you familiar with those signatures?
Mr. OSWALD. The two signatures appear on the second page. One I am
familiar with--Mrs. Marina Oswald.
Mr. JENNER. Excuse me, sir. Is that the first of those that are in a
series?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; that is correct.
Mr. JENNER. And you are familiar with that, and that is her signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. The next signature purports to be that of whom?
Mr. OSWALD. Mrs. Katherine Ford.
Mr. JENNER. And your testimony, if I repeated the questions that I did
as to the previous exhibit, regarding Mrs. Ford, would be the same? You
are not familiar with her signature?
Mr. OSWALD. That is correct.
Mr. JENNER. And the next signature, please?
Mr. OSWALD. Sir?
Mr. JENNER. The next signature?
Mr. OSWALD. That is the only two signatures that appear on that second
page.
Mr. JENNER. Would you proceed to the next exhibit?
Mr. OSWALD. 275.
Mr. JENNER. That consists of how many pages?
Mr. OSWALD. Two pages.
Mr. JENNER. Does it bear a signature on the first page?
Mr. OSWALD. There is a signature on the first page. The signature is
Mr. William A. McKenzie.
Mr. JENNER. You are familiar with that signature, and that is his
signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. The same gentleman we have identified?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. All right. Are there any signatures on the second page of
that exhibit?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir. There are two signatures on the second page, and
in order as they appear----
Mr. JENNER. Excuse me. Are you familiar with either of them?
Mr. OSWALD. I am familiar with one of them.
Mr. JENNER. All right. Let's take the first one, which is what?
Mr. OSWALD. Mrs. Marina N. Oswald.
Mr. JENNER. You are familiar with her signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; I am.
Mr. JENNER. Is that her signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir. I would say that was her signature.
Mr. JENNER. And the second name appears to be that of whom?
Mr. OSWALD. Mrs. Katherine Ford.
Mr. JENNER. And your testimony with respect to her, were I to pursue
it, would be the same as you testified to a previous exhibit, insofar
as your familiarity with her signature is concerned?
Mr. OSWALD. That is correct.
Mr. JENNER. Thank you, sir.
Forgive the interruption, Mr. Chairman.
Mr. DULLES. That is all right.
Mr. JENNER. Mr. Chairman, Mr. McKenzie has produced for us and tendered
to us four documents, during the recess, which I would wish to
identify. They have a relationship to the exhibits, the signatures of
which I have just finished having identified.
Would you mark those, please, Mr. Liebeler?
Mr. DULLES. Do you wish these admitted as exhibits?
Mr. JENNER. If you please, sir. I would like to identify the exhibits
and indicate their content first.
I would call on you, Mr. McKenzie, to identify the series of exhibits.
They are numbered, Mr. Chairman, Commission Exhibits 276, 277, 278, and
279.
If you will identify them, I may have some questions of the witness.
Mr. McKENZIE. Mr. Chairman, Exhibit No. 276 is a contract dated
December 6, 1963, addressed to Mr. James H. Martin, Dallas, Tex., and
signed by Mrs. Marina N. Oswald, consisting of four pages.
Mr. DULLES. I wish that admitted at this time with that description.
Mr. JENNER. If I may put one question to the witness: Mr. Oswald, would
you look at the last page of that exhibit? Does it purport to bear a
signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Are you familiar with that signature?
Mr. OSWALD. There are three signatures.
Mr. JENNER. Are you familiar with all of them?
Mr. OSWALD. May I ask my attorney something here?
Mr. JENNER. Surely.
Mr. McKENZIE. Mr. Jenner, if I may interrupt you, and pardon me for
doing so--on page 3 there is likewise a signature. And I think perhaps
he should start at that page.
Mr. JENNER. That is a fine suggestion.
Will you now refer to page 3. Does it bear a signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; it does.
Mr. JENNER. Are you familiar with that signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; I am.
Mr. JENNER. Whose signature is it?
Mr. OSWALD. Mrs. Marina N. Oswald.
Mr. JENNER. Turn to page 4. There are several signatures on that page,
is that correct?
Mr. OSWALD. That is correct. There are three.
Mr. JENNER. Are you familiar with any of them?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; I am.
Mr. JENNER. Would you take them in order, taking the uppermost one
first. Indicate whether you are familiar with that signature, and whose
signature it is.
Mr. OSWALD. It is my own signature, Robert Oswald.
Mr. JENNER. The next under that?
Mr. OSWALD. Mr. James H. Martin.
Mr. JENNER. Are you familiar with that signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. And it is his signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. Who is Mr. James H. Martin?
Mr. OSWALD. He was, at that time, when this contract was signed,
appointed as Marina's business agent. But employed at the Inn of the
Six Flags at Arlington, Tex.
Mr. JENNER. He has been identified in previous sessions before the
Commission.
And there is a third signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; there is.
Mr. JENNER. And are you familiar with that signature?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; I am.
Mr. JENNER. Whose is it, please?
Mr. OSWALD. Mr. John M. Thorne, Attorney.
Mr. JENNER. And he is the Mr. Thorne that we have identified a few
moments ago?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir.
Mr. JENNER. He was at that time the attorney for Mrs. Marina Oswald?
Mr. OSWALD. That is correct.
Mr. JENNER. Is there a fourth signature?
Mr. OSWALD. No, sir; there is not.
Mr. JENNER. Were those signatures affixed in your presence?
Mr. OSWALD. Yes, sir; they were.
Mr. DULLES. Mr. Jenner, I believe these are photostatic copies, are
they not, that are being identified?
Mr. JENNER. Yes, sir.
Mr. McKenzie, would you please make a statement with respect to that?
Mr. McKENZIE. Yes, sir. I was going to at this time, Mr. Jenner,
state for the record that Exhibit 276 is a photostatic copy. And this
photostatic copy was furnished to me by Mrs. Marina N. Oswald.
Mr. DULLES. Where is the original of that?
Mr. McKENZIE. Marina N. Oswald has the original.
Mr. DULLES. Has that been so compared, that we know this is a true copy?
Mr. McKENZIE. Mr. Chairman. Pardon me.