The Carrollton Chronicle (Carrollton, Tex.), Vol. 53, No. 24, Ed. 1 Friday, May 10, 1957 Page: 2 of 4
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THE CARROLLTON CHRONICLE
CARROLLTON, TEXAS, FRIDAY, MAY 10, 1957
Lake Maracaibo, Venezuela
Lake Maracaibo, in the western part of Venezuela, is one
of the world’s richest oil-basins. Oil derricks rise above the
lake in a geometric patten? that stretches as far as the'eye
can see. The lake is abpv* the size of Lake Erie and many
of these oil derricks are on pilings in water 100 feet deep,
i Creole Petroleum Corporation, Venezuelan«affiliate of
Standard Oil Company (New Jersey) is a major producer of
oil end has more than 2,000 derricks in the lake A vast net-
work of pipelines under the water is required to handle the
flow of oil for the wells. Venezuela is the world’s largest
exporter of crude oil and is traditionally a good ally and
customer of the United States.
J. M. BICKFORD NAMED
COUNTY CHAIRMAN OF
OIC SCHOOL PROGRAM
J. M. Bickford has been ap
poinlcd Dallas County Chairman
hf the Oil Information Committee
school program.
Bickford, administrative assistant
in producing operations for the
Allan io Befinin.; Co, was ap
pointed Tuesday, April 30, by B
M Gottlieb, OIC chairman for the
14county North Central Texas
aiSsa. v
This program offers materials
and other educational services to
junior and senior high schools
without charge. Books, charts,
films, lectures and demonstrations
about petroleum are tailored for
the specific use of students and
teachers.
The OIC school program is
sponsored by the American Pe-
trolium Institute nation-wide.
Subscribe to The Carrollton Chronicle
STATE FAIR MUSICALS
TICKETS GO ON SALE
TO PUBLIC MAY 20
DALLAS, Texas—-A combination
of the most exciting array of stars
and productions for the 1957 State
Fair Musicals, plus the opportuni-
ty to purchase tickets to the State
Fair attraction, "My Fair Lady,”
has resulted in the largest priority
-*■
ticket sale in the history of the
Musicals.
The season ticket sale, plus “My
Fair Lady” priority privileges, will
be open to new subscribers on
May 20. This is the first season in
which State Fair Musicals priority
privileges have guaranteed the
same seat locations for the State
Fair show in' October. The new
policy was inaugurated because of
the unprecedented advance de-
mand for "My Fair Lady” tickets.
Beginning June 10 and lasting
through Sept. 1 State Fair Musical
patrons will be offered the cream
of Broadway, Hollywood, television
and opera. The inimitable Judy
Garland opens the season. June 10
with the show that was acclaimed
on Broadway last fall.
June 24 will bring the recent
Broadway hit, "Fanny," starring
Bill Hayes, Nicola Moscona and
Hiram Sherman. July 8 will return
the hilarious hit, “Texas, Lil
Darlin’," with Jack Carson, Danny
Scholl and Jet MacDonald. Musi-
cal’s favorite, "Gisele MacKenzie,”
will return July 22 in "Annie Get
Your Gun.”
Gone are the lovely long. Pa trice
Munsel tresses, cut short especial-
ly for her role in the State Fair
Musicals’ “South Pacific.” Miss
Munsel and Eral Wrightson will
sing this famous love story begin-
ning Aug. 5. Closing the season
will be the sensational Anna Maria
Alberghetti, making her State
Fair Musicals’ debut in “Rose
Marie.”
Season tickets, which offer all
six shows for the price of five,
range from $18.75 to $7.50. All
season tickets carry "My Fair
Lady" ticket guarantees.
JIL
ITS THE LAW
★ ★
INN %m el T—>
"DUVAL COUNTY, USA"
(EDITOR'S NOTE: After Frederick Hodgson finished his series of 11 stories on "Dovel County,"
he returned to the South Texas area for a last look before going back to New York. There he
found additional information which he felt merited one more article, in order to make the
series complete).
Time for Someone To Make a Move:
Will Lawmakers Act, Asks Writer
By-FREDFR1CK HODGSON
SAN DIEGO, Tex.—I’m not
•ure whose move it is in Duval
County, hut I fret the feeling it’s
time for somebody to plav his
hole card.
I have just returned to deep
south Texas after several months
in New York and Hollywood. In
New York negotiating with Ran-
dom House about a book on Duval
County. And in Hollywood writing
otion picture with my
Franz Rosenwald,
a motion picture with my collabo-
rator, Franz Rosenwald, on the
same fascinating subiect.
Now that I’m hack, I’m won-
dering about three things First,
what the Texas Legislature will
do with the opportunity it has
to plug up the loopholes in the
law that made this political jun-
gle possible—this place wherp the
strong have lived off the weak
and snouted their defiance to the
world. I’ll come back to this
Second, I’m wondering about
the man Parr himself and a couple
of his old friends, one of whom
says he is Parr’s enemy while the
other says he hardly knows the
man at all
Parr is different nowadays.
“Plumb crazy.” according to sev-
eral people in this sun-baked
county that slithers in oil. A few
months ago Parr paid a big fine
for waving a carbine and theater
Ing to kill Thomas Molina in the
dim halls of the Duval court
house. He was put under a $7,500
peace bond.
But a few weeks ago he again
pulled a pistol out of the glove
compartment of his car and stuck
It under the nose of Eloy Ra-
mirez. Another conviction for
gun-throwing could cost him that
$7500. The only reason anybody
can figure out for his brashness
Is that Eloy refused to shake
hands with him in Angelina’s
cafe.
The Duke has always been a
gun-waver, but now they say he
waves it with a more deadly ve-
hemence.
Parr doesn’t look good, either.
He has gone bankrupt, and he is
Intermittently on trial in Hous-
ton on a charge of using the mails
to defraud. The trial has started
three times. The first ended with
one man hanging the jury, and
aince then two juries have been
spoiled by the discovery of an
unqualified juror in the hunch.
Parr hates a lot of men, and
his hatred seems to obsess him. It
centers on District Attorney Sam
Burris, now that John Ben Shep-
perd has left the Attorney Gen-
eral’s Office and gone into busi-
ness in West Texas.
Burris is the symbol of all
Parr’s troubles. He is the bulldog
of the law that won’t let go, even
though the Duke has lost his for-
tune, his political power, his pres-
tige, everything. Burris still gets
help from the state, but it was
John Ben Shepperd who started
tearing down the Duke’s feudal
empire, and it was Burris who
helped him. Duval residents say
the Duke can’t talk about any-l
thing but Sam Burris.
The Peripatetic Pals
But about those friends of
Phrr’s. This is what really
prompted me to add this article
to the series of 11 which Franz
Rosenwald and I wrote recently.
They were distributed by the Tex-
as Press Association, and pub-
lished by some 250 dailies and
weeklies in Texas with a reader-
ahip covering more than half the
•Ute. Since so many people are
listening, I want to add a little to
what I said.
Recently Dan Tobin, an able
and personable young man who
was once a Parr stalwart but who
turned against the big boss, has
been running around the state
palsy-walsy with a long-time Pan-
crony named Thomas Y Pickett.
The junkets, to Dallas and other
places, were to raise money from
the oil companies to get Duval
County out of its current finan-
cial jam Judge Tobin, by the way.
is under indictment because of
Pickett is a political fiver of no
little renown in Texas, a sport-
ing man who, like Parr, loves fast
horses. Also like Parr, he once
did time for forgetting to pay his
income tax.
Pickett, is head of Thomas Y.
Pickett and Co. of Dallas. His
firm holds the tax evaluation con-
tracts for Duval County and for
the munty’s school districts. For
tax purposes Duval property is
valued at just over $41 million,
of which some $36 million repre-
sents the valuation of oil and in-
dustrial properties, including util-
ities and railroads.
It’s the tax evaluator’s job, in
this case Pickett, to set the value
of eounty property, and report to
the commissioners (including
Judge Tohin) who, in turn, set the
tax rate Pickett has held the
Duval contract steadily since
1934
This writer talked to Mr. Pick-
ett in his office in Dallas and later
at the Commodore Perry Hotel
in Austin. I promised to print a
statement from him exactly as he
gave it to me. Here it ig, pre-
cisely as typed by his secretary:
“During the period of 1926-27,
and from 1934 to 1950. inclusive,
Thomas Y Pickett and Company
were paid total fees from Duval
County in the amount of $247,-
330.66, and not $900,000 as re-
ported in Collier’s magazine,
which is now out of business.
Since 1950 we have had a con-
tract with Duval County and
they have paid us $15,000 00 per
year ”
Note, please, that Mr Pickett
brings up the matter of Collier’s
magazine I didn’t bring It up.
Note, too, that Mr Pickett makes
no mention of his contracts with
the Duval school districts, includ-
ing the notorious Benavides
School District from which Parr
and his pals are accused of pluck-
ing much of their plunder.
Back in June of 1951 Collier’s
ran an article entitled “Some-
thing Is Rotten in the State of
Texas” and the writer, Gordon
Schendel. brought Pickett into the
picture as being buddy buddy
with the Duke.
Time magazine in its issue of
February 15, 1954, also suggested
a close alliance between Parr and
Pickett and the story caused quite
a sensation in oil circles.
“Why, I hardly know the man,”
Pickett told me. “Oh, 1 guess I’ve
seen him a couple of times when
I’ve been down in Duval on busi-
ness.”
Mr Pickett went on to make
this interesting observation:
“I was the most surprised man
in Texas when I read in the
papers what had been going on
down there.”
Okay, let’s look at the record.
It’s o lulu.
At Pickett’s federal trial for
income tax evasion it came out
that he had taken $150,000 from
W. L. Pearson and Co. of Hous-
ton to swing a road bond vote in
Hutchinson County.
At Parr’s federal trial for in-
come tax evasion it came out that
he had taken a $25,000 kick-back
from the same W. L. Pearson and
Co. on a Duval County road con-
tract. Farr was then County
Judge.
The two men, Parr and Pickett,
are as alike in some departments
as two peas in a pod.
In the multitudinous court ac-
tions in the sticky Duval situation
much has been made of bank
checks, many of them made out
to persons both existent and non-
existent.
In the Pickett trial the evidence
showed that he had no less than
six hidden bank accounts. Testi-
mony of federal experts, admitted
to by Pickett on the stand, showed
that he used the system now at-
tributed famously to Parr. Checks
were endorsed in Pickett's own
handwriting with such names as
J. S Carnes. C O. Carnes, J C.
Jones, Jack Jones and Jack John-
son.
I have a stack of checks beside
me as I write. All of them are
drawn on the Duval County gen-
eral fund, all made out in Parr’s
own handwriting, and all made
out either to Thomas Y. Pickett
and Co. or to Thomas V Pirket.t.
personally.
Most of the checks are in the
amount of $1 JW)0 and the endorse-
ments on these are correct, each
check stamped on the hack Thom-
as Y. Pickett and Co and each
deposited in the company’s ac-
count.
Two of the cheeks, however,
stand real scrutiny. They’re not
piddling little $1,006 items. They
are for big money And they
don’t bear tbe Pickett company
rubber stamp, indicating that they
didn’t, go through the company
account
One of these checks, dated
simply June, 1951, and not signed
by the County Judge as required
by Texas law, is for $5,500 This
check is number 544.
Tbe other check, number 17, is
dated July, 1952. It is for a whop-
ping $6,500 And this one wasn’t
signed by the County Judge as
required by law
Tbe harder up the county gets
financially, the more they dig
around in tbe old records. And
the more they dig around in the
old records, the more odd-looking
checks they turn up with funny
endorsements. _____
As I said, Dan Tobin and Thom-
as Y. Pickett have been running
around the state trying to tap the
oil companies for a little financial
assistance to the county. Tobin
split with the Duke some time
hack, and Pickett says be hardly
knows the man. Maybe they’re
both smart. A lot of the Duke’s
old friends hove found themselves
in trouble.
The Cause of Corruption in Texas
Which brings me to the third
thing I’ve been wondering about
What is the Texas Legislature
going to do about plugging the
gaps in the law which John Ben
Shepperd said make situations
like Duval County possible?
I’ve read several articles in na-
tional magazines about the cor-
ruption in Texas on tbe state
level. I’ve been in and out of
Texas, studying Texas laws and
lawbreakers and writing a book
and a movie script, for about 10
months now. In my bumble opin-
ion tbe corruption in Texas starts
right down at the grass roots,
in tbe counties ana the little
towns. And it starts with the out-
moded Texas Constitution and the
lack of adequate statutes to en-
able people at the county level
to keep things clean. Your pri-
mary trouble. Texan, Is not in
Austin.
Twice in as many legislative
sessions tbe Texas Press Associa-
tion has laid a stack of proposed
bills in front of the lawmakers,
incorporating a number inspired
by Sbeppera’s findings in Duval
County along with others that
Shepperd and the TPA have
urged “for good government in
Texas.” These others deal mostly
with keeping government meet-
ings open to the public eye, keep-
ing public records public, and
requiring the publication of in-
formation tbe people have a right
to know.
As John Ben Shepperd put it,
“Take any four or five of these
proposed new laws and enforce
them, and you just can’t have a
Duval Countv.” There are 15 of
them altogether.
I came back to Texas to do
some final checking on a few
things, including these bills. I
have to admit that even with my
natural newsman’s cynicism. I
was a little staggered to find that
the Texas Legislature hid been
in session three months in 1957
and was active six months in
1955—and in all that time only
a couple of the bills have strug-
gled through to the Governor’s
desk for signing into law.
Some of the most important of
them are staggering through tbe
legislative halls, not expected to
live. Others have had their death
blow unless interested citizens
raised a protest.
Among the staggering is SB
223, which would make it pos-
sible for men who steal public
funds to be indicted and prose-
cuted outside the county of the
embezzlers from getting off scot
free by controlling judges, prose-
cuting attorneys, or grand juries.
Shepperd says this is the most
important bill, from the stand-
point of criminal law, and he
ought to know. To get the Duval
County indictments ne had to wait
for a district Judge, a district
attorney and a grand jury to be
thrown out. SB 223 is in a Senate
subcommittee, and its survival
looks doubtful.
Another bill buried in a Senate
subcommittee where the death
rate is high is SB 88. It would
forbid holding government meet-
ings in secret, except as provided
by law.
SB 31, you might say, has been
sent to Death Row. It was re-
ferred to the Attorney General
for re-drafting, with the inten-
tion of killing it. Its purpose is
to remove from office any public
official who stands on the Fifth
Amendment to avoid showing his
public records or answering ques-
tions about his official actions.
A bill requiring county attorn-
eys to sue for the recowry of
unlawfully expended money, with
or without tne consent of the
commissioners court, is also in a
Senate subcommittee but has a
little better chance of survival
It is SB 224.
A number of others haven't had
any torpedoes thrown into them,
but tbe lawmakers' enthusiasm
for them is not conspicuous. In
fact, the boys are taking their
good old easy time, if not actually
stalling. Companion bills to those
listed above are kicking around
in House committees, faring little
better than In tbe Senate, appar-
ently.
I might say right here that the
views expressed herein are mine,
not necessarily those of the TPA.
Among the 16 “Better Govern-
ment” bills, I count only two that
have passed both houses of the
Legislature, and three others that
have passed one House only.
Bills which have gone to the
Governor for signature open po-
litical precinct conventions to rep-
resentatives of the press, and re-
quire a special audit of county
records in any county upon a
petition of at least 30 per cent
of the qualified voters. Both were
designed to provide Texans with
more adequate knowledge of what
goes on In their counties and their
state.
Three others have passed either
th* House or Senate, but not both
of tbe Legislative, bodies. Sena-
tors okayed SB 131 to require
school districts and other politi-
cal subdivisions to publish annual
financial statements: likewise SB
55, a Mandatory Publications Act
to assure that public officials will
publish the information they are
supposed to under present laws.
I’m told this one can get through
if a few citizens interested in
good government will speak up
for it to urge its passage through
the House.
House members passed HB 199
providing for stopping payments
to school districts which, like the
notorious Benavides district, fail
or to refuse to furnish an audit
of accounts.
In fact, just about any of theae
bills, even the ones that are all
but dead and buried in the sub-
committees, might pass if a few
interested citizens would speak
up for them.
So as I head back for Holly-
wood, I’m going to stick my neck
out and offer Texans a little word
of advice. I’ve known Capone and
Costello and some of the other
big-time boys, and I’ve been in
Europe where I looked on the
faces of bigger, better dictators
than Boss Parr. But I haven’t
seen one yet that couldn’t be
been stopped by a few good laws,
properly enforced.
Texans like their “local auton-
omy,” that peculiar Constitutional
system by which every Texas
county is an island with a fence
around it when it comes to en-
forcing the law and prosecuting
by the TPA are especially de-
signed to accomplish good law en-
forcement without disturbing that
local autonomy. That's the ap-
praisal of John Ben Shepperd,
former Attorney General who
busted Duval wide open from the
inside, without violating any-
offense. Such a law would prevent body's local self-government.
(This column, based on Texas
law. is written to inform—not to
advise. No person should ever
apply or interpret any law with-
out the aid of an attorney who
knows the facts, because the
facts may change the application
of the law.)
tii
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Hundreds of years ago, insur-
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cargo, say, and in doing so he
might lose his fortune.
But in 1825 the British House of
Commons looked into England’s
insurance business, and said this:
When there’s a risk, the best
way to guard against it is to join
with others; so that each man
might lose a little, hut no man
can lose a lot. Spread the risk.
As a result, insurance today is
a big business. We have millions
of policies worth billions of dollars
in force.
An insurance policy is a con-
tract. The company promises to
pay you a certain sum for loss or
damage of the thing you insure—
your life, your home, your health
and the like. And you promise to
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Your policy sets out what you
have both agreed to. Most of the
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to insurance policies.
There are many types of poli-
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Other insurable risks are theft,
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Other household hazards also
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Sometimes you can make the
person who caused the damage
pay But if he has no money, and
neither of you has insurance, you
often must pay yourself
Suppose a guest slips and falls
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or your dog bites the postman.
You could R>e liable. You can in-
sure yourself against many of
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and gunnery practice.
However, with the recent re-
lease of the F-86-H Sabre Jet air-'
craft to reserve units, the Air
Force decided to change the sum-
mer training location of its fighter
bomber wings to Memphis to con-
centrate on transition to the new-
er, faster Sabre Jet. Formerly, the
448th flew F-80 Shooting Stars.
The Lone Star Wing was the
first Reserve organization to re-
ceive the Sabre Jets. A school for
training pilots was established at
Hensley Field on February 4. This
school moved to Memphis on April
21.
LONE STAR BOMBER WING
TO TRAIN AT MUNICIPAL
AIRPORT, MEMPHIS, TENN.
Proposed site of the two^week
summer training field for the
448th Fighter Bomber Wing (Re-
serve) has been changed from
Eglin Air Force Base No. 2, Fla.,
to the Municipal Airport in Mem-
phis, Tenn., Brig. Gen. Jerry W.
Davidson, commander, has an-
nounced.
Last year, the 448th, or Lone
Star Wii\g, went to Gulfport, Miss.,
for its annual two-week training
period.
Original plans for this year
called for the wing to spend June
30 through July 14 at the Florida
base where pilots were to have eon-
cbntriffed on flight proficiency
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ARCHIE GARRETT
Special Agent
DRIVER REMINDED OF
MORAL AND SOCIAL
OBLIGATIONS IN DRIVING
AUSTIN, Texas-J. O. Musiek,
general manager of the Texas
Safety Association, said today, "In
no place is religion more practical
than behind the wheel of a car."
The problem of traffic accidents
is not merely a technical problem
of engineering, licensing and en-
forcement, Musiek explained. It is
basically a human problem. Acci-
dents are caused by drivers, not hy
automobiles.
“All the advances made in auto-
motive design, better and safer
streets and highways, and new
techniques and devises for effici-
ent traffic movement will not solve
the traffic accident problem until
drivers really become aware of
their moral and social obligation
behind the wheel of a car," the
traffic expert said.
“Deliberate or unintentional
violation of a traffic law or sign,
or of the dictates of common sense
or courtesy, takes the ‘accident’
factor out of traffic accidents.
Such actions place the burden of
guilt upon the negligent driver.
And if death results, the guilty
driver also has broken tbe Com-
mandment—Thou Shalt Not Kill!"
’It is time for all persons who
profess any religious faith, to ac-
cept their moral responsibilities
in helping to prevent traffic acci-
dents," Musiek said.
“Anger, impatience, selfishness
—have no place on the roads.
They lead to accidents and often
to death. Love, courtesy and con-
sideration, on the other hand, will
reduce traffic accidents.”
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Sindik, Nicholas J. The Carrollton Chronicle (Carrollton, Tex.), Vol. 53, No. 24, Ed. 1 Friday, May 10, 1957, newspaper, May 10, 1957; Carrollton, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth728007/m1/2/?q=%22%22~1&rotate=180: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Carrollton Public Library.