ustxtxb_obs_1957_03_26_50_00001-00000_000.pdf

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March 26, 1957, 12:00 AM, CST

Two Senators In Open Feud AUSTIN It is a rare thing for a senatorial feud to come out in the open, but Senator Henry Gonzalez of San Antonio now charges that Senator George Parkhouse of Dallas has “exceeded the bounds of proper conduct” toward him. The Gonzales-Parkhouse feud started out as a friendship. The two co-signed a bill and everything was pleasant. But now Gonzalez charges in an Observer interview that Parkhouse has made insulting references to “Mexicans,” has told him if he didn’t recommit a certain bill he would “kill every bill you bring up” and every measure affecting Bexar County, and told another senator of him: “That little son of a bitch, I don’t trust him.” The trouble began with Parkhouse’s bill to repeal present penal code provisions making it mandatory for transit and tramway companies to give school children fare reductions on blocks of tickets of 20 or more. Parkhouse asked Gonzales to cosponsor the measure with him, and Gonzalez refused. At the first hearing before the judiciary committee, Transit Company representatives from several cities testified for the bill. and Gonzalez presented a copy of a resolution from the Bexar County Commissioners Court and several other resolutions against it. “It would put a burden on the poorer families through the school children,” Gonzalez says. Two weeks ago eleven San Antonians showed up to testify against it. Parkhouse said he didn’t want to hear any of them and moved to adjourn. The committee refused. James Lovering and Joe Mendiola of San Antonio, the latter a Latin-American, spoke for the delegation, and there were perhaps half a dozen other Latins in the delegation. As Parkhouse was leaving the chamber, says Gonzales, he heard Parkhouse say “Mexicans.” Another senator said he thought the reference had been to “lousy” Mexicans. The committee adjourned without voting on the measure. Meanwhile, Gonzales introduced a bill letting any county of over 250,000 population appoint a public defender if it wished. “Parkhouse told me,” says Gonzalez, ” ‘Don’t introduce it and if you do I’m gonna kill it. Furthermore,’ he said, ‘it’s a long-standing custom here that if a bill affects a senator’s county you have to get his approval to introduce it. That means Bracewell and me, and I don’t approve.’ ” Gonzalez asked Sen. Searcy Bracewell, Houston, who had no objection, and introduced the bill. Tuesday morning of last week, Gonzalez charges, Parkhouse met him at the back of the chamber “and in loud and insulting fashion accused me of bringing up the bill when he was sick … and demanded I recommit Vol. 48 The one great rule of composition is to speak the truth. Thoreau We will serve no group or party bur will hew hard to the truth as we find it and the right as we see it. \(1111 ,s1.0 4

<div id="pico"><p>Two Senators  In Open Feud  AUSTIN It is a rare thing for a senatorial feud to come out in  the open, but Senator Henry  Gonzalez of San Antonio  now charges that Senator  George Parkhouse of Dallas  has “exceeded the bounds of  proper conduct” toward him.  The Gonzales-Parkhouse feud  started out as a friendship. The  two co-signed a bill and everything was pleasant.  But now Gonzalez charges in  an Observer interview that Parkhouse has made insulting references to “Mexicans,” has told  him if he didn’t recommit a certain bill he would “kill every  bill you bring up” and every  measure affecting Bexar County,  and told another senator of him:  “That little son of a bitch,  I don’t trust him.”  The trouble began with Parkhouse’s bill to repeal present  penal code provisions making it  mandatory for transit and tramway companies to give school  children fare reductions on  blocks of tickets of 20 or more.  Parkhouse asked Gonzales to cosponsor the measure with him,  and Gonzalez refused.  At the first hearing before the  judiciary committee, Transit  Company representatives from  several cities testified for the bill.  and Gonzalez presented a copy  of a resolution from the Bexar  County Commissioners Court and  several other resolutions against  it. “It would put a burden on the  poorer families through the school  children,” Gonzalez says.  Two weeks ago eleven San Antonians showed up to testify  against it. Parkhouse said he  didn’t want to hear any of them  and moved to adjourn. The committee refused. James Lovering  and Joe Mendiola of San Antonio, the latter a Latin-American, spoke for the delegation,  and there were perhaps half a  dozen other Latins in the delegation.  As Parkhouse was leaving the  chamber, says Gonzales, he  heard Parkhouse say “Mexicans.” Another senator said he  thought the reference had been  to “lousy” Mexicans.  The committee adjourned without voting on the measure.  Meanwhile, Gonzales introduced  a bill letting any county of over  250,000 population appoint a public defender if it wished.  “Parkhouse told me,” says  Gonzalez, ” ‘Don’t introduce it  and if you do I’m gonna kill it.  Furthermore,’ he said, ‘it’s a  long-standing custom here that  if a bill affects a senator’s county you have to get his approval  to introduce it. That means  Bracewell and me, and I don’t  approve.’ ”  Gonzalez asked Sen. Searcy  Bracewell, Houston, who had no  objection, and introduced the bill.  Tuesday morning of last week,  Gonzalez charges, Parkhouse  met him at the back of the  chamber “and in loud and insulting fashion accused me of bringing up the bill when he was sick  … and demanded I recommit  Vol. 48  The one great rule  of composition is to  speak the truth.  Thoreau  We  will serve no  group or party bur  will hew hard to the  truth as we  find it  and  the right as we  see it.  \(1111  ,s1.0 4 </p>
<p c & %  e s  j ;a r   o t b   paper   p t` .. 4  v  -1 7  1' State SeLis King Ranch Deer  An Independer  4  10c per copy   No.  47 AUSTIN The state is advertising  Game Commission Handles  and selling wild deer and  turkey for the King Ranch,  the Observer has learned.   Orders, Gives Ranch Money  The Game and Fish Com mission, which transplants  thousands of deer and turkey free of charge to areas  that need them, actually accepts payment from farmers  and ranchers for King Ranch  deer and turkey and then  passes the money on to the  ranch.  Ronnie Dugger  People wanting the wild deer  and turkey from the fabulous  South Texas cattle kingdom pay  the commission $35 per deer and  $12 per turkey. Upon delivery  the commission gives all of this  money to the ranch wildlife  manager. The Attorney General's  office ruled in 1956 that the commission buying the game outright   would be illegal, so the wildlife  manager is now considered "the  agent" of the state.  Robert Kleberg, Jr., president  of the ranch, proposed the plan  on the theory that the ranch is  "producing" deer and turkey,  that this costs money as well as  forage that would otherwise support cattle, and that therefore the  ranch ought to be paid for maintaining its game population.  No other farmer or rancher in  Texas has such a deal with the  state. Some have offered to give  tire commission their surplus  deer and turkey and have not  been taken up on it.  In the December issue of Texas  Game and Fish, the game commission's official magazine, two  thirds of a page is given to a   "public announcement" that wild  deer and turkey are available  for restocking farms and ranches.  It says the deer and turkey are  trapped "by the commission," although the trapping is done by  King Ranch personnel as "agents" of the commission. It specifies that the money should be  sent to the commission without  explaining that all of it goes to  the King Ranch upon delivery of  the game. It even provides a convenient order form.  Howard Dodgen, executive  *secretary of the commission. says  the ad was paid for "by the  state." He maintains that "next  year" other ranches might be in  the program and  says  the application of one is being considered  now. The King Ranch program   started in 1954 but has not been  publicized.  In a letter to Richard Kleberg  on Dec. 4,  1956, Dodgenapparently apologizing for some cancelled orders for King Ranch  gameadded a remark that some  people could be expected to have  "considerable misgivings" about  "the propriety" of the arrangement. Yet in January of this year  the commission decided the state  will bearnot only the clerical  costs of handling the orders for  the game, and the costs of advertising itbut also the costs of  inspecting the areas to which the  ranch's deer and turkey are to ,be  sent to be sure they are not already surfeited with game.  Dodgen told the Observer that  if' there is any profit in it for the  ranch, it is "mighty little." He  says any policy questions involved are met  by "practical  ranching problems" of the King  Ranch which make the program  advisable. He said first the pro \(Continued on Page  2 1 to  the Wire  on Tuesday  AUSTIN Texas voters, notably apathetic, go to the polls perhaps a million strong Tuesday to elect the senator to  succeed Price Daniel until  1958 from a field of 21 candidates.  One, Thad Hutcheson, pledges  to reorganize the Senate for the  Republicans if he wins. All the  others, including self-styled GOP  man Herbert Antoine, Sr., will  vote for the Democrats on organization. Said Hutcheson: "My  vote would help to restore' to  power as committee chairmen  such conservative senators as  Knowland, Bricker, Bridges, and  Saltonstall and would remove  from power ... liberal-extremists like O'Mahoney, Kefauver,  and Gore."  The concensus is that Ralph  Yarborough is apparent frontrunner, with Congressman-atLarge Martin Dies close beside  him and Hutcheson not more  than a length behind.  Cal Courtney withdrew in. favor of Dies, saying he is the only  conservative who can beat "the  liberal-labor bloc that will support Ralph Yarborough." Hutcheson said he has a good chance  and said it's time for two-party  AUSTIN Practicing the age-old promoters' axiom, "If you have  plenty of brass you don't  need any gold," super salesman BenJack Cage made a  spur-of-the-moment decision  to pull labor into the insurance business.  He was driving back to Dallas  from Grand Prairie when the inspiration hit him. He saw a labor  hall along the highway and demanded of his partner, John G.  Vaughan, "What do you think of  labor people owning an insurance  company?"  Vaughan said:  "Before I could answer he was  advocates to put up or shut up;  he blamed corruption on the  "one-party monopoly" in Texas.  Yarborough predicted he will  win and said apathy is all that  could beat him. Dies was also  confident.  Searcy Bracewell, endorsed by  the Houston Press as "the finest  young man to enter public life in  Texas since World War II," said  a conservativeeither Dies or he  will win and that working in  his favor are his youth and the  people's unwillingness to pay  $250,000 for a special election to  elect a Dies successor. John  White said he would be elected  by the rural vote.  James P. Hart said that Congress will have to use its own  best judgment to cut the national  budget if the President "refuses  to take this responsibility." He  said the President suggested a  budget cut "but he has not said  where."  Yarborough said he is "definitely opposed to federal partnership" on the proposed $35 million  two-state Toledo Bend Dam on  the Sabine River in answer to a  question during a three-hour  hand-shaking reception in Orange. He blamed "the Republicans' tight money policy" for a  pulling up to the place. He was  always very impulsive. There  was an old man in the building  and BenJack talked to him about  an hour. When we left, the old  man said, 'You may have a good  idea there,' " recalled Vaughan.  Nile E. Ball, a Dallas labor  lawyer, had already been working on the same plan. He had  first tried to interest the National Union Insurance Company  in coming to Texas, but the union  officers had turned him down. He  then set out to find a Texas insurance company in which labor  could buy controlling interest.  When he met Cage, it was only  "drop in San Antonio home  building" in San Antonio and  hammered away for a $200 income tax exemption increase.  White asked Yarborough if he  had had aid from ICT. Yarborough replied a Dallas News article White cited slandered him  and said he had never solicited or  accepted campaign money from  any corporation. White rejoined  with an inquiry why such a "simple question" upset Yarborough.  Yarborough said he paid John  McCully of Action Agency, which  handled the ICT account, $113,000  for helping in his campaigns in  1954 and 1956.  White urged passage of strong  laws to prevent use of corporation funds for political purposes.  Bracewell said "I do not think  We have benefited in the spending of  our  dollars in foreign  aid." He said a Washington committee couldn't track down  where $250,000 in foreign aid  went.  Dies said "I am basically a conservative and liberal in my views  of protecting what our nation  has but I am most assuredly not  a socialist believing in federal  rights taking precedent over  local states rights."  Hutcheson, backed by national  GOP funds, referred to Dies as  "my Adlai Stevenson conservative opponent." Jack Porter, the  Texas GOP national committeeman, urged conservative Democrats to help elect Hutcheson.  Curtis Ford wired the House  bribery committee urging it call  "every known lobbyist in Austin" to testify "who they represent, what legislation they are  interested in, and why." Ralph  Hammonds of Houston offered  the House ICT committee what  he said was "first-hand information" about demands for insurance bribes which, he said, led  to the failure of  his company  when he refused them.  Claude Orms was finally given  free space in a small city square  in Houston after being told by  the authorities he would have to  rent space for a 30-hour speech  there.  Payoffs Hinted  In Cox Hearing  AUSTIN The woman who worked  closest with the naturopaths'  lobbyist Al Brown in the  1955 legislative session says  that "from conversation" she  assumes "outright g i f t s"  were made to legislators for  their use to pay such items  as hotel bills, airplane tickets. meals, and liquor.  The  House Cox committee  brought out last week that on  Feb. 1, 1955, a day after the public health  ,committee of the  House passed a pro-naturopath  bill, Brown wrote  14 checks to  cash for from $100 to $500 totaling $3,200. He wrote checks to  cash in excess of $15,000 for public relations during the short  period of January and the first  19 days of February, 1955.  The woman, Mrs. Emma Jean  Stewart, Brown's secretary, said  the naturopaths' board of directors instructed her in January,  1953, just before that year's legislative session, "that we not maintain records"  of the  public relations  money. As  she recalled Dr.  Howard Harmon made or seconded this motion. She was instructed to leave mention of the  instruction "out of the minutes,"  she said.  Although Brown reported to the  directors on these curious expenditures in general categories,  he did not ever give a detailed  breakdown and was not asked for  one, Mrs. Stewart said.  Chairman Wade Spilman, McAllen, noted the committee action  the day before the 14 checks to  cash were issued and said it was  strange to have so large a number of checks to cash "the day  immediately following this critical time."  THE PROBERS heard one  naturopath, Dr. Thomas A.  that he had heard rumors of  bribery around bills to outlaw

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