FINDING THE RIFLE

Speculation:-The rifle found on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository was identified as a 7.65 Mauser by the man who found it, Deputy Constable Seymour Weitzman.

Commission finding:-Weitzman, the original source of the speculation that the rifle was a Mauser, and Deputy Sheriff Eugene Boone found the weapon. Weitzman did not handle the rifle and did not examine it at close range. He had little more than a glimpse of it and thought it was a Mauser, a German bolt-type rifle similar in appearance to the Manlicher-Carcano. Police laboratory technicians subsequently arrived and correctly identified the weapon as a 6.5 Italian rifle.

Pretty simple in and of itself. But as I Told you earlier the WR consists of 888 pages of "conclusions" based on 26 Volumes of Testimony and Exhibits. And they were very selective in what they based their conclusions on. As stated above: Wietzman simply made a mistake.

Volume XXIV Pg. 228 contains Wietzman's actual written statement dated 11/23/63. (This is what he reported.)

"Yesterday November 22, 1963 I was standing on the corner of Main and Houston, and as the President passed and made his turn going west towards Stemmens, I walked casually around. At this time my partner was behind me and asked me something. I looked back at him and heard 3 shots. I ran in a northwest direction and scaled a fence towards where we thought the shots came from. Then someone said they thought the shots came from the old Texas Building . I immediately ran to the old Texas Building and started looking inside. At this time Captain Fritz arrived and ordered all of the sixth floor sealed off and searched. I was working with Deputy S. Boone of the Sheriff's Department and helping in the search. We were in the northwest corner of the sixth floor when Deputy Boone and myself spotted the rifle about the same time. THE RIFLE WAS A 7.65 MAUSER BOLT ACTION EQUIPED WITH A 4/18 SCOPE, A THICK LEATHER BROWNISH-BLACK SLING ON IT. The rifle was between some boxes near the stairway. The time the rifle was found was 1:22 pm. Captain Fritz took charge of the rifle and ejected one live round from the chamber. I then went back to the office after this.

1. THIS STATEMENT DOESN'T SUPPORT THE COMMISSION'S CLAIM THAT WEITZMAN ONLY HAD A "GLIMPSE" OF THE WEAPON. (Does that description sound like nothing more than just a "GLIMPSE"?)

2. THE COMMISSION DIDN'T GIVE WEITZMAN THE CREDIT DUE HIM WHEN IT NEGLECTED TO QUOTE HIS TESTIMONY IN VOLUME VII PG. 108 STATING THAT HE WAS FAIRLY FAMILAR WITH RIFLES BECAUSE HE OWNED A SPORTING GOODS BUSINESS FOR A WHILE.

3. THE COMMISSION SKILLFULLY FAILED TO MENTION CORROBURATION FOR WEITZMAN'S OBSERVATION IN THE FORM OF DEPUTY SHERIFF BOONE'S AFFIDAVIT (Decker Exhibit 5323 Volume XIX pgs. 508-9) " What appeared to be a 7.65 Mauser with a teloscopic site. The rifle had what appeared to be a brownish, black stock and blue steel, metal parts." (Does that sound like the rifle they reportedly found?)

4. FOR MORE CORROBURATION BOONE HAS A SHORTER REPORT ON PG. 507 OF THE SAME VOLUME. BUT STILL DESCRIBING A "7.65 MAUSER WITH A TELESCOPIC SITE."

5. THE IDENTIFICATION OF THE RIFLE FOUND ON THE SIXTH FLOOR AS A 7.65 MAUSER "BY CAPTAIN FRITZ" IS FURTHER EVIDENCED IN THE TESTIMONY OF DEPUTY BOONE IN VOLUME III Pg. 295.

BALL: There is one question. Did you hear anybody refer to this rifle as a Mauser that day?

BOONE: Yes, I did. And at first, not knowing what it was, I thought it was a 7.65 Mauser.

BOONE: I believe Captain Fritz. He had knelt down there to look at it, and before he removed it, not knowing what it was, he said that is what it looks like. This is when Lieutenant Day, I believe his name is, the ID man was getting ready to photograph it. We were just discussng it back and forth. And he said it looks like a 7.65 Mauser.

OMMITTING THESE FACTS MAKES IT A LOT EASIER TO DISMISS THE REPORT OF WEITZMAN AS JUST A MISTAKE!

While we're on the subject of ommissions, take a look at CE #2143 on pg. 754 of Volume XXIV It's a press conference with Dallas Police Cheif Jesse Curry on Saturday, Nov. 23, 1963.

"Q. What is the name of the rifle that was found in the sixth floor of the Depository Building?"

On Pg. 761, Curry states that the Dallas Police got a "TIP" that Oswald purchased the rifle through a mail-order house under the name of A. Hidell. (Who was the Tipster?)

On pg. 766 Curry states that there were three (3) witnesses to the murder of officer Tippitt. (The WC tells us of Helen Markham and Domingo Benavides. Neither of which could pick Oswald out of a Police line_up) Who was the third witness that the WC totally ignored? Was it Aquilla Clemmons who stated that TWO (2) men killed Tippitt. One of whom resembled Jack Ruby! (see Rush To Judgement by Mark Lane )

The Warren Report tells us that Oswald's palm print was found on one of the book cartons used for the sniper's nest.

I don't find that at all amazing considering that Oswald worked in that area all morning. What I DO find amazing is that they also found TWENTY-FIVE (25) "other" prints. Only twenty-four of which they could match with TSBD employees, Dallas P.D. and FBI. SHOWING NO CONCERN WHATSOEVER OVER WHO THE 25th PRINT BELONGED TO! (WRpg.249)

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Photos and Instructions by R. Ted Jeo

	1) Make sure rifle is unloaded. Remove bolt by pressing trigger and pulling bolt out of rifle.
	2) Remove trigger guard screws.
	3) Lift up and pull trigger/follower housing out of stock.
	4) Remove screw on mid barrel band. Note: the back side of this screw is a nut that includes a sling swivel.
	5) Remove two screws on front barrel band.

6) Slide mid barrel band and upper wood stock off of rifle.

7) Lift up approximate 2-3 cm on rear receiver, pivoting barrel where it meets the front barrel band.

8) Barrel tilts upward and then slides forward, clearing the barrel band as well as freeing the bayonet lug carrier from the stock.

9) Major components of disassembled rifle.
	10) Remove sear pin from receiver and trigger group.
	11) Trigger parts released by sear pin. On my rifle, they basically all fell out once sear pin was removed.
	12) On follower housing, remove the forward retaining screw
	13) Using a flat screw driver, push follower through hole behind the front trigger guard screw hole. Follower assembly slides forward a bit then drops out.
	14) Follower assembly as removed from follower (trigger guard) housing.

15) Remove retaining screw of clip latch.

16) You may need to use a punch to push the screw out because it is under spring tension.

17) Parts of the clip latch mechanism removed from follower housing.
	18) This is perhaps the hardest and trickiest part of the Carcano rifle. I find that I don't have the finger strength or dexterity to compress the flat spring and pop out the retaining pin.
	19) So, I devised an alternative method using ½ of a wooden clothespin. I had to sand/file the sides of the clothespin to fit in between the sides of the follower holder. Then I slowly compress the entire device in a vise.
	20) Once the tension is released, it is quite easy to drift out the retaining pin.
	21) The parts of the follower.
	22) The flat spring can be removed from the housing by tilting it upwards.
	23) Once the angle is enough, you will be able to push/lift the flat spring out of the housing.
	24) Follower parts.
Reassembly Instructions
	25) Insert spring into clip latch and place latch into housing.
	26) Depress latch and align holes in housing and latch. Insert screw and tighten.
	27) Insert flat spring into follower housing, note how the tab of the spring goes into the hole in the housing.
	28) Once inserted, the tab will be flush with the outside of the housing.

29) Note the notch on the spring and how it aligns with the follower.

30) Using the same wood/vise combination, compress the flat spring until the holes align and pop in the retaining pin. Slowly release the vise, spring is under tension.
	31) Insert follower assembly into trigger housing. Tip rear end downward and the press the follower assembly into place.
	32) Once the follower assembly is in place, it will be perfectly flush with the outside of the trigger housing (you may have to tap it lightly to get it flush).
	33) Insert forward retaining screw and tighten.
	34) Note the straight flat face of the ejector.
	35) Insert the ejector so that the straight flat side faces forward.
	36) Attach the ejector spring.
	37) Note the pin on the side of the trigger assembly. This is where the bolt stop (at front of picture) will attach to.
	38) Note how the bolt stop attaches.
	39) Place the trigger assembly into receiver. Note how the front hole aligns with the spring/ejector assembly and how the bolt stop slides into its own notch in the receiver.
	40) Press down on the trigger assembly and insert the sear pin.

41) Slide the front barrel band onto barrel.

42) Slide stock under barrel band. At a slight angle, slide stock/band forward until the bayonet mount slides neatly onto the stock and the barrel band is aligned with hole on bayonet mount.

43) Receiver should drop right into the stock.
	44) Insert the trigger guard.
	45) Replace and tighten the trigger guard screws and tighten (longer screw is behind trigger).

46) Slide the upper stock piece into position with the mid barrel band. Note that the wood should be properly fitted to the rear sight.
	47) Insert the swivel/nut on the mid barrel band. Insert screw through other side, hold swivel/nut in place and tighten screw.
	48) Insert and tighten the front barrel band screws.

49) Insert bolt, press trigger and push bolt all the way into place. The rifle is reassembled.

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