Mr. Rankin. When they asked you to contribute some money to help bring him home from Russia, did it occur to you that if he is an agent the government could just pay his way?
Mrs. Oswald. Yes. But they don't want the public to know he is an agent. They want me to have all of this. They don't want the public to know. I am going around to people—you brought up a very good point. I am going around trying to get money for this boy to come home, so the public knows. Sure, they could have given him the money to come home.
Mr. Rankin. Are you trying to get money now? I don't understand what you mean by that?
Mrs. Oswald. I think, Mr. Rankin, you asked me the question that if he was an agent, that the Government would have given him the money to come home without any trouble. I say just the opposite. That it was a very good point. If he was an agent, it would make it hard for him to get the money to come home.
Remember, I am under the impression he is coming home with this Russian girl in order to continue his work. So he cannot be given the money immediately to come home, because his mother might tell the story to someone. Lee was almost a year coming home for lack of money. So then they have an excuse to loan him the money.
Mr. Rankin. Did you ever learn that he was getting money from the Red Cross in addition to his pay—that is the Russian or Soviet Red Cross, when he was over there?
Mrs. Oswald. No, sir.
Mr. Rankin. You don't know what he did with that?
Mrs. Oswald. I don't know anything about that. The Red Cross from here?
Mr. Rankin. The Soviet Red Cross.