And I said, "Well, you'd better do something about it. That's not true.
And I certainly don't want to get in trouble with those people."
Mr. JENNER. I think some one of the young men around here told me
that--but I put no stock in it, so----
Mrs. BATES. Well, I didn't know anything about it. I don't have a
telephone at home. I had it taken out. And there wasn't any way anybody
could contact me. I did get my letter Friday. But that's all. Well,
they had me on the plane Monday to Washington! [laughing]. That's the
press.
Mr. JENNER. They try to put two and two together and hope they'll hit
it one out of three times.
Mrs. BATES. Well, anyhow, The Star Telegram took care of it. They said
that I had gotten the letter--that they understood I had gotten the
letter and I would be called as a witness--and that was it.
I told them--I said, "You'd better get that off the wires because it's
not true--and I'm certainly not going to be accountable for anything
like that. No one has contacted me except by letter." But they were
putting all kinds of words in my mouth.
Mr. JENNER. They hadn't talked to you at all?
Mrs. BATES. Who?
Mr. JENNER. The newspaper people over this weekend?
Mrs. BATES. No; I don't have a phone at home. And I was home very ill
with bursitis.
Mr. JENNER. Oh, you were?
Mrs. BATES. I've got it right now. It's about to drive me crazy.
Mr. JENNER. That's pretty bad stuff.
Mrs. BATES. But, all this stuff about the Secret Service, I mean,
that's strictly radio and television and reporters. The UP and
the Associated Press drove me crazy calling me at 2 and 3 in the
morning--"Mrs. Bates, can't you add something?"--"Can't you remember
something else?"--"Well, can't you elaborate?" Well, I had one stock
answer: "You cannot elaborate on the truth."
Mr. JENNER. That's right.
Mrs. BATES. And that's all I could remember. I didn't know the man; I
could not say anything about him except what happened in my office. And
that's all I knew about it. "Well, can't you elaborate?"--you can't
elaborate on the truth.
Mr. JENNER. No; that's right. Does anything occur to you that you
think might be helpful to the Commission about which I haven't asked
you--insofar as seeking the actual facts here is concerned?
Mrs. BATES. I don't know. I can't think of another thing. And I do have
to keep from giving impressions I've got now.