Warren Commission (11 of 26): Hearings Vol. XI (of 15)United States. Warren Commission
History
Warren Commission (11 of 26): Hearings Vol. XI (of 15)
United States. Warren Commission
Kennedy, John F. (John Fitzgerald), 1917-1963 -- Assassination; Oswald, Lee Harvey
Mr. BALL. Now, you got on the bus at Monterrey on the evening of
September 26 at 7:30 p.m., you just told me?
Miss MUMFORD. Yes.
Mr. BALL. And what was the company that operated that bus, do you know?
Miss MUMFORD. That was also Transporter del Norte.
Mr. BALL. And were there the same accommodations for all travelers?
Miss MUMFORD. Yes; there were. There were four seats in the front that
were occupied by English-speaking people. But, having got on so late in
the journey, we were taken down to the back to sit with the Mexicans.
And we were the only English-speaking people at the back of the bus.
Mr. BALL. All others were Mexican-speaking?
Miss MUMFORD. Yes.
Mr. BALL. Now, who were the English-speaking people that you mentioned?
Will you describe them?
Miss MUMFORD. There was a young English couple who were traveling down
to the Yucatan to study the Indians and their way of life.
There was an elderly English gentleman in his mid- or late-sixties, I
should imagine. He told us during the journey that he had lived on and
off in Mexico for 25 years.
Then there was the young Texan, Lee Harvey Oswald, and Patricia and
myself.
Mr. BALL. Now, when you first boarded the bus did you speak to the
English-speaking people?
Miss MUMFORD. We got on and Oswald heard Patricia and I talking. And we
had two heavy overnight bags, and he told us later that he had turned
to his companion, who was the middle-aged English gentleman, and said,
"I wonder how you say 'How can I help you' in Spanish", which gave us
the opinion later that he couldn't speak the language: couldn't speak
Spanish.
He took us for two Spanish girls, I guess, and was going to help us
with our luggage.
Mr. BALL. Did he help you with your luggage?
Miss MUMFORD. No.
Mr. BALL. You went on to the back of the bus?
Miss MUMFORD. Yes.
Mr. BALL. You didn't say anything to the four English-speaking people
when you first got on the bus?
Miss MUMFORD. No.
Mr. BALL. And they didn't speak to you?
Miss MUMFORD. No.
Mr. BALL. When did you first speak to any of these four?
Miss MUMFORD. Oswald was the first one we spoke to. He left his seat
and came down to the back of the bus to speak to us.
Mr. BALL. That was after the bus had left Monterrey?
Miss MUMFORD. Yes.
Mr. BALL. And while it was en route?
Miss MUMFORD. Yes.
Mr. BALL. What did he say to you?
Miss MUMFORD. Well, he said that he had heard us speaking English and
wondered where we came from.
He then told us the story of how he had thought we were Mexican and was
going to help us if he could speak the language.
Mr. BALL. What did he say? Can you tell me his language as close as you
can?
Miss MUMFORD. No, I can't really put it into his words; not at that
stage. He then proceeded to tell us about himself.
Mr. BALL. What did he say?
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