Mr. Coleman.

I would then like to show you a document which has been marked as Commission--James Exhibit No. 7 which is a telegram to the American Embassy in Moscow, dated May 8, 1962, and ask you whether you sent that telegram.
(The document referred to was marked James Exhibit No. 7 for identification.)
Miss JAMES. That telegram was sent by the Visa Office of the Department, and was apparently cleared by me telephonically and initialed by Mr. Crump as having cleared with me over the telephone.

Mr. Coleman.

Oh, I see, Mr. Crump is in the Visa Office?
Miss JAMES. Yes; now this gives me a lead to another paper back there, where I said I had not seen it. It had Mr. Owen's initials or some initials, which I couldn't identify. I now identify those initials as Mr. Crump's initials, and, after that, it said Miss James, in substance. I now realize that he had probably telephoned to me, cleared it in substance, initialed it, sent it up to SOV, and Mr. Owen put his initials on it, and I never had my initials on it for that reason.

Mr. Coleman.

In other words, you say that this telegram which I have marked as James Exhibit No. 7, was actually drafted by Mr. Crump as a result of Mr. Crump's office finding out that the waiver had been granted? Miss JAMES. Yes.

Mr. Coleman.

That they called you, told you what they were going to do, and you said, "Fine," and that is how your name got on the telegram?
Miss JAMES. That is why my name is there and Mr. Crump's initials above it show that he was the officer who cleared it with me.

Mr. Coleman.

Now, I take it in the document that I have marked as James Exhibit No. 8, which is a telegram dated March 20, 1962, in which the Embassy at Moscow was instructed to "withhold action on Department's OMV 61" because the sanction is being reconsidered. That telegram also was not drafted by you, and the only reason why your name appears on it is that it was cleared with you over the telephone.
(The document referred to was marked James Exhibit No. 8 for identification.)
Miss JAMES. Yes; and, again, although that was cleared, those are my initials, VHJ, that is my initials. It was apparently cleared over the phone telephonically and also sent it up to us and Mr. Owen and I each initialed it, VHJ, and O for Owen.

Mr. Coleman.

But the fact that your name appeared on the telegrams doesn't mean you wrote them?
Miss. JAMES. No; you see, the way the telegrams are in the State Department, that first line says drafted by, and then underneath is clearances, and those offices are clearing offices.

Mr. Coleman.

And could you identify for me a letter which I have marked James Exhibit No. 6, which is a letter from Michael Cieplinski to Mr. Farrell, dated March 27, 1962. I ask you whether that is a copy of the letter which was sent forward to the Immigration Service asking them to reconsider the waiver?
Miss JAMES. This exhibit is a photostatic copy of the file copy which is in the file I am examining, and it is an exact copy. I did not clear it.

Mr. Coleman.

As far as you know, that is a copy of the letter?
Miss JAMES. An exact copy; yes. I see the initials are carried through.

Everything is exactly the way the file copy is, the Department's file copy. (Discussion off the record.)

Mr. Coleman.

I would like to mark as James Exhibit No. 9 a transmittal slip under date of March 16, 1962, and it bears the signature which purports to be Virginia H. James, and I ask you whether that is your signature that appears thereon.
Miss JAMES. Yes.

Mr. Coleman.

Now, what occasioned your sending this transmittal slip to the American Embassy and the attachment?
Miss JAMES. We wanted the Embassy in Moscow to know what we were doing on the despatches and telegrams that they sent in, and that we were in agreement with their recommendation, that we were making these recommendations.