Warren Commission (01 of 26): Hearings Vol. I (of 15)United States. Warren Commission
History
Warren Commission (01 of 26): Hearings Vol. I (of 15)
United States. Warren Commission
Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963 -- Assassination; Oswald, Lee Harvey
If you are not familiar with Fort Worth, Tex., from the Rotary
Apartment to Leonard Brothers is approximately 3 miles, and they used
to walk there, and they came home--Marina came home with a Cancan
petticoat and some hose that Lee bought here with a few dollars that
Robert and I had given him--he spent on his wife.
So that was a very happy time.
Now, when they lived in the home on Mercedes Street that he rented, I
was employed as an OB, a nurse, in Fort Worth, Tex., at an OB's salary.
And that salary, gentlemen, will astonish you. I worked, lived in, for
$9 a day, 24 hours duty.
On an OB case--I am very busy with the baby all day long because
people are coming in and out, giving presents and so on. I have a 10
o'clock feeding for the baby. And it is approximately 11 o'clock before
I am through and in bed. The baby is up again at 2 o'clock. It is
approximately 3:30 before I am through again with the baby. The baby
is up again at 5:30. And it is approximately--then my day starts. I am
stressing the point that I worked for $9 a day during all that, a $9 a
day job. So that is 7 days a week, $63.
Now, this is the first time I have had a nurse's salary, I want you to
understand.
So with my first pay, I bought Marina clothes, I bought the baby
clothes, and I brought food into this home. I went all out for Marina.
I just love her, and was just thrilled to death with her. And I bought
a highchair. I could not afford a bed, because I didn't have enough
money to buy the bed. So that is why I bought the clothes and things of
that sort. But I bought the baby a highchair.
Mr. RANKIN. How did Marina treat you then?
Mrs. OSWALD. Fine. But then Marina was not satisfied with the things
that I bought her.
As you see, the way I am properly dressed--I don't say I mean to be the
height of fashion, but I have--before becoming a nurse I was in the
business world, and I have been a manager in the merchandise field. So
I do know clothes.
And I bought her some shorts. And she wanted short shorts, like the
Americans. She pictured America in her mind evidently.
And I bought her a little longer shorts.
And "I no like, Mama."
I said, "Marina, you are a married woman and it is proper for you to
have a little longer shorts than the younger girls."
"No, Mama."
And I will stress this--that Marina was never too happy--"No, Mama, no
nice, no, Mama, no this."
That was perfectly all right. I thought she didn't understand our ways.
I didn't feel badly about it.
I am going to get back to the highchair, to give you a picture of my
son.
I bought the highchair and brought it over there, and Lee was not at
home. And Marina didn't know what a highchair was. And she told me in
Russian. I said, "How do they feed babies in Russia?" By this time,
June was 4 or 5 months old, just getting ready to sit up.
"We put baby on lap, Mama, and baby eat on lap."
And so a highchair to me, I think, was new to Marina.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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