When FBI Special Agent Jim Hosty interviewed Ruth Paine on Friday, 1 November 1963, he asked where Lee Harvey Oswald was living and working in Dallas. Ruth thought Oswald was living in the Oak Cliff section of south Dallas but would have to find out his address. She said he was working as a stock boy at the Texas School Book Depository. A kind-hearted Quaker, Ruth expressed hope that Hosty would not make trouble for Oswald at his workplace. Hosty assured Ruth that he would not do so.
Good to his word, Hosty opted to telephone the personnel department of the Book Depository the following Monday, 4 November, although it was only a short walk from the Dallas FBI office. The personnel department confirmed that Oswald had been working there since 16 October and vouched that he appeared to be a punctual and reliable worker, albeit very quiet and withdrawn. The address they provided for Oswald was Ruth’s address. Hosty knew this was not accurate but did not make an issue of it.
On Tuesday, 5 November, Hosty was in Irving on other business and decided to drop by Ruth’s home to see if she had found out where Oswald was living in Dallas. She had been too uncomfortable to do so but had given Hosty’s name and telephone number to Oswald and encouraged him to reach out. The interview on Ruth’s front porch took only a few minutes.
Oswald had been miffed when his wife Marina told him on 1 November about the first visit from the FBI. He was angry when he learned about the telephone call to his employer. He became furious when Marina told him on 8 November about the second visit to Ruth’s house earlier in the week. He felt the FBI was harassing him and his family.
Also on 8 November, all the Dallas newspapers announced that President Kennedy, accompanied by the First Lady, would visit Dallas in two weeks on 22 November. At the time, the press reported it was unlikely that there would be a Presidential motorcade through the city.
If only that initially reported motorcade decision had held...