MARCH 1973

CONFIDENCE--- - - was the hal/mark of Dr. Samuel T. Busey, Colonel T. H. Barton, Charles Murphy, Bruce Hunt, H. L. Hunt, A. D. Pope, and the many others who have given Arkansas a Thriving Oil & Gas Industry, and have made EI Dorado a "Community with a Dynamic Destiny".

CONFIDENCE--- - - Is the essence of our brand of banking, as evidenced by the recent purchase of our bank building and expansion of aI/ our customer service facilities and capabilities. We likewise are proud of the "Confidence of our Customers," as reflected by our Increased resources.

e

THE EXCHANGE BANK AND r~ÂŁ~'E~.l!~!:ANY

--------------_._--

-

MARCH 1973 VOL. 7 NO.2

THE OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE ARKANSAS BAR ASSOCIAliON

OFFICERS Henry Woods, President James E. West, Vice·President James M. Moody, Secretary·Treasurer EXECUTIVE OIRECTOR C. E. Ransick

~e

Arkansas Lawyer SPECIAL FEAlURES History of the Bench and the Bar Annie Laurie Spencer 12th Annual Arkansas O&G Institute Law Day USA Appellate Advocacy: Its Significance for Both Judge and Lawyer Judge Donald R. Lay

88 86 59

56

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL Thomas F. Butt John A. Oavis, 111 Julian B. Fogleman John P. Gill Herman Hamilton W. D. Murphy Dale Price Robert D. Ross Douglas O. Smith, Jr. David Solomon Otis H. Turner Robert Hays Williams

REGULAR FEAlURES Cover Story: The EI Dorado-Smackover Saga 65 Henry Woods 50 President's Report Juris Dictum .................•........... .C. R. Hule 54 Robert Brockmann 60 Law School News Oyez-Oyez .................•.•......... . B. Ghormley 53 Executive Council Notes James M. Moody 55 Lawyer's Mart ...............•.•......................62 Service Directory ............•.•....•......•.•.•......61

Ex·Officio Henry Woods James E. West James M. Moody Paul B. Young Richard F. Hatfield James B. Sharp EDITORIAL COMMITTEE Robert D. Ross Philip E. Dixon C. E. Ransick MARCH 1973

Published bi-monlhly by the Arkansas Bar ASSOciation, 408 Donaghey Bldg .• little Rock, Arkansas 72201. Second class

postage paid at liltle ROCk, Arkansas. Sub. scflpllon price 10 non-members of the Arkansas Bar Association S6,OO per year and to members $2.00 per year included in annual dues. Any opinion expressed herein IS that of the author, and not necessarily that of the Arkansas Bar Association, The Arkansas lawyer. or the Editorial Committee. Conlributions 10 the Arkansas lawyer are welcome and should be sent in Iwo copies 10 the Arkansas Bar Center. 408 Donaghey Bldg.. little Rock. Arkansas 72201.

All inquiries regarding advertising should be sent to Advertising Department. Arkansas lawyer, Post Ollice Box 4117, North lIltie Rock. Arkansas 72116.

49

PIESIJIIT~S

IEPOIT

By Henry Woods

Our success with the Association's legislative package has convinced me that the Bar has been a sleeping giant in legislative influence, Once aroused we can have a great impact on The General Assembly. The "No Faull" bill which we supported is a good example. This bill was opposed by both statewide little Rock papers, many other dailies and weeklies, the Arkansas Insurance Agents Association, the stock insurance companies, and the AFL-CIO. We were its only advocates, but our members followed up a series of meetings by individual contacts with the Senators and Representatives. The bill was explained and the barrage of propaganda against it was countered. Seventeen hundred articulate and knowledgeable lobbyists are hard to defeat, as is shown by the vote on this bill (HB 158), which was 79-12 in the House and 27-2 in the Senate.

The most gratifying experience in my dealings with the 1973 General Assembly has been a gradual reversal in the attitude of the members toward the Arkansas Bar Association. In the past the Association endorsement has been the kiss of death on many bills. All that was sufficient to defeat legislation was for a member to jump up and shout that "this is a lawyer's bill".

I am glad to report that this situation has changed. During this entire session the sponsors of our legislation have invariably opened debate by a statement that the bill in question was drafted and is being supported by the Arkansas Bar Association. Many times a unanimous vote has followed this simple statement.

Such a dramatic change of attitude is the resull of the work you have done back in the legislative districts to improve our relationship with the members of the General Assembly. Very few votes are gained for or against a bill in little Rock. Legislators harken to the voice of the people back home.

I want to thank each of you for helping to make our legislative program such an outstanding success. Many times Bill Wilson and I have awakened you after midnight, disturbed your dinner, or called you out of an important meeting to help on a legislative matter. Your response has been truly wonderful and is reflected in a long series of "aye" votes for our bills. I want also to take this occasion to thank Bill Wilson, our legislative liaison representative, for a superb performance. The Legislation Committee could not J- ~ have chosen a better spokesman for our legislative interests.

50

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

;::

禄 :D n I

....

W

(0

Governor Bumpers signs 5.8. 26 (Howell) - now Act 38 - authorizing The Supreme Court to prescribe Rules of Civil Procedure. This Important bill was handled in the House by Representarives Shaver and Winston Bryant. Left to fight: Senator Max Howell, Rep. J. L. Shaver, Jr.,

Governor Bumpers. Rep. Winston Bryant and Association President Henry Woods.

Governor Bumpers signs H.B. 158 (Honey and Shaver) - now Act 138. This was rhe Association's "No路Fault" Bill. It was handled in the Senate by Senator Harold King. Left to right: Representative Jim Shaver. Governor Bumpers, Senator Harold King, and Representative Charles Honev.

Governor Bumpers signs Senate Bill 20 (Walmsley) - now Act 116 - amending the Uniform

Commercial Code. Representative Windsor handled the Bill in the House. The Governor invited Mr. Joe Barrert to be present when he signed the bill in recognition of his tireless work on this

~

bill. Left to right: Representative Gayle Windsor, Governor Bumpers, Senator Bill Walmsley and Han. Joe Barrett.

Governor Bumpers signs S.B. 423 (Gathright & Pulaski Delegation) - dedicating portion of court costs for legal education. This bill was handled in the House by Representatives Shaver and Windsor. Left to right: Sean tors Morrell Gathright, Ralph Patterson, Max Howell, Governor Bumpers, Senaror Joe Ford, Representative Jim Shaver, Henry Woods, Senator Jerry Jewell.

Great partnership: lewis & Clark ...another great partnership:

ARKAnSAS BAR ASSOCIATion & RATHER BEVER & HARPER Working together with CNA/ insurance to provide you major protection for professionalbusiness-personal liability and medical expenses. The higher limits of supplemental protection you need in these areas i!'> now available.

nEW PROFESSionAL LlABILlTV PROGRAm • $1,000,000 Professional Business Umbrella • $1,000,000 Personal Umbrella • $25,000 excess medical expense coverage

Want more details? Call or write Arkansas Bar Association Administrator Rather, Beyer & Harper Three Hundred Spring BUilding Little Rock, Arkansas 72201 (501) 372-4117

52

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

Marlon S. Gill, Dumas, has been appointed to fill the unexpired term of the late Judge Paul Ward of Little Rock on the Arkansas Justice Building Commission by Governor Dale Bumpers. James M. May, III, has been elected President of the Student Bar

By B. Ghormley

Ronald L. Burton Jim May

Association at the University of Arkansas School of Law at Fayetteville.

WIllis B. Smith, Jr., Texarkana, has now become the full-time City Attorney for Texarkana. Joe Gunter, Cabot, has accepted a position with the Fairfield Land Communities of Little Rock.

Ed Bethune, Searcy, has been appointed to the Ninth District of the Home Loan Bank Board. Gene Rail, Helena, has been elected President of the Arkansas Prosecuting Attorneys Association.

WIlliam H. Bowen, President of Commercial National Bank of Little Rock, has been appointed to the taxation committee of the American Bankers Association and also serves on the taxation committee of the Chamber of Commerce of the United States. Herby Branscum, Jr., Perryville, has been selected to participate in the 1972-73 Fellowship Program of the Institute of Politics in Arkansas. D. B. "Boone" Bartlett, Clarksville, is retiring at 92 years of age. The law firm of Lavey and Brewer, Little Rock is now located in the Pyramid Life Building, Suite 721. Wallace M. Moody, EI Dorado, is now associated with H. Derrel Dickens, 814 Lion Oil Building. The law firm of Charles 8as8 Trumbo and the law firm of Kin路 cald and Horne, Fayetteville, have been combined to form Kincaid, MARCH 1973

Horne and Trumbo, First National Bank Bldg. Ronald L. Burton has returned to Arkansas from two years active duty and is now associGted with Hartje and Hartje, Conway. David L. Osmon has become a partner in the law firm of Poynter and Huckaba, Mountain Home. George Proctor and T. B. FitZhugh, Augusta, have formed a partnership, Fitzhugh & Proctor, with offices located at 115 Main Street. Leroy Blankenship and Dick Jarboe, Walnut Ridge, have also formed a partnership with offices located at 725 Clark Center. John D. Brldg'orth, West Memphis, has joined the law firm of Nance, Nance and Fleming. Ronald L. Winningham, formerly of Walnut Ridge, is now engaged in the practice of law at Newport. Fred MacDonald and Dan Kennett have formed a partnership, MacDonald & Kennett, with offices located at 309 W. Ged;::!r, Brir"lkley Sam E. Gibson, formerly of Little Rock, is now located for the practice of law at 209 N. Main, Benton. David Stewart, Danville, has opened a new law office iocated in the Dan-Ark Village. Charles L. Goclo and Ralph C. Williams, Bentonville, have formed a partnership, Goclo & Williams, 104 So. Main. Bobby Odom, Fayetteville, has become a member of the Law firm, Niblock and Hlpp. Joa A. Polk, EI Dorado, has joined the law firm of

Brown, Compton & Prewett, Ltd. Charles W. Baker and M. J. Probst have formed a partnersh ip, Baker & Probst, P.A., 115 E. Capitol, Little Rock. Harper, Young & Smith, Fort Smith, have announced that S. Walton Mauna8 has become a partner and that G. Alan Wooten is now an associate. Gibbs Ferguson, McGehee, is now located at 209 West Oak Street.

Timothy F. Watson, Newport, is now a member of the law firm Pickens, Boyce & McLarty. Bob Sanders, Arkadelphia, has been selected to appear in the 1972 edition of "Personalities of the South." Sam Hilburn and Clifton H. Hoo'man, North Little Rock, have been named as Assistant City Attorneys. The Tenth Chancery District Bar conducted a memorial service for recently deceased attorneys of the group. Desha County Bar Association honored Judge James Merritt of McGehee on his retirement from office. Cleburne County Bar Association honored two county office holders on their retirement. Pulaski County Bar Association presented newly elected Judge Darrell Hickman his judicial robe at a ceremony held January 2, 1973. The Eighth Chancery Bar has elected Gray Dellinger as its new President; Wayna Boyce, Vice-President; and Fred Livingston, SecretaryTreasurer. Independence County Bar Association's new President is Tom Allen; C. T. Bennett, Vice-President; and Mrs. Bernice McSpadden, Secretary-Treasurer. Garland County Bar Association elected Robert S. Campbell as its new President; Gene Matthews, Jr., Vice-President; and Regina Johns, Secretary. Baxter-Marion County Bar Association new officials are: President, Gordon F, Engeler, Jr.; Vice-President, James C. Johnson; and Secretary-Treasurer, Drew Luttrell. Arkansas County Bar Association has elected Claude W. Jenkins as President for 1973. Union County Bar Association has elected new officers: President, Michael F. Mahony; Vice-President, Wallace M. Moody; and Secretary-Treasurer, Albert R. Hanna. !I_-..

53

J RIS DICTUM

by C.R. Huie Executive Secretary. Judicial Department

The Supreme Court Committee on Professional Conduct has been quite busy during the past year following the employment of a full time executive secretary and the establishment of a full time office.

Mr. Taylor Roberts assumed his duties as Executive Secretary of the Committee on February 1, 1972 and the following is taken from his report covering the ten month period through December 31.

During that period 204 complaints were received and recorded which required some action on the part of the executive secretary, such as a letter to the attorney in question for information purposes; telephone calls to attorneys and complainants; check of court records; personal conferences; written correspondence; interviews of witnesses; preparation of affidavits and other relevant activities. Of the 204 complaints received I and recorded, 77 written Affidavits of Complaint were filed with the executive secretary.

Approximately 260 inquiries were received by his office, either in person or by telephone, of which no official record was made. These matters were disposed of at the time of the inquiry.

Of the 77 formal Affidavits of Complaint which were filed with the office, 52 were referred to the entire committee. The balance were either withdrawn by the complaining party or by request of the complaining party and were never completely processed.

During the period the executive secretary conducted 90 personal interviews.

The Committee on Professional Conduct met six times during the

Money •

IS money.

Only investment

bankers are different.

We're a young organization built on enthusiasm. And energy. And cooperation. An organization where imagination and desire are watchwords.

Make us prove it.

Stephens Inc.

Continued on page 55¡

54

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE NOTES

By James M. Moody Secretary-Treasurer

Bar sponsored legislation remained high on the priority of business of the Executive Council at its meetings in Hot Springs on January 17 and in Little Rock on February 17.

The Council approved two bills recommended by Jack Lavey, Chairman of the Corrections Committee, which would provide an administrative board for control of detention centers and would remove some civil disabilities of employment for convicted felons. Approval was also given to a bill suggested by Edward Bedwell which would authorize the State Game and Fish Commission to adopt Coast Guard regulations on rivers and lakes in Arkansas not subject to federal law. All of these bills were later approved by the House of Delegates.

Henry Woods and Bill Wilson have worked tirelessly in the legislature since it convened, and their efforts have been rewarding. They have received the cooperation and assistance of many legislators, some who are members of the bar and some who are not, and most of the bills sponsored by the Association have passed.

The most publicized of these was the proposed "No-Fault Bill" which became Act 138 on February 16, 1973, but many others of equal importance have also become law.

Some bills, such as the act to allow taxing of $1.00 per case to finance legal education, have met unexpected opposition. This bill was defeated in the House and a substitute bill proposed. It would be helpfUl for each member of the Association to contact his senator and representative and express his interest in this legislation.

The, Secretary is happy to report that the finances of the Association are in good shape. The books were recently audited by E. L. Cullum & Company and, as of the end of the fiscal year ending June 30, 1972, the Association showed a gain of MARCH 1973

$10,902.08 of income over expenses.

The Association has current assets of $54,514.05 and fixed assets of $4,304.64 for total assets of $58,818.69. This compares with current liabilities of $2,727.60 and member equity of $56,088.09. A projection of expenditures for the last six months of 1972 indicate the Association will stay within its income despite some unusual expenses in connection with the annual meeting in June, 1973, and the current legislative program.

The Continuing Legal Education Committee has made tentative plans for a fall iegal institute in Litlle Rock in September, 1973, to include such topics as important enactments of the 1973 legislature, discussion of the Federal Rules of Evidence, and a

seminar on developments in Workmen's Compensation Law. The midwinter meeting will revolve around the dedication of the new Bar Center.

The Oil and Gas Institute will hold its annual meeting at the Arlington Hotel in Hot Springs on April 12 and 13.

The Extension Service will conduct two County Estate Planning Workshops in Magnolia and Jonesboro to acquaint farmers with estate tax laws.

Members of the Association will be chosen to participate on the program.

The Council has voted to implement a statewide Lawyer Referral Service on a trial basis for one year.

Association membership continues to set records with 1,704 active and :1-=. current members.

Juris Dictum

office at 1104 Worthen Bank Building in Little Rock. His office is listed in the telephone directory as "Committee on Professional Conduct" and the number is 376-6747.

Mr. Roberts was educated in the little Rock pUblic schools, secured his A.B. degree at Hendrix College In 1944 and his LLB from the Arkansas Law School in Little Rock in 1950. He was admitted to the Arkansas Bar the same year, and SUbsequently was employed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation. He assumed the office of executive secretary for the committee February " 1972, and is performing well a difficult and important task.

Members of the Committee on Professional Conduct are James Hale, West Memphis, Chairman; David Solomon, Helena; William M. Moorhead, Stutlgart; Mark Woolsey, Ozark; Don Smith, Pine Bluff; James A. Ross, Monticello; and E. L. McHaney, Litlle Rock.

The Bar and Judiciary of Arkansas have every reason to be prOUd of the important work done by the committee :l-~<o<... and its secretary.

Continued from page 54路

period and conducted 11 formal hearings. As of January " 1973 three formal hearings by the full commitlee were scheduled and pending.

Of the 52 formal complaints referred to the whole committee, nine were still pending as of January 1.

Nine official letters of reprimand were issued by the committee to Arkansas atlorneys, and, as a result of committee activity, one attorney voluntarily surrendered his license to the Supreme Court. One disbarment suit was tried in Pulaski County Circuit Court which resulted in the Court finding in favor of the defendant. An additional disbarment suit was in preparation at the time of the filing of the report.

At the end of the year 38 complaints were pending before the committee in various stages of processing.

Activities of the committee are funded by the $17 annual license fee paid by all practicing attorneys. The executive secretary maintains the full time

55

Appellate Advocacy:

It's Significance for Both Judge and Lawyer

By Donald P. Lay United States Circuit Judge U. S. Court of Appeals (8th Circuit)

For some time now institutes on trial advocacy have played a significant role in the lawyer's post-legal education. Lectures, panels, mock trials, and demonstrations offer exciting programs for young and old lawyers alike. The popularity of this type of institute undoubtedly stems from the need for self-improvement both in and out of the courtroom. The subject matter usually ranges from the initial client interview through the closing argument, thereby covering such topics as the opening statement, direct and cross-examination, demonstrative evidence and instructions.

Notwithstanding the merit of such an extensive program and interest, it seems to me that the Bar as a whole has been remiss in slighting an essential link in the legal process - the art of appellate advocacy. In the appellate laboratory there are equally important skills to be developed in the preparation of the record, the brief and in presentation of the oral argument itself. I still await with anticipation the institute which will do a meaningful and professional job on appellate advocacy.

Perhaps there exists an obvious reason for the underplay of these skills in the appellate court.

This was recently brought home to me when I was introduced to a young lawyer as being on the appellate court. Following the introduction he proudly asserted, "I'm afraid I don't ever get to the appellate court - I'm a trial lawyer you know - I only like to work where the action is."

I smiled, perhaps erroneously, and held back my mental processes "Oh, how mistaken he really is." I recalled Chief Justice Stone's earlier 56

comment that "on appeal it is not only the cause which is to be decided, but the law itself is on trial." It is before the appellate court where structural change in the fabric of the law must take place. Within appellate advocacy is the embryo for the McPhersons v.

Buick, the Browns v. Boards of Education, the Bakers v. Carr and the Gideons. Here, gentlemen, if I may use the expression of my young friend, is "where the action truly is."

If this be so, then what has happened to the appellate courts and their attitude toward appellate advocacy? As many of you know, the courts of appeal have now adopted a screening process whereby a significant number of cases are now being relegated to a "no argument" calendar. Other cases are being placed on a summary calendar and only abbreviated arguments are permitted. Recently the Fifth Circuit announced that last year they disposed of 65 per cent of their cases without oral argument. How can the recognized importance of appellate advocacy be reconciled with such court procedures?

How does this square with Mr. Justice Frankfurter's statement years back that "Every case worthy of an appeal is worthy of an argument."?

I submit to you there are several reasons for the court's recent actions.

The screening process is a much needed innovation if the courts of apa peal are to keep up with the numbers game. In the almost seven years I have been on the court we have jumped from less than 300 dispositions a year to now over 1200. There is no doubt that many appeals are indeed frivolous. Where a jurisdictional defect is patent, where settled case law

obviously controls the result or where fact findings are obviously supported by the evidence, an appellate court should not waste its time hearing oral argument. However, there is another prevasive reason which should be of concern to you. I feel it is unfortunate that an increasing number of appellate judges are tending to view oral argument as not helpful. I can assure you that is not the attitude of our court. In fact, last week the lawyers in three cases called at the last minute and stipulated to waive oral argument.

Since our panel felt that the cases were too important, we required the lawyers to appear and argue. Nevertheless, there exists a growing tendency by many appellate judges to dispense with oral argument. I sense many judges study the briefs and records prior to argument with the idea of trying to resolve the case. They come to oral argument with a deep-seated conviction; a conviction that can seldom be changed. Consequently, oral argument means very little to these jUdges. For as you know, a person hears only those things he really wants to hear. Human nature is such that we tend to understand only those things which we want to understand.

So the judge who approaches oral argument with preconceived convictions finds little aid from the advocate's presentation. I think pre-argument stUdy is the most important work an appellate judge performs. Nevertheless, after thorough preparation I try only to formulate the issues and to develop questions to be explored on both sides. Obviously one can't help but get a "flavor" from the briefs and

Continued on page 57路

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

record, but even though it IS sometimes a fine line to draw, a judge should never let an attitude or tentative feeling reach the height of conviction before oral argument.

In 1955, Mr. Justice Harlan oullined before the Fourth Circuit Conference the importance of oral argument from the viewpoint of the Court. He there observed: A) "First 01 all, judges have dillerent work habits. There are some judges who listen better than they read and who are more receptive to the spoken then the written word.

B) "Secondly, the first impressions that a judge gets of a case are very tenacious. They Irequently persist into the conference room. And those impressions are actually gained from the oral argument, if it is an effective job C) "Thirdly, the decisional process in many courts places a special burden on the oral argument. I am giving away no secrets, I am sure, when I say that in one 01 the Courts 01 Appeals where I was assigned to sit temporarily the voting on the cases took place each day lollowlng the close 01 the arguments. In the Supreme Court, our practice, as is well known, has been to hold our conferences at the end of each week of arguments. They have been on Saturdays up until now, but under a more enlightened schedule they will be on Fridays next term, because beginning October we are going to sit four days a week. Under either of those systems you can see the importance which the oral argument assumes.

0) "Fourth, and to me this is one of the mast Important things, the job 01 courts is not merely one of an umpire in disputes between litigants. Their job is to search out the truth, both on the facts and the law, and that is ultimately the job 01 the lawyers, too. And in that joint effort, the oral argument gives an opportunity for interchange between court and counsel which the briefs do not give. For my part, there is no substitute, even within the time limits allorded by the busy calendars 01 modern appellate courts, lor the Socratic method of procedure in getting at the real heart of an issue and in finding out where the truth lies.'"

There is another reason why some judges underrate oral argument on appeal. This arises because of the increasing tendency of lawyers, the advocates, to fail to seek out excellence in their presentation on the appeal. If oral argument provides no help to the court, there is little reason to have it. I sense some arguments are poorly prepared because of the law-

MARCH 1973

yer's misapprehension that oral advocacy does not playa significant role in the decisional process. I can assure you that this is fallacious thought.

However, please do not take my word alone; listen to the words of the greatly respected Karl Llewellyn: "The function of the oral presentation is, if that be do-able, to catch and rivet attention, to focus the issue into a single challenging question, to make the facts create ineluctable conviction as to where right lies and to fit that conviction into a persuasive, even compelling legal frame. The brief can develop the frame; but the oral argument must get the case set into the desired frame, and for keeps. I do not see how so delicate a task can responsibly be left to paper when an accepted institutional pattern offers a way 01 dealing with the tribunal lace to face. In oral argument lies counsefs one hedge against misdiagnosis and misperformance in the brief, the one last chance of locating a postern missed in the advance survey. In oral argument lies the opportunity to catch attention and rouse interest among men who must be got to read - or to reread - this brlel not as a routine duty nor under the undiscriminating press of other business, but with the pointed concentration this cause merits.

"Finally, the oral argument is the one chance for you (not for some chance-assigned mere judge) to answer any questions you can stir any member of the court into being bothered about and into bothering with, and the one chance to sew up each such question into a remembered point in favor. By the same token, in the measure that this court has the practice of leaning heavily on either the reporting judge, or the chiel, or both, or on the court's expert in the field, in that same measure the oral argument gives you your one direct access to the whole team together.

"In any but freak situations, oral argument is a must."2 A short time before I went on the court a young lawyer in my office was arguing a case before our circuit. The night before he left for SI. Louis I saw him and asked him if he were well prepared for the argument. His answer was, "I have lived with this case for two years. I know it backward and forward. I don't have to prepare." He lost the appeal in a case I always felt he should have won. In contrast, I know of lawyers who have spent as much as two weeks' time org.anizing their oral presentation, mastering the record and then narrowing their sights on the issues which they felt would probably

bother the court.

Justice Schaefer wrote a few years back: .. The law lives and cases are decided and advocates become great advocates because they know that area of policy and the considerations out of which the black-letter rules evolve. Keep your written argument and your oral argument pitched to take account of these considerations - but do not put your argument solely in terms of a bare absolute rule which the court may have announced in a particular case . .. The judge will want to know why the rule has evolved and why it is important that the rule either be extended or cut short of your particular case. He will want to know the policy factors that govern the particular case. Your statement of these factors in the light of the structure of decided cases will be most helplul to the court, and happily you will be most helplul to yoursell and to your clients if you pitch your argument this way, because this is the level on which cases are actuaJly won."3 Simitarly, Arthur T. Vanderbilt has written: "The argument of an appeal is the climax of a case ... You face a select audience that is experienced, professionaJly critical but not unIriendly, and keenly interested in knowing the lacts and applying the law to them and more or Jess prepared lor the occasion. The challenge is great; the entire outcome of the case, victory or deleat, will be inlluenced by the effectiveness of your oral argument."4 May I make a few suggestions to you as counsel in arguing your appeal.

1) Have total familiarity with the record and your brief. It is always distasteful to me when counsel says, "I don't remember" or "I did not try the case" or "I will have to look it up."

2) Be innovative. Demonstrative illustrations can be as useful on appeal as in the trial. In a patent case, an enlarged diagram will help (movies can provide vivid illustration). In tort cases, enlarged photos can help cement understanding. In contract cases, enlarged documents of the contracts could be presented in the courtroom. In statutory construction,

1. Mr. Justice Harlan, JUdicial Conference of the FourTh Circuit, June 24, 1955.

2. Karl N. llewellyn. The Common Law TradiTion Deciding Appeals, p. 240. ' The Appellate Court, 3 2. SCh~eler, U.Chl.L.Scho.Rec. 1.

4. ArThur T. Vanderbilt, Forensic Persuasion, The 1950 John Randolph Tucker Memorial Lectures 8t WaShington and Lee University, pp. 14-15 (Journalism Laboratory Press of Washington and Lee University, 1950).

57

enlarged wording on a plat may assist the court in following your argument.

3) Be exciting.

4) Be prepared to argue against unfavorable precedenl.

Chief Justice Frank Kenison of the New Hampshire Supreme Court has suggested an excellent analyses as to the approach a lawyer can take in preparing the appellate brief. Although he relates this to legal precedent, it seems to me that his succinct analyses can apply to writing the whole appellate brief. In any event, here are the challenging questions he propounds: a) Is the precedent grounded on sound public policy? b) Is the precedent working well or badly in practice? c) Is the precedent being followed universally? d) Will the precedent become less useful in the future? e) Will the precedent create injustice in this particular case? f) Is the precedent consistent with trends in allied fields? g) Can a valid and consistent exception to the precedent be made without detracting from the force of the precedent as a whole?5 Some additional thoughts for appeilate argument:

conflicting or diverse interests must be heard on a single side, then division of the argument may be compelled, but it remains a source of weakness."8 If you are effective trial advocates you should be equally effective appellate advocates. Whenever I hear a poor appellate argument I think of Mr. Justice Story's observation made several years ago, "Why settle for mediocrity when excellence is within our reach."

In closing may I leave you with the words of John Gardiner from his book on "Excellence:"

"Our society cannot achieve greatness unless individuals at many levels 01 ability accept the need lor high standards of performance and strive to achieve those standards within the limits possible lor them."

These words should have special meaning to both the advocate and the judge. !J-~ 5. Kenison. SOme ASpects of Appellate Argumenls. 1 N.H.B.J., No.2, p. 5. al 12 (1959).

6. Mr. Justice Jackson, Advocacy before Ihe Supreme Court. 37 A.B.A.J. 801, 804 (1951).

1. Mr. Justice Jackson. Advocacy before Ihe Supreme Court, 31 A.B.A.J. 801. 803 (1951).

8. Ralph M. Carson, ConducT of The Appeal - A Lawyer's View. p. 76.

?

5) As John W. Davis wrote thirty years ago, "Go for the jugular vein."

6) Be heard - don't mumble.

7) Use proper emphasis.

8) Be interesting.

9) not discuss authorities in detail.

•

Do

Justice Jackson observed years ago: " ... I can think of no more dismal and fruitless use of time than to recite case after csse, with explana~ tions why each is, or is not, applicable "It would surprise you to know how frequently counsel undertake to expound a recent decision to the very men who made it. If the exposition is accurate, it adds nothing to the Court's knowledge and if it is not, it discredits counsel's perception of fairness. 6 10) Do not read long quotes.

11) 00 not read from your brief.

12) Do not recite general propositions.

13) Do not evade questions of the court answer questions when asked and as direct as possible. "To delay meeting these issues is improvident; to attempt evasion of them is fataL'" 14) Be flexible.

15) Avoid engaging in presonalities and accusations with other counsel.

16) Avoid divided argument. "Where

58

•

•

•

•

Successful lawyers know the ,-alue of time, and the right set of books. They rely on UNITED STATES CODE AN)/OTATED to supplement their state statutes so they may rearlily answer their client's question-whether the question arises from state or federal statutes.

WEST PUBLISHING COMPANY Archie C. McLaren, Jr. 749 W. Snowden Circle Memphis, Tenn. 38104 Phone: 901/276-0172 THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

Judge Warren E. Wood, of the 6th judicial Circuit, has been appointed State judicial chairman of Law Day 1973, by Chief Justice Carleton Harris, of the Arkansas Supreme Court. In addition, Cyril Hollingsworth of the Little Rock law firm of Davidson, Plastires & Horne, Ltd., has been named chairman of the Law Day subcommittee of the Arkansas Bar Association by Bar president, Henry Woods.

Sponsored by the American and Arkansas Bar Associations, Law Day is set aside on May 1 each year by joint resolution of Congress and Presidential proclamation. The primary purpose of the observance is to emphasize the

value of living under a system of laws and independent courts that protect individual freedom and make possible a free society.

Conceived in 1957 by Charles S. Rhyne, a Washington, D.C., lawyer and then president of the American Bar Assoc., Law Day has become one of the most widely recognized and celebrated events of the year. The theme of the 1973 observance is "Help your courts-assure justice." The thrust of all programs will involve an effort to restore pUblic confidence and foster greater pUblic understanding of the judicial system.

Judge Wood's chief function will be supervising Law Day activities among the jUdges throughout Arkansas. Hollingsworth will coordinate the various state-level programs within the Arkansas Bar Association. Law Day for the first time is being carried out as a subcommittee under the Public Information Committee headed by Bob Dawson of Fort Smith.

"Use of the media and billboards on a state-wide basis, as well as activity on the local level probably will make Arkansans more than ever aware of this national observance on May 1. It remains for the Bar to sufficiently involve and alert the community to this national observance so that the expectations raised by the various activities in pUblicity will not go unmet," Hollingsworth said.

An awards competition is being set up by the Arkansas Bar Association to recognize outstanding Law Day programs in two categories-those with more and those with less than 50 members. judging will be held in late May and awards will be presented to the outstanding chairmen and associations at the summer meeting of the Bar in June.

Ask your local chairman how you can help in promoting Law Day. Information about Law Day planning for the awards competition can be obtained by writing Cyril Hollingsworth. !l-~

Introducing A Better Bond Service For Arkansas Attorneys

We offer immediate or one day service for most fiduciary and court bonds, regardless of how small or how large. We have the authority and knowledge to help you. Call our Little Rock or Ft. Smith office for bond service that's fast and efficient.

BONDS &: ASSOCIATES

Bonding â&#x20AC;˘ Insurance â&#x20AC;˘ Risk management

John Y. Bonds, Jr., C.P.C.U.

MARCH 1973

Little Rock:

Commercial National Bank Bldg.

Phone 372-5237

Ft. Smith:

615 North "B" SI. Phone 762-0333

INC.

John R. Hampton, Jr.

John D. Cook, Jr.

Michael H. Kehres, C.P.C.U.

59

By Wylie H. Davis Professor of Law Wylie H. Davis has been appointed Dean of the Law School of the University of Arkansas.

His appointment was effective February 1, 1973. He succeeds Dean Emeritus Ralph Barnhart, who retired

Arkansas Eminent Domain Digest Compiled by the University of Arkansas for the Arkansas State Highway Commission.

207 Pages

$9.50

Arkansas statutes Annotated 22 Volumes with Current Supplement $175.00 in the State of Arkansas.

WORKBOOK FOR ARKANSAS ESTATE PLANNERS MITCHELL D. MOORE. WILLIAM H. BOWEN

A Complete Source for Planning Estates in Arkansas Planned exclusively for Arkansas lawyers, it is based on the statutes, cases, regulations, and tax situations of the sLale. This workbook serves as a guide to drafting a simple will, testamentary planning for benefit of minor or aged, forms of property ownership, purposes and techniques of making gifts, drafting partnership and business purchase agreements and many other important topics. The handy loose-leaf format makes this source a unique working tool-an invaluable reference for the Arkansas lawyer.

11 Chapters

$35.00

REID'S BRANSON INSTRUCTIONS TO JURIES 7 VOLUMES WITH CURRENT SUPPLEMENT

$125.00

JONES LEGAL FORMS THREE VOLUMES. 68 CHAPTERS $60.00 Contact Your Bobbs-Merrill Arkansas Representative.

Mr. Joshua E. McHughes 1408 Rowman Road Little Rock, Arkansas 72205

The Babbs-Merrill Company, Inc. noo w. 61nd SI. I Indianapolis. Indiana 46168 AIlV rcseller IS lr.'e 10 charge whalevef puce II wishes lot our bOOks.

60

last September. Assistant Professor David Newbern has been Acting Dean in the interim.

Dean Davis is a native of Macon, Georgia, and received his A.B. and LL.B. degrees from Mercer University.

He holds an LL.M. from Harvard Law School. He is licensed to practice law in Arkansas, Illinois and Georgia and before the U.S. District Court (W.o. of Arkansas), the U.S. Court of Military Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court.

His higher education was interrupted by a tour of duty as a Navy officer from 1940-45. He served aboard the heavy cruiser Chicago in the Pacific Theater, and was separated from extended active duty with the rank of lieutenant commander. He transferred to the Retired Reserve in 1966.

Dean Davis has also had a distinguished teaching career, serving as Professor of Law at University of Texas, 1955-56; at University of Illinois, 1956.j)7; and at University of Georgia, 1967-70. His association with the University of Arkansas School of Law covers two periods, 1948-55 and 1970 to date. In addition. he has engaged in visiting professorships at various universities during the summers of most of these years.

He has done occasional consulting work for practicing lawyers, specializing in Admiralty, Contracts, Insurance and Constitutional Law. In addition to these, he has taught many other law subjects.

Dean Davis has been a frequent speaker before various professional and other groups, covering a wide range of topics on law and legal THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

education. He has drafted numerous questions, with documented analyses, for use in Bar examinations in several states and in the standardized Law School Admission Test. Dean Davis has also published articles in 20 various legal publications.

His professional administration assignments include service as member or chairman of many institutional committees, including the Chairmanship of the AALS Committee on Raciai Discrimination in the Law Schools, 1960-61, and membership on the AALS Committee on Academic Freedom and Tenure (three-year term, 1972-75).

Dean Davis is a member of many professional associations, including the Washington County Bar Association, the Arkansas Bar Association, and the American Bar Association.

Dr. David W. Mullins, University of Arkansas President, in announcing Dean Davis' appointment, stated "I am confident that Professor Davis possesses the scholarly qualifications, breadth of experience and qualities of leadership which will enable him to provide wise and dynamic leadership for the School of Law, both on the Fayetteville campus and in Little Rock."

Chairman Fred Pickens of the Uni· versity of Arkansas Board of Trustees also hailed Dean Davis' selection, "Professor Davis is well-known and is held in high esteem by members of the Arkansas Bar. He is an outstanding legal scholar and is wellacquainted with the needs of the legal profession In the state."

President Henry Woods of the Association noted, "We are indeed fortunate in having a man of Dean Davis' stature as Dean of our Law School.

We look forward to working with him to make our Law School one of the very best. We wish him well." 1_

1973 Annual Conference On Securities Regulation Robert F. Watson, Regional Administrator for the Fort Worth Regional Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission, has asked the Arkansas Securities Division to announce that the 2nd Annual Regional Conference on Securities Regulation will be held in Houston, Texas on April 4-5, 1973. This conference is sponsored by the Fort Worth Regional Office of the Securities and Exchange Commission and is open to the public.

The program has been designed to offer participants a blend of views of both the regulators and the local bar on recent developments in State and Federal securities laws.

[J~ MARCH 1973

Service Directory FAULKNER COUNTY ABSTRACT CO. Robert M. McHenry, Manager • Copying and • Abstracts Duplicating • Title Insurance Service • Laminating Service Over 60 Years Service Conway, Ark .

130akSt. • Phone 329·2631

BEACH ABSTRACT & GUARANTY COMPANY REPRESENTING: COMMERCIAL STANDARD TITLE INS. CO. ABSTRACTS - ESCROWS - TITLE INSURANCE 213 W. 2nd 51. - Little Rock, Ark. - FR 6·3301

PARAGON Printing & Stationery Company has been printing BRIEFS for over 35 years.

May we be of service to you?

311 East Capitol

375·1281 Little Rock

PROFESSIONAL PRIVATE INVESTIGATION We pledge to maintain high professional standards morally and ethically - for the good of our state, our country and our clients.

MYERS AND ASSOCIATES, INC. FREO MYERS, PRESIOENT 910 Pyramid Life Bldg.• Little Rock. 372·1809

Phone: 225-2914

Auto Accident Industrial

Adm;,alty

AN ECONOMIC APPROACH TO TOP QUALITY PARA·LEGAL ASSISTANCE

Products Liability Missing Persons P.O. Box 5673 Brady Station

Little Rock, Ark. 72205

61

LA WYERS' MART Classified Ad Rate 20 cents per word each insertion$3.00 minimum

WANT TO SELL SCM Coronastat 33 copier (4 years old) in good condition. John L. Wilson, Box 591, Hope, Arkansas 71801 (777-2721).

WANT TO BUY Glass front bookcases and office furniture. Alfred J. Holland, P.O. Box 335, Paragould, Arkansas 72450 (236-7711).

A used sel of Corpus Juris Secundum. Harkey and

Walmsley, Attorneys at Law, P.O. Box 1505, Batesville, Arkansas 72501 (793-6818).

TITLE INSURANCE

PRIVAIE INVESTIGATION MYERS & ASSOCIATES, INC.

by

COM MERCIAL STANDARD INSURANCE COMPANY FORT WORTH, TEXAS General State Agent for Arkansas BEACH ABSTRACT & TITLE COMPANY Telephone: FRanklin 6路3301

213 West Second Street

910 Pyramid Life Bldg.

Little Rock, Arkansas Phone 372-1809

Professional Investigation ServicesCivil, Criminal, Industrial for the Professions, Business, Industry and Individuals Technicallnvestigati~ns

in Products Liability Cases

Licensed by the State Investigator Licens路 ing Board, Approved by the Arkansas

little Rock, Arkansas

Assets Over $19,000,000.00

AGENCIES IN 16 STATES Subject To State Supervision Everywhere.

State Police,

References of Prominent

Attorneys furnished upon request. Ten Years Experience.

Myers &

Associales

Fred M,ers

Member of American Land Title Association

62

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

ARKANSAS OIL & GAS INSTITUTE

The Arkansas 011 and Gas Commission has encouraged par路 tlcipatlon In the Institute by setting a regular quarterly Commission hearing In Hot Springs Immediately preceedlng the Institute. In like manner, the Murphy Oil Corporation of EI Dorado, Arkansas, has encouraged the Institute by publishing the Institute proceedings each year, and we are deeply grateful to the Company, Its President Charles Murphy, and its legal staff.

-Heartslll Ragon

TENTH ANNUAL APRIL 15-16

MURPHY OIL CORPORATION MARCH 1973

, 1971

EL DORADO, ARKANSAS 63

SIXTEEN MONTHS OF HISTORY • • • JANUARY, 1921 - the bowels of the earth began to rumble BuseyArmstrong No.1, a nearly-half-mile deep hole, blew in - a gusher - a river of oil - and a new era for EI Dorado, Union County and Arkansas.

APRIL, 1920- Hunt NO.1 of the Constantin Refining Company came in wild, blowing saltwater and gas _ craters pockmarked the countryside - a careless match was thrown - a blazing torch raged for weeks - finally controlled and the gas supplied to the EI Dorado Light and Power Plant.

OCTOBER, 1919- the National Bank of Commerce was established - no connection between NBC's founding and the discovery of gas and oil in EI Dorado - or was there? NBC's faith in EI Dorado was the same faith of Bruce Hunt and Dr. Samuel T. Busey and the others - faith that has been fully justified with the growth of the Oil & Gas Industry and in the progress of the dynamic City of EI Dorado.

-.-

NATIONAL BANK Of COMMERCE

SERVICE

liTHE PEOPLE PLA CE"

A'FUll BANK

MEMBER FDIC 64

ELDORADO, ARKANSAS THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

(ยงIe

Arkansas Lawyer ITm~

o o o

The Arkansas Lawyer is pleased (0 present this salute (0 the Oil and Gas Industries oj Arkansas. The dramatic story oj the ยฃ1 Dorado-Smackover areas in (he 1920's and their subsequent development is a testimonial to all involved.

We acknowledge, with great appreciation, the contributions of Tyler B. Hardeman, Travel Writer for the Department of Parks & Tourism of the State of Arkansas; Charles B. Pierce of Texarkana, Arkansas, Producer.

Director of uThe Legend of BOlgy Creek;" L. E. Tennyson of Smackover; J.S. Beebe or EI Dorado; James V. Spencer, III or EI Dorado; Richard H. Mays of EI Dorado; Jerry Watkins of El Dorado; Ralph A. Dumas, Direc. tor of Conservation and Production of the Oil and Gas Commission of the Slate of Arkansas; Louise Ritchey, Communicalions Represenlalive, Lion Oil Company; Sally Farley, Librarian, Smackover Library; and the many others who have aided us in this presentation.

EL DORADO - place of great riches -

, '0

I

,

New

N

Caledonia

They named her EI Dorado ... but she was only a sleepy little lown. Little did they realize that the name was prophetic, that beneath the earth lay untold riches. Here, there was wealth beyond the pioneer's wildest imaginings ... wealth in the form of black gold.

Founded in 1843, EI Dorado was just another small south Arkansas lown, drowsy and forgotten. Timber and agriculture were what kept her going. Then it all changed. On January 10, 1921, at 4:00 p.m., a subterranean shaking, a rumble. and Eureka! The Armstrong Busey No. I derrick blew its cork, soaking trees, countryside and ecstatic townspeople with glorious, gooey, sublime OIL! The IOwn emptied at the news. Most of its 3,887 population made it to the site in record time. There it was .. unbelievable ... wealth beyond their wildest dreams.

MACMILLAN

6"i)

It was Dr. Samuel T. Busey, a geologist as well as a physician, whose persistence had wrought the miracle. Oil had been discovered in north Louisiana, but the fever hadn't crossed into Arkansas. With one exception. Dr. Busey had caught the virus. He purchased 51 per cent of a lease on prop· erty owned by David Armstrong just west of EI Dorado and began drilling operations. Mitchell Bonnham Oil Company owned the other 49 per cent and reportedly paid a bargain price of $4,500 for it.

When the Busey well blew in it set the stage for an ava· lanche of drilling and uncontrolled exploration. Overnight EI Dorado grew to a town of 15,000. Speculators and hang· ers·on poured into town ... and the boom was on. The last great Boom Town was going full tilt.

OIL CO.. INC.

J. S. & J. S. BEEBE, JR. 01 L ACCOUNT REFINERY - NORTH LET, ARKANSAS

Petroleum Building El [lorado

863·5191 Arkansas

P. O. 80x 1551 EI Oorado

862·1318 Arkansas

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

GUSHER

:JAN. 10,1921

high wooden derrick - sending a heavy spray of the gooey black liquid over the entire countryside, drenching the happy crowd with "liquid gold."

This was the scene on January 10, 1921, when the Busey Armstrong No. I blew in west of EI Dorado. A cheer went up from the drenched spectators, then pandemonium.

Another great oil strike - the first in south Arkansas - was history.

Like the lull before the storm, there is a moment of silence.

Then - deep underground there is a rumble. Then - a hissing roar. Sudden Iy the earth begins to tremble as though an angry volcano is getting ready to erupt. The roaT grows in intensity. Nearby - a hundred yards or so - a large group of spectators cup their hands over their ears, lest the deafening rumble shatters their eardrums. Then it happens - a thin stream of jet black liquid squirts oul of the earth, shooting higher and higher - over the top of the towering I 12-foot

OUANICO all & GAS, INC. P. O. Box 1714 EI Dorado

MARCH 1973

B63-7170 Arkansas

SHULER DRILLING CO., INC. "ANYTIME - ANYWHERE" W. H. Sewell, President 3514 W. Hillsboro EI Dorado

863路7234 Arkansas

67

EL DORADO the last boomtown -

News of the discovery of oil in EI Dorado hit the town like a shock wave. The word went oul over telephone and telegraph wires, by each outgoing mail, by every outgoing train.

In a few days incoming trains were jammed with people.

The little lOwn was overwhelmed by this onslaught. There wasn't a room to be found in town and the public buildings were filled with people. Newcomers walked the streets, knocking on doors, begging for a place to lay their heads.

Hastily, a Chamber of Commerce was organized and its secretary's first responsibility was LO lry to find lodging for the stranded fortune seekers. Home owners were asked to fill every available foot of their homes with beds and cots. A price of $2.00 per night was set as the going rate for beds.

There still weren't enough rooms to go around so large tents were raised and filled with cots. Rooming houses were erected overnight to take care of the still-growing hordes of eager workers.

Food was equally a problem. People stood in line for hours and still went hungry when the supply of food was exhausted.

A meeting of the City Council elected to rent out space on the city's sidewalks for construction of temporary buildings.

Here, the famous Hamburger Row was born and the odor of cooking hamburgers and onions filled the air above South Washington Street.

Still they came, aboard 22 daily trains that brought a mixed bag of new citizens. They ranged from doctors, lawyers, judges, statesmen and teachers to bootleggers, pickpockets, gamblers, prostitutes and murderers. They all had one thing in common - black gold fever had struck and it held all of them in its thrall.

With this wild assortment of people, and without adequate preparation for the thousands of newcomers, EI Dorado became a wide open city, one of the most violent in the country. Lawlessness ran unchecked and murders were commonplace occurrences. Victims disappeared inlo the mud and the oil pits, or were stuffed into oil tank cars. It was a desperate situation.

,;:~

BRADHAM OIL COMPANY OIL PRODUCER SOS FIRST NATIONAL BANK BUILDING

EL DORADO, ARKANSAS 71730

68

ANTH0NV

ANTHONY "Q~ ~" CO. P. O. Box 1877 ~S1' pRfiJ,;fJ 862路3414 EI Dorado Arkansas

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

BLACK GOLD FEVER

Promoters were nOI slow Lo surface. They bought small leases and sold shares to the gullible public at $10, $100, SI,OOO promising enormous returns in a matter of weeks.

The money flowed in, and soon the promoters were rich from speculation which cost them very liule. These same men would bring in a gusher and leave it uncapped as a show to excite invesLors. Untended, it was inevitable that the wells would be ruined by sail water. Immense quantities of oil were wasted in these get路rich quick schemes.

The town - already overnowing - continued to grow as the lure of the riches that flowed from beneath the earth drew

more and more people. The air was charged with the excite-

up in the courthouse yard. Here, prisoners were not only condemned to imprisonment, but also to the elements, since there was no protection for them.

At the end of the first year, the population began to stabilize around 25,000. It was composed of people of all nations, languages and educations. The oil continued to flow. New fields were being opened - first the West Field, then the Smackover Field, the East Field, and finally, the Rainbow Field. During the firsl year of the boom, 674 wells were producing around EI Dorado.

Those crazy days of boom are long since past for the city of EI Dorado, but in its day, Black Gold Fever had real meaning for the town.

ment of the wealth that might strike anyone of them, and the lOwn was wide open. Every night there were shootouts ... and from these incidents came names that attached themselves to parts of the town, names like Pistol Hill and Shot-

gun Valley.

The lack of law enforcement soon resulted in a cluster of barrel houses built at the edge of town, where oil field workers could buy bootleg white lightning and prostitutes .. where wages were lost on the turn of a card or the roll of the dice.

The jail was inadequate to hold the many renegades who were consigned to it, and an abandoned circus cage was sel

H & H OIL WELL CEMENTING CO, BENNY SHELTON, PRESIDENT

Magnolia Highway EI Dorado MARCH 1973

SOUTHERN PERFORATORS, INC. 2609 East Main

863-5462

EI Dorado

863-7137 Arkansas

Arkansas 69

SMACKOVER - THEN

Smackover's first settlers were French trappers and hunters.

They were en route to Camden, but settled in the area because of its abundance of wild game. Here, they found a creek which flowed through botlOmlands and swamps; on its banks and in the surrounding area sumac grew in profusion, providing a heavy cover for the wild game. They called this area Sumac Couvert (covered with sumac), which was subsequently corrupted to Smackover.

Before discovery of oil, Smackover's economy was chiefly agricultural. Row crops - colton for income and corn for subsistence - predominated in the area. In the late 1800's the lumber industry began to be a major faclor, and railroads were extended into south Arkansas to transport the timber.

Small businesses were established and the economic outlook began to improve. The discovery of oil radically changed the entire area. The EI Dorado boom in 1921 prompted exploration in the fields surrounding Smackover and, in 1922, the scene so familiar at EI Dorado was repeated here.

Oil gushed over the crown blocks of derricks, drawn from what was the largest reserve of oil in the world at that time. It covered the countryside and flowed into the Ouachita from its tributaries.

People poured into Smackover as they had to 拢1 Dorado, and the town matched its sister community in lawlessness.

They came in droves - on every conceivable conveyancedrillers, roughnecks, promoters, thieves, all eager to get rich as fast as possible from the ceaseless supply of black gold. Until the boom hit in force, Smackover was merely a flag station on the Missouri Pacific Railroad. It was a town of some 60 people. But overnight, Smackover was inundated - a flow of humanity which numbered some 25,000 or 30,000 descended on the little crossroads community. To say that it was unprepared for this onslaught is an understatement. The town reeled under the avalanche of people.

BERG, LANEY & BROWN 725路5041 P. O. Orawer L Smackover

70

206 W. 5th Street Arkansas

DANIEL CHEVROLET COMPANY "Your Friendly Chevrolet Oealer since 1937" SMACKOVER NO. 725路3221 EL OORAOO NO. 862路3681 Smackover

Arkansas

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

GASSERS

Drilling activity in the Smackover Field began early in 1922, when the completion of a number of gassers heralded the discovery of oil producing strata. Among the first of the gas wells was one drilled on the Murphy lease, north of Crossroads, by the Oil Operators Trust. It cratered because of gas pressure too great to be controlled by the equipment of the day.

The hole was a burning, blazing inferno, and it became a must for newcomers to the area to see. The stories about the crater became so exaggerated that it was claimed you could see its flames from the capitol building in Little Rock. A gaping hole today remains as a reminder of this dramatic casualty of early-day operations.

CROTTY WELL SERVICE - 24 Hour Service -

P. O. Box 66

546路2521

Norphlet

Arkansas

~ reox smSaSJr. ~k'~'~' ~2 TENNYSON "OIL 125.

MARCH 1973

'(253401

71

GUSHER-JULY 29,1922

On a hot July day in 1922, the scene again shifts to Smackover, north of EI Dorado. The excilemen~ of an im路 pending strike is in the air again. Crowds have gathered to watch the trembling wire rope spin up and down the derrick.

At the end of each trip the elongated bucket spews out a murky fluid that spreads over the floor. Then it begins to hap路 pen. The crew grows tense and quiet.. listening intently.

Slowly they move away from the derrick as a black fountain rears its head from the center of the floor, spreads like a mushroom top and gradually ... rising and falling back upon itself ... mounts to the crown block. With a deafening roar, the gusher is in. The stream of crude flows freely soaking the countryside ... heralding Ihe opening of anolher major field.

J. D. REYNOLDS SMACKOVER DRILLING COMPANY SMACKOVER PRODUCING COMPANY 315 E. Main EI Dorado

72

862-1368

Arkansas

COMPANY Box 366

836-2017

Camden

Arkansas

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

ROUGHNECK SPECIAL

They came in droves - on every conceivable conveyance - drillers, roughnecks, promoters, thieves, all eager to get rich as fast as possible from the ceaseless supply of black go (d. The train that carried them to town was known as the Roughneck Special.

The first real activity began on July 29, 1922, when the V.K.F. Drilling Company brought in its No. I well across the county line in Ouachita County_ By Christmas, Smackover was a city of 25,000 people, and the countryside was dOlled with derricks. The field became one of the world's major pro路 ducers - as much as 400,000 barrels flowed from it daily at one time.

The railroads were unable to handle this increased activity.

Between Little Rock and Smackover every siding was filled with freight shipments earmarked for Smackover. Finally it became necessary for the railroads to place an embargo on shipments to the town until adequate sidings could be added to handle the traffic.

The Roughneck Special continued to roll into town bringing new blood to work the oil field, swelling the ranks of the fortune seekers.

MACFARLANECOMPANY

Compliments of

863-6060 204 Armstrong Building

AMERICAN SUPPLY CORPORATION EI Dorado Arkansas

EI Dorado

MARCH 1973

Arkansas

73

â&#x20AC;˘

Smackover State Bank

-A Growth Institution Smackover State Bank was organized in 1928 with resources of $118,087. It succeeded the Bank of Smackover, a branch of the Ouachita Valley Bank of Camden.

Leo Berg served as the Bank's first President, Henry Berg as its second, and J. E. Berry was the third, serving until 1958 when Max A. Mitcham was elected. Mr. Mitcham remains in that capacity.

1936 was the year the bank moved into a new building, allowing them to expand their services to all of Union County. Resources had now grown to S312,OOO. On July 27,1968 this institution made its second move to new headquarters, and is now the most modem banking facility in Union County. The bank features two drive-in windows, off-the-street parking and a branch in Norphlet.

Through the post-oi) boom period and up until the present time, the bank, under Max Mitcham's steady hand, has continued its steady pattern of growth. Expanding its approach

. ,

:" :" -tIt l

t \.

to "full-service" banking for all lines of business and individual accounts, the bank is now more than 80 times its original sizeFebruary 28, 1973 total resources were $10,088,801.

In addition to Max Mitcham, Max O. Taylor is Executive Vice-President, Audna L. Ward is Cashier, and Evelyn Long and Barbara Jean Sales are Assistant Cashiers.

Directors are: Max A. Mitcham, Homer T. Rogers, Max O. Taylor, James M. Tennyson, L. E. Tennyson, Jr. and Richard H. Vickers.

., .

...

.

-------------------...J ,,:;l

l ; - -......

MULES

&,

MUD

Imagine what all this unexpected activity did to the un· paved streets of El Dorado and Smackover ... and the coun· try roads thai ran between them. Combine unceasing heavy rains with the burden of wagons brought in 10 haul oil and equipment and you have pandemonium.

Roadways became impassable, as heavy wagon traffic chewed deep into the earth turning ruts into wallows. Anum· ber of mules drowned in the EI Dorado streets, and during the Smackover boom, one entire learn - wagon and all- aclUally disappeared beneath the muck.

On the roads leading to the fields. teams of mules and drivers waited to haul automobiles through the impassable holes. Enterprising people who lived near the roads built cor· duroy roadways and bridges on their own property and charged a fee to cross (hem. Teams of oxen were used to move the enormous boilers and drilling rigs through the mire.

H was a fantastic. unprecedented mess. The only reliable transportation was by trains which were packed to over· Oowing. Each day they carried workers hanging from their sides to the oil fields.

SUPERIOR LUMBER COMPANY CHAMPAGNOLLE ROAD & MISSOURI-PACIFIC RAI LWAY

863-7165 EI Dorado

76

Arkansas

PESSES IRON & METAL COMPANY - Jack Pesses, President -

423 E & BStreets EI Dorado

862-4928 Arkansas

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

DEATH VALLEY

"Smackover's main street. at one time called Death Valley had in a few months after the discovery of oil been turned from a country road into a busy scene of commercial activity, was a loblolly of mud. The most successful mode

of navigating that street was the use of a ten or twelve-up yoke of oxen, which was a frequent occurance in 1922.

Buried beneath Front street are millions of feet of hardwood lumber.

Property owners along that street piled in load after load, time after time, so that the street could be kept open to

traffic. (It is jestingly reported thal six mules drowned in the mud on Broadway). Clyde Byrd, mayor, had Broadway. Front, and all business streets graded up, then graveled. As often as the gravel would sink in, he would place more on it. This method ~nal.ly brought about a solid street, which In later years was paved.

...

"Shorty" whom everyone knew from his smiling face and absence of legs, was engaged in the arduous task of crossing Broadway when the mud was at its worst. "Shorty" moved around on a conveyance of wheels with a small seat attached, and in the middle of the street this day he had stopped, whether for breath or just to survey the scenery is not known, but at any rate he paused, and it was midstream at that.

Just then two strangers - traveling

men - were a few feet distant and were about lo attempt the crossing. Suddenly one espied Shorty evidently stuck in the mud of the street. All they saw of him was from the waist up.

In alarm one of the drummers called out to the other, "For God's sake don't try to cross there. See, there's one man already stuck and motionless out there up to his belt line."

•••

"There was a district called Death Valley across the Missouri Pacific tracks. So named because its physical location and construction resembled

LANGLEY WELL SERVICE AND PRODUCTION COMPANY - 725-9022P. O. Box 204 EI Dorado Hwy.

MARCH 1973

Smackover Arkansas

the famous Death Valley of Juarez, Mexico, a section of the Mexican town that received its name for obvious rea· sons.

Many a deed of violence was per· petrated in Death Valley in Smackover.

Visitors were warned, "Don't ever go there at night. If you must go, take four or five men with you, and be well armed."

Death Valley in those days was full of barrel houses which is the pet name for the combination saloon, gambling den, dance hall and immoral resort."

History of

Smacko~'f'r.

-

Arkans(lS Sally Farley

Serving Arkansas Louisiana Mississippi 862-3488 400 W. Main St. EI Dorado Arkansas

77

GOOD FOR TUNE BRINGS PROBLEMS

Sudden 1y the Smackover postoffice - which had been a comfortable sideline for a storekeeper - was inundated by mail. From a few letters a week, the mail increased to an unmanageable torrent daily. The desperate postmaster wired Washington: "Office out of control. Letters arriving 5,000 to 7,000 daily; parcel post by Ihe ton; can't open mail any longer. Accept my resignation," Themail wasn't the only problem by any means. There was

only one dining room in town and lines of men waited impatiently in the streets 10 be fed. There seemed no end to them, and the lunch hour stretched late into the afternoon in an altern pl to feed them.

There was the usual lawlessness which accompanies a boom town. Barrel houses and their attendant vices were quickly established, and the oil field workers - with nothing else to do at night - squandered their earnings in them.

Tent cities surrounded the town, taking over the once pros路 perous cotton fields. Sewage and water systems were hardly adequate to handle this unexpected mass of human ity. Neither were the schools or law enforcement. In 1923, Smackover was incorporated and began to solve its problems.

The activity at Smackover reached truly amazing pro路 portions. In the second year of the boom, the freight receipts on the railroad were greater than at any station on the line except for St. Louis. For a time, the Western Union office at Smackover took in more money than any other office of the system.

CRepSS OIL

<!So.

R E: F I N I N G

C O.

JAMES A. GANDY CABLE TOOL COMPANY

REFINERY OFFICE P. O. Box 105

Smackover

78

725路3611 Arkansas

-725-9641Smackover

Arkansas

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

MAKE IT NOW!

reduced the reservoir pressure, shortening the life of all oil flowing wells. In just three years, flush production was no longer possible at Smackover and pumping became necessary to aid production.

Getting the oil to market was a problem for the early producers. At first they used wooden barrels to move the oil out of the field on wagon trains. Finally, the producers con路 structed feeder pipelines to loading racks along the tracks of the Missouri Pacific Railroad.

The depression years were lean ones in the Smackover field. Many refineries were closed and prices for crude oil were extremely low. The booming East Texas Field had a need for tubing and drill pipe and many of the Smackover operators began to pull old pipe from their wells, selling it to the wildcat operators of East Texas.

This practice, though lucrative for the Smackover operators, meant that holes were left open without proper plugging.

As a result, there was extensive surface and interzonal pollution of the oil producing strata.

The oil field development was just as chaotic as the town's.

There were no state laws adequate to govern the growth of the fields, and all activity there was ruled by the desire to produce as much oil as possible for the most profit - to "make it now!" Derricks rose in profusion so that the field was a forest of the wooden SlruclUres.

Earthen storage pits were used for the crude oil. Wells were allowed to flow under natural pressure into these pits. The Smackover field was dotted with these open lakes of oil which left their contents open to the weather. The waste from this system of open pit storage was stupendous. The oil often overflowed the walls of the pits or broke through them. Rain weakened the retaining walls and caused them 10 crumble.

So much oil and gas was wasted in the Smackover field that it staggers the imagination. From 2 to 8 per cent of the total crude oil produced up to 1934 and almost all of the gas escaped. II was a common practice to leave gas flowing freely in the hope that the well would produce oil when the gas had dissipated. This practice sapped the energy of the field and

EMCO OIL COMPANY MARMIK OIL COMPANY

J. L. Means, Jr. - President

~'-~~

395 Tower Building

Little Rock

MARCH 1973

376路1909 Arkansas -L

209 No. Washington EI Oroado

860路2371 Arkansas ---l

79

THE NEW INDUSTRY Shortly after these explosive bt:ginnings, EI Dorado and Smackover settled down 10 the serious business of

supplying petroleum products to the world.

In 1923, over 2000 wells were drilled in Union and Ouachita Counties. In 1923, oil and gas conservation became the responsibility of the Conservation Division of the Arkansas Railroad Commission. In 1927, a Board of Conservation was established to control oil

and gas activities. By the end of the first five years, EI Dorado was a different IOwn entirely. During those five years, 600 million dollars had been put to work to develop petroleum operations and facilities.

Firms like MacMillan Petroleum Company, H. H. Cross Company, Murphy Oil Company and Lion Oil Company were bringing order and responsibility out of the chaos of early wildcatters. The town began to regulate its unruly inhabitants. Slowly at first, then more and more rapidly, EI Dorado was transformed from an oil camp to a city. The same was true for

Smackover. New buildings were erected for the supply industries that were needed by the oil producers.

Machine shops, supply firms, foundries and operations offices were built to provide services for the new indus-

try.

Primary recovery of petroleum is decreasing at a rate of about 6 per cent per year, and secondary recovery now accounts for some 50 per cenl of all production.

Advanced petroleum technology is now being used in secondary recovery, such as sleam injection. Producers are constantly faced with rising costs, without a corresponding rise in the price for their crude oil. The in-

dependent producer is particularly affected by these changes.

In 1939, the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission was created by Act 105. Prevention of waste, environmental control, conservation of crude oil and gas, protection of the correlative rights of owners, etc., are the Commission's functions. The Commission's fairness and ef-

fectiveness can be measured by the fact that out of 1760 orders, only 5 have been challenged in court with only one adverse decision.

In conclusion, oil has perhaps been the single most important resource in the development of Arkansas into a modern, progressive state - we salute the Indus-

try and the men who made the Industry - - _

SEDCO SAM RICHARDSON

EL DORADO FOUNDRY IHACf-IINE & SUPPL Y CO. INC

J. ERIC RICHARDSON, JR.

"COMPLETE MACHINE SHOP FACILITIES"

Petroleum Building

EI Dorado

80

863-4824

Arkansas

518 S. Jackson EI Dorado

863-4107 Arkansas THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

SMACKOVER

- NOW

Smackover has undergone many changes since those early days of pandemonium and get-rich-quick fever. It was classified as a first-class city immediately after incorporation, bUI when it lost population in ) 929, Smackover's officials decided that the interests of the lOwn would be beneT served if it were organized under a second-class city plan. The State Legislature had made no provision for a reduction of classification, and it required a special legislative act to bring about the reclassification. Smackover may be the only Arkansas town that has ever asked to be reclassified downward.

Today, Smackover has a population of 2,058 and oil still plays a major role in its economic picture. Every phase of oil production is located here - exploration, drilling, production, refining, sales and transportation. In an effort to broaden the base of its industry, the Smackover Industrial Development Corporation was formed to encourage diversified industry. The corporation has succeeded in attracting numerous industries including a boat manufacturer, a cryogenics and nitrogen manufacturing firm and a technical products company. There are several logging operations connected with the town. A 3,200-foot landing strip has been added to the Industrial Park adjacent to a number of good plant locations.

Smackover has an abundance of soft, pure water from deep artesian wells pumped through a municipally owned system.

Electric power and natural gas are provided by Arkansas Power and Light Company and Arkansas-Louisiana Gas Company. There are four motor freight lines and one bus line serving the town.

A modern business district, a progressive educational system, well-established churches, two city parks and a countryside that offers unlimited boating, fishing, and hunting opportunities make the city of Smackover a well-rounded, pleasant community in which to live.

---

SMACKOVER MOTORS, INC. - W. D. McBride, President-

OIL WELL AND REFINERY SUPPLIES

EI Dorado No. 862路5601 108 E. 7th Smackover

MARCH 1973

ORAWER S

725路3961 Arkansas

SMACKOVER, ARKANSAS 71762

81

£L DORADO

The modern city of El Dorado is a far cry from those lusty, brawling, lawless beginnings. It is a prosperous community of 25,283, the largest shopping center in a radium of 50 miles.

It draws from six Arkansas counties and two Louisiana parishes with a population of some 200,000.

Every phase of the oil industry is in operation here - exploration, drilling, production and refining as well as support services. There are fOUf refineries, one chemical fertilizer plant, a carbon plant and three bromine plants.

Here, the Lion Oil Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Oil Shale Corp. (TOSCO), carries on a diverse and multifaceted operation producing more than 150 quality petroleum products, ranging from gasoline to heavier fuels, lubricating oils, asphalts and specialty products. In addition, Lion Oil operates a chemical complex which manufactures anhydrous ammonia and other nitrogenous chemicals includ· ing nitrogen fertilizer solutions, pelleted ammonium nitrate, aqua ammonia and urea.

Murphy Oil Corporation is headquartered in EI Dorado.

The company markets refined products under the SPUR label and also has marketing operations in England and Sweden using the brand name MURCO. The company conducts oil and gas production or exploration operations in a large part of the U.S., in Canada, the Persian Gulf, Venezuela, the North Sea and other areas abroad.

Other petroleum products compan ies located in EI Dorado art: Macmillan Ring·Free Oil Co., Inc., Columbian Carbon Co., and H. H. Cross.

Second to Petroleum in £1 Dorado's economic picture are forestry products; Union County is the state leader in number of acres of commercial forest - pine and hardwoods.

El Dorado, Arkansas

•

•

Plants in and near the city produce steel fabrications, can· crete pipe, signs, venetian blinds, printing inks, carbon black, oil well and sawmill equipment, paint and varnish, wood laminations and jointing, asphalt, bread, rubber products, paper, ornamental iron, die-castings, dairy products, lighting fixtures, wood-treating materials, tools, dies and such build· ing products as bricks, blocks and lumber and stone products.

Culturally, EI Dorado is a progressive, dynamic commun· ity. It is the home of the South Arkansas Symphony, which places great emphasis on training youthful musicians. There is an art workshop at the Fine Arts Center sponsored by the £1 Dorado Art League and the EI Dorado Liltle Theater, which gives professional calibre productions of contemporary dramas, is here too. The £1 Dorado Fine Arts Association is the cultural focal point for the city's activities.

EI Dorado is a medical center for the South Arkansas area, and its educational system is one of the finest in the state. The city has pioneered "The £1 Dorado Plan" which has attracted nationwide attention. It is a new program of instruction in· volving team teaching, large group, small group. and independent study now being used on the secondary level.

There are more than 160 organizations active in the citycivic, social, fraternal. They contribute their talents to the city's business and cultural life. EI Dorado's innuence ex· tends far beyond its immediate area. In commerce, finance, medicine. government and cullure, through its churches, so· cial agencies, and the leadership of its citizens, EI Dorado's position is assured. Today its name stands for more than black gold - it stands For a progressive and integrated economy, and an attractive environment in which its resi· dents can lead full and active lives.

A. V. BEEBE DRILLING & SUPPL Y COMPANY 1620 East Main Street

•

862·1377

ALICE-SIDNEY OIL COMPANl 310 Armstrong Building EI Dorado, Arkansas

501-863-4177

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

CITY OF PRIDE AND PROGRESS

. -----_ ..

-~

WILBUR DAVIS TRUCKING & EOUIPMENT COMPANY

CRAIG OIL COMPANY - 863-6337-

- OILFIELD & HEAVY MACHINERY- HAULING AND SALESHwy 82 East & Industrial Road EI Dorado

MARCH 1973

862-3494

P_ O. Box 147 Junction City Hwy.

EI Dorado Arkansas

Arkansas

83

hi bits ' ' g Q1;s~ a COL tr CJJ)e-I~i>ii!W'iii~l'(p:1JI,1l~. f,e hi g IiIig illg in" """t~ ~1t:Jl,r~:f: the cover)!. J 1

'

ed. It was a rrieJ,}6ratje ol1al1za days. ) j ~

~-

.

_~~_ ~ -

I

•rC::::=r ~~~

ARKANSAS SEMI-CENTENNIAL OIL CELEBRATION EL CORACO. ARKANSAS 1921·1,911

ARKANSAS GAS

OIL

COMMISSION

1973 I

Thomas C. Meuller, Commissioner

I

James D. Reynolds. Chairman

Grady E. Du Priest. Commissioner

Heartsill Ragon, Commissioner

Ned A. Stewart, Jr"

Commissioner

/

Jack L. Turner. Commissioner

MARCH 1973

Ralph C. Weiser, Commissioner

Ralph A. Dumas. Director of Conservation and Production

85

12TH ANNUAL ARKANSAS OIL & GAS INSTITUTE

THE CO· CHAIRMEN···

APRIL 12, 13, 1973 MAJESTIC HOTEL HOT SPRINGS, ARK ROBERT W. VATER, Member, Martin, Evitts & Vater, Fort Smith, Arkansas

W. B. SAWYER, Manager, McAlester Fuel Company, Magnolia, Arkansas

THE HOSTS···

-i

I

m

» :J)

A

» Z » (J)

(J)

r

» :;; -<

m

HENRY WOODS, President, Arkansas

JAMES

:J)

Bar Association

Arkansas Bar Association

E.

WEST,

President-Elect,

GERALD L. DELUNG, Chairman, En-

JERRY

vironmental Law Committee

Mineral Law Section

W.

WATKINS,

Chairman,

THE SPEAKERS路路路

;::

禄 :D ()

I CD

-.J

W

HONORABLE DALE BUMPERS, Governor, State of Arkansas

DONALD G. CANUTESON, General AI/arney, Mobil Oil Corporation

DR. CURTIS G. CHEZEM, Nuclear Activities Dept., Middle South Services,

GENE P. MORREL, Vice President, Lone Star Gas Co.

Inc.

..

CHARLES NESBITT, Chairman, Oklahoma Corporation Commission ex>

-.J

ARCH B. GILBERT, Brooks, Tariton & Gilbert, Fort Worth, Texas

THAD W. THOMAS, President, Thad Thomas Associates

DORSEY M. RYAN, Warner, Ragon & Smith, Fort Smith, Arkansas

The Union County Bar Association is one 01 the oldest in the State and was formed in the early 1920's, but the legal profession in Union County predates the State 01 Arkansas, and runs to the earliest times of recorded history for the

area.

Hernando de So to discovered the area that was to become Union County in 1541 and spent the winter of 1541 at the point of the Ouachita River that later became known as Champagnolle. During his camp at Champagnolle from November, 1541 to March 6, 1542, De Sot a probably held Spanish Court for the settlement of trouble with his men.

While he was here Jean Ortiz, the interpreter, died and was buried in Union County. Juan Guzman refused to leave with the men when De Soto ordered them onward, and thus Guzman became the first permanent white settler in the area.

He married his Indian sweetheart, and when the French came more than a hundred years later, they found Indians who claimed descent from this union.

In 1816 when Missouri was made a state, the area that was to become Union County, Arkansas, was one of the five most densely populated areas in Arkansas County, which became Arkansas Territory in 1819. Court was held in the area as early as 1817, but might have been many years before. It was the custom for the judge to travel on the cir路 cuit with the attorneys going along to pick up clients at the

88

various courts. Isaac Murphy, an attorney from Independence County, Arkansas, came down to Union County in 1817, and spent some time at Escore Fabre (Now Camden).

By tradition this is the first name of an attorney in the area.

Union County records begin in 1829, the year the county was formed, but in the early records little is said about attorneys. In Circuit Court Book A, at page 1, the May Term of Court convened May 11,1830, at the house of John Nunn in Cote a Fabre (Now Camden). Various ways of spelling the early name for Camden appear in the records. John Nunn had a case in court and was represented by "his attorney" not named. William Trimble was judge and Thomas P. Eskridge was listed as one of the jUdges of Arkansas Territory.

Thomas Hubbard was prosecuting attorney. These men probably all lived in Hempstead County.

On page 12, Circuit Court Book A, of the records of Union County, George Hill was represented in the November term of court in 1830 by Daniel Ringo who was evidently a member of the firm in Little Rock of Conway & Ringo who were attorneys of record for several suits in this period. By May 6, 1833 a courthouse had been built at Ecorre a' Fabre and Grandison D. Royston was prosecuting attorney. He, too, probably lived in Hempstead County. (Page 33, Circuit Court Book A).

By 1850 Union County had at least twelve attorneys. John H. Askew, born in North Carolina in 1814, moved to Union County in 1840's with his family and settled in EI Dorado.

He practiced law for many years and was one of the respected pioneers in the area. He married at least twice and reared a large family. He served in the Arkansas Legislature and developed land for SUbdividing in EI Dorado. He has many descendants in Arkansas. Askew's first law partner was Mr. Black. On January 2, 1859 he filed suit against the estate of J. M. Flenniken as the surviving partner of Black and Askew law firm. A later partner of Mr. Askew was Col. Robert Harper, whose grandson, Robert Keys, is presently Union County Tax Collector.

Shelton Gatson, born in Virginia in 1812, was living with his brother, George M. Gatson, in EI Dorado. Nothing is THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

1817~1973

JOHN H. ASKEW

known about this early lawyer. Cornelius W. Locke, born in North Carolina in 1822, married in the Episcopal Church in EI Dorado, and was active in many affairs in the community as was his brother-in-law, Robert M. Hardy, also an attorney born in 1819 in Georgia. Both men practiced in EI Dorado and were prominent in the establishment of the town.

MARCH 1973

Other EI Dorado attorneys in 1850 were John H. Carllon, born in North Carolina in 1820; William A. Lacy, born in Mississippi in 1820; William D. Lee, who came from Tennessee where he was born in 1817, and Hugh D. Marr, born in Tennessee in 1822. Wiiliam D. Lee bought one of the oldest places in Arkansas, the Mizell piace that was probably settled in 1780-90. Records in DeWitt show marriages for the Mizeiis as eariy as 1808. This Mizell, Lee, Schuler home on Southwest Avenue in EI Dorado was torn down in 1969 and the original log structure revealed the age of the house to be about 1790. Mr. Lee has many descendants in EI Dorado today.

James H. Johnston, born in North Carolina in 1813, had his office at Wilmington on the Ouachita River. He is a relative of Miss Willie Lawson, the only woman to ever serve on Arkansas' Highway Commission. Richard Lyon, born in Tennessee in 1813, moved to Union County in the early 1840's and also practiced law at Wilmington. Both of these men have many descendants throughout the United States.

Samuel J. Cook, born in Kentucky In 1807, was a bachelor and practiced law at Hillsboro prior to 1850 and many years thereafter. He left a very good record of his activities and he was an outstanding man. Some remembered him as late as the 1930's and remarked about his brilliant mind.

A. T. Rainey, born in Alabama in 1822, was another practicing attorney at Hillsborough. He was the son of Mathew Rainey, the first settler of EI Dorado. The Mathew Rainey home is still standing in EI Dorado at 510 North Jackson where it was moved about 1910 by the R. N. Garretts who built their home, Eight Oaks, on the originai Mathew Rainey site. How wonderful it was of the Garrets that they did not tear down this fine, historic house, but preserved it for coming generations.

Robert H. Jackson applied to practice law on March 28, 1843 (Deed Book "A", page 231 of the records of Union County, Arkansas), but there is no record of what happened to his application and he is not in the 1850 census of Union County.

George W. Norman, son of William Sheppard Norman and his wife Adelaide Watts Norman, came to Union County from Forsythe, Georgia, after 1850. He had been a partner in the law firm of Washington Poe. His father, William Sheppard Norman, was judge of the court in Bibb County, Georgia before he came to New London, where they practiced law. In 1860 George W. Norman moved to Hamburg where he practiced law until his death in 1917. He graduated from the University of Georgia in 1849 and practiced law for more than sixty-eight years. His two sons followed in his and his father's profession. George Norman and James Norman were in their father's firm in Hamburg for some time, but James Norman moved to New London and later to Joplin, Missouri where he died. George Norman continued to practice in Hamburg until his death about 1946. This family has given many sons to the legal profession in Union County and in Arkansas and throughout the United States.

89

tltbr££

Union County's oldest law firm was founded in 1896 by Emon O. Mahony, whose parents were Edmond and Mary (Klopher) Mahony. He was appointed judge of the newly established chancery court in 1903 by the governor. The seventh chancery district embraced Union, Ouachita, Columbia, Caihoun, Dallas and LaFayelle counties. In 1912 he served two terms as prosecuting attorney for the 13th judiciai district. After the terms were over he withdrew and devoted his full time to the practice of law. In 1917 he was appointed United States district attorney for the Western District of Arkansas and served in this office until his death in 1920. His brother, Joseph K. Mahony, after graduating from the University of Arkansas, entered the law firm in 1908. After Judge Mahony's death in 1920, Judge Henry S. Yocum became a member of the firm. This firm of

Mahony and Yocum is one of the best known law firms in the state. In 1936 Emon A. Mahony, son of J. K. Mahony became a member and in 1947, Henry S. Yocum, Jr., joined the firm. Since J. K. Mahony died and Judge Yocum's death, and Henry S. Yocum, Jr.'s election to the office of chancellor, the firm is continuing as Mahony and Yocum with Emon A. Mahony as senior member, and his two sons, Joseph K. Mahony, II, and Michael Mahony as members. Joseph K. Mahony, II, is presently serving as representative of Union and Calhoun Counties in the Arkansas Legislature.

All of Joseph K. Mahony's grandsons have finished in law. Emon A. Mahony, Jr., is on the staff of Senator John McClellan in Washington and Donald Montgomery, Jr., the son of Pally (Mahony) and Donald Montgomery, is practicing with a firm in Dallas.

~£n£ration~

J. K. MAHONEY -1884-1967

EMON A. MAHONY

EMON A. MAHONY, JR.

90

JOSEPH K. MAHONY, II

MICHAEL F. MAHONY

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

tieing attorney at New London, he moved to San Antonio, Texas, where he worked for the street railway com路 pany. When he returned to Arkansas he was claim adjuster for that company. While in San Antonio he formed a partnership with the Rousch Brothers and organized the SpencerRousch Piling Company, and this company obtained the contract for poles for the telegraph company in Southern Arkansas. They opened

JAMES V. SPENCER

EI Dorado's second oldest law firm is that of Spencer and Spencer, where the tradition of attorneys in one family has spanned more than three generations. J. V. Spencer opened his office in Strong in 1916 and in 1928 he moved to EI Dorado. He was born at Spencer, Louisiana, November 25, 1887, the son of James Taylor and Lula Theodosia (Parks) Spencer. He was educated in the Marion (Louisiana) Academy and attended Louisiana State Normal College. Soon after his marriage to Annie Nabors, the daughter of Richard T. Nabors, a prac-

JAMES V. SPENCER, JR.

He organized one of the first oil companies in Arkansas, the Victoria Oil Company, in 1916, and this company drilled many wells in Union County in 1917, 1918, 1919 and 1920. He had wide connections and many persons worked with him in these businesses, but his real love was law and after 1929 he devoted his full time and all of his talents to the practice of law. He studied law under his father-in~law, who began the practice of law in New London in the 1880's after studying law at Washington and Lee University.

Mr. Nabors had also practiced law at Hampton with Col. Charles Poole. Mr. Spencer also studied iaw under Judge Neill C. Marsh. He served as chairman of the Union County Democratic Central Committee in 1928, and was on the state election committee for the Smith-Robinson ticket. He served as president of Union County Democratic Club for several years. He was interested in politics, but never ran for any public office. He served 10 years on the Arkansas State Board of Education. In 1946 his son, James Victor Spencer, Jr., entered the firm and in 1968 James Victor Spencer, III, his grandson, came into the firm. Since his death in May, 1968 the firm has continued under the same name with his son and grandson, who is present~ Iy serving as EI Dorado City attorney.

Thus James Victor Spencer, III, is the fourth generation to practice law in the courts of Arkansas.

headquarters in Camden in 1914 and in 1916 the office for all of Mr. Spencer's operations was moved to Strong.

He owned the Iightplant at Strong and sold to the Arkansas Power & Light Company in 1926. He had sawmills; a picture show a1 Strong; the contract tor staves on the Southern part of Arkansas; a drug store in Monroe, and one in West Monroe, Louisiana, a grocery store in Strong, and a grist mill.

JAMES V. SPENCER, III

MARCH 1973

91

Walter Lee Brown, born October 23, 1893 in Nevada County, Arkansas, was the son of Artemas Walter and Mollie (Fielding) Brown, both natives of Arkansas. His education was interrupted by his entry into World War I where he served as a lieutenant in the infantry. He continued his education after the war and received his law degree from George Washington University in 1920 and was admitted to practice law in the District of Columbia on January 31, 1921, Ihe same year that he became a member of the Arkansas Bar. He returned to his native state and opened his office in EI Dorado. He was elected prosecuting attorney for the 13th Judicial District of Arkansas in 1924. In 1937 and 1938 he was a member of the Arkansas Oil and Gas Commission. He also served as chairman of the Union County Democratic Central Committee many years. He was the senior member of the firm of Brown, Compton and Prewett at the time of his death in 1972. This is the third oldest firm in EI Dorado.

92

John M. Shackleford opened his office for private practice of law in 1935 after he left the employment of Lion Oil. He graduated from Ihe University of Arkansas and had worked for Lion Oil since his graduation. His son, John Marshall Shackleford, Jr., entered the firm in 1947 and a few years later Dennis L. Shackleford became a member of the firm. Mr. Shackleford served as mayor of EI Dorado in the 1940's. He practiced with his sons until his death in 1968. The firm of Shackleford and Shackleford is carried on by these two brothers.

Judge J. G. Ragsdale finished Arkansas University and then completed his law course at Washington and Lee University. He has practiced law in EI Oorado since the late 1920's.

He has been reelected municipal judge for many years, is presently serving in that office. He has represented Lion Oil Company in the legal profession for many years.

Jeff Davis, son of Jeff Davis, the only man to be governor of Arkansas three terms before Governor Faubus, came to EI Dorado in 1923. He graduated from the University of Arkansas in 1917 and entered military service as a first lieutenant in World War I. After his military service he went to Harvard and received his law degree from Ihat University in 1922. He was retained as general counsel of Lion Oil Company and later became secretary and a member of the board of directors. He has had a very brilliant career in the legal fraternity of Arkansas. His only son, Jeff Davis, III, is an allorney of lillie Rock.

Grover Snuggs is the oldest practicing attorney at the bar in Union County. He moved to EI Dorado during the Oil Boom and has practiced here continuously since Ihat time. Silas Rogers also came to EI Dorado during the Boom and continued to practice here until his death.

Judge Henry S. Yocum was a native of Union Counly; finished at the University of Arkansas and entered the practice of law in EI Dorado. He formed a partnersh ip with J. K. Mahony in 1920 that lasted almost SO years until the death of Mr. Mahony. judge Yocum received many honors in his years of legal work one of which the University of Arkansas has a bUilding on the campus named for him, Yocum Hall. He served on the board of trustees at the University of Arkansas for many years and was chairman of the board for ten years. He was an active supporter of the University of Arkansas football team and the local high school team. His son, Henry S. Yocum, Jr., is judge, elected chancellor of the district in 1968.

Claude B. Crumpler has practiced law in EI Dorado Since 1928 and is next to the oldest practicing attorney in EI Dorado. In 1946 he formed a partnership with J. A. O'Connor, Jr., a young attorney just out of military Service. Mr. O'Connor, chief counsellor for Murphy Oil Company, is also on the board of directors. The firm is presently known as Crumpler. O'Connor and Wynne.

JEFF DAVIS Received the "Outstanding Lawyer of the Year" Award of The Arkansas Bar Foundation and Association in 1965.

â&#x20AC;˘

HENRY S. YOCUM

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

'ltbe meJ!allep 'legenb "If you don't have the law on your

side, talk about the facts; if you don't have the facts on your side, talk about the law; if you don't have the law or the facts on your side, just get out there and raise hell," was Pat McNalley's advice to young attorneys.

And he certainly practiced his own advice. He was one of the most colorful lawyers ever to practice in the State of Arkansas, and perhaps the best criminal attorney the state has ever had. No history of the bar in Union County wouid be complete without this colorful figure.

He was born in Indiana on February 21, 1867, and graduated in law from Ihe University of Indiana in 1895. But because of the death of his college sweetheart, he took a trip to Ireland and did not enter the practice of law for several years. Finally, he located at Danville, Indiana, where he practiced until 1903 when he became involved in a feud and left to land in Huttig, Arkansas, as a ditchdigger in the construction of that milltown. He boarded at the big hotel that the lumber company had erected for the workers anri many others boarded there also, among them the postmistress, Miss Birdie Burnside. One of his fellow workers killed a man and was to stand trial and had no money to hire an attorney. Mr. McNalley volunteered to represent the man free of charge. To the astonishment of all they found that

he was an attorney in good standing and a very good attorney he proved to be with the acquittal of his friend.

After the trial, Mr. McNalley was the talk of the legal circles in the county and the toast of all underdogs. That afternoon the crowd was at the Missouri Pacific Station to catch the train to Huttig and Miss Burnside walked up to the stylishly dressed attorney and said, "How do you do, Mr. McNalley?" He replied, "The name is Pat, in the ditch or out."

He practiced law in EI Dorado until 1915 when the wanderlust again took hold of him after the death of his wife.

He went to Arizona and New Mexico and worked in mines for five years when he returned to form a partnership with Col. Robert Harper, who was the junior partner in the law firm of John H. Askew years before. Col. Harper died in 1921 and Mr. McNaliey later formed a partnership with Judge Sellers, which continued until the late 1930's when both died within the year of each other.

Pat McNalley was witty, clever, and he represented his client with every means at hand, fair or foul. He took a case to win, and win he did most of the time. On one trial of a man for the murder ot his wife during the EI Dorado Boom days, and the days of the big Beaver Hats, he pulled ali of the tricks. He knew that one witness had ali of the facts and that this witness' testimony would convict his client. The jury must not hear that man's statements, but how to prevent it? Mr. McNalley knew. When the court recessed at noon, he went to the finest store in EI Dorado and bought the finest beaver hat. When court reconvened after lunch, he threw the new beaver hat on the table and took his seat. The dreaded witness was called 10 the stand; Mr. McNalley reached for his beaver hat and slowly and carefully drew his knife from his pocket and started carving on the hat with slow motion and careful design with hoies in the top and scallops on the brim. When the prosecutor said, "Your witness," Mr. McNalley replied, "No questions, your honor." The client was acquitted. The jury had not heard one word the witness had said.

â&#x20AC;˘ * * * * MARCH 1973

JUDGE NEill C. MARSH

Judge Neill C. Marsh, a native of North Carolina, came to Union County about 1890 and taught school for a few years at New London where he formed a friendship with Richard T. Nabors, a practicing attorney in that town that was at the time the second county seal of Union County. Judge Marsh began the study of law in Mr. Nabors' library and was admitted to the bar. He moved to EI Dorado and opened his law office with his brother James, and this firm continued untii 1902 when James Marsh returned to their native Fayetteville, North Caroiina. JUdge Marsh was mayor of EI Dorado in 1902. Then Judge Marsh and Almyer Flenniken formed a partnership which lasted untii 1913. In 1921 Tom Marlin, a young attorney from Tennessee became a junior partner in Judge Marsh's firm. In 1925 Col. C. W. McKay of Magnolia came to EI Dorado and entered the firm that became Marsh, McKay and Marlin which was dissolved in 1933 when the firm of Marsh and Marsh was formed with Judge Marsh and his son, Neiii C. Marsh, Jr. Judge Marsh died February ~, 1942 and his son continued to practice alone until death in the 1950's.

93

Aylmer Flenniken was born in 1869 in Union County and graduated from law school at the University of Mich-

igan. He entered the law firm at Judge Marsh and after the dissolution of that firm practiced alone the rest of his life.

He was elected state senator and was very active in the affairs of the county.

A street is named for him in El Dorado.

J. S. Brooks, Laban Southmayd, Harvey Betts, Edward Coulter, Robert Knox, John Bruce Cox, E. L. Compere, J. S. Thomas, Fioyd Stein, and many others came to EI Dorado with the oil

boom. J. S. Brooks' son, J. S. Brooks, Jr., is a practicing attorney in EI Dorado and is presently on the board of directors of First Federal Savings & Loan Association. Mr. Stein's son, James Stein, is also practicing law in

EI Dorado.

Today many young attorneys have opened up offices in El Dorado. In addition to those who have been named the law firm of Nolan and Alderson, composed of two cousins

Homer T. Rogers came to Smackover as a young lawyer in 1926 during the boom days. Mr. Rogers was City Judge from 1926 to 1929. He ran on a

William C. Nolan, Jr., and Edwin B. Alderson, Jr., has a large practice and

ticket of cleaning up the fown, which at the time was wide open. In reminiscing, judge Rogers said the

has attracted other young attorneys to it. Michael Landers in the firm with

Richard

last trial he held as City JUdge, he gave 67 "barrel house" girls the

Mays;

Albert

Hanna who

opened his own office recently; Beryl Anthony, Jr., who is presently serving as prosecuting attorney; Gene Bramb-

choice of leaving town in 24 hours or

going to jail. They left town. He still is active as an attorney in Smackover.

lett and Joe Polk both with the firm of Brown, Compton and Prewett; Norwood Phillips with Shackleford and Shackleford; Ed Jones and others form one of the strongest groups of young attorneys in the state. These young men with the traditional background of the legal profession in Union County for more than 150 years will continue to carry the highest

standards of the legal profession that has been the reputation of the lawyers in Union County since the earliest times.

JUOGE W. E. PATTERSON

HOMER T. ROGERS

W. E. Patterson, a native of Camden, studied law under the direction

of the firm of Gaughan and Sifford of Camden, and opened his law office in

EI uorado in 1903. In 1905 he formed a partnership with former chief justice

of Arkansas Supreme Court, Henry G. Bunn, a lawyer of distinction who had been active in the practice of law im-

mediately after the War of the 1860's.

This partnership lasted until Judge Bunn's death in 1908. In September of that year Mr. Patterson became a part-

ner with John H. Green, who had practiced in EI Dorado for some years.

In 1913 JUdge Patterson was appointed judge of the 13th judicial circuit. In 1914 he resumed the practice of law and later became a partner with Henry Rector. Mr. Rector moved away and JUdge Patterson practiced alone for many years before his death about

1948.

94

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

-----~-

.~- --~--

Judge Oren Harris -

U.S. District Courts,

Judge Melvin E. Mayfield -

(E. and ~ District of Arkansas)

District, Arkansas

Judge James M. Rowan, Jr. - 7th Chancery Circuit, Arkansas

Judge Henry S. Yocum. Jr. -

Judge Carleton G. Jerry Union County. Arkansas

MARCH 1973

County Judge,

13th Judicial

Judge John M. Graves trier. Arkansas

13th Judicial Dis'

7th Chancery

Judge J. G. Ragsdale EI Dorado, Arkansas

Municipal Judge,

Circuit, Arkansas

Judge Harry Crumpler - Past Circuit Court

Judge Claude E. Love - Past Circuit Court

Judge. 13th Judicial Circuit

Judge, 13th Judicial Circuit

95

~ ~ribute Editor's Note: The Arkansas Lawyer is deeply indebted to Annie Laurie Spencer for this History of the Bench and Bar of Union County. We would like to take this opportunity to

publish the lead editoriai in the Shreveport Journal on Friday, May 31, 1968 on the occasion of the death of her father, James Victor Spence" Sr.

James Victor Spencer, Sr. In the death of James Victor Spencer, Sr., EI Dorado, Ark., has lost a prominent attorney, civic and business leader. Many friends in Louisiana and Arkansas share the grief of his family.

His legal practice in EI Dorado began In 1927 and extended to 1965 when he retired. He succeeded in business as well as in law. His business interests included a utility plant, an oil company, a movie theater, saw mills, a grocery store and a real estate agency.

Mr. Spencer was a native of Union Parish, having been born in the community 01 Spencer which was named for his family. He earned a bachelor's degree at Northwestern Louisiana State College at Natchitoches.

In Union Paris as in the rest of the South the public school system was weak when he was growing up. High school training was confined largely to private academies

and they were not available to a great many of Louisiana's and Arkansas' young people. The inadequacies of the public schools during his boyhood spurred in Mr. Spencer a lifelong desire to help improve education facilities.

For a decade in Arkansas he served on the State Board of Education. Under three governors he contributed to public school policies that raised the standards of instruction and brought 12 years of schooling within the reach of all children of the slate.

Mr. Spencer belonged to the Union County, Arkansas and American bar associations. He was a member of St. Mary's Episcopal Church.

The journal extends condolences to his widow, Mrs. Annie Nabors Spencer; his son, James V. Spencer Jr., his daughters, Mrs. Annie Laurie Spencer Dickinson and Mrs. Earl A. Riley Jr., all of EI Dorado; and other survivors.

J-~~

Over 500,000 Arkansans belong!

Blue Cross and Blue Shield offer your company the most for your employees' health protection plan.

Beller benefits. Easier administration for you.

Greater return on the dollars you pay.

â&#x20AC;˘

If you're interested, drop us a line on your lellerhead.

ARKANSAS BLUE CROSS & BLUE SHIELD, INC. 96

6th & Gaines Little Rock 72203 THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

Fidelity

MISSING

TITLE AND ABSTRACT COMPANY

AND UNKNOWN HEIRS LOCATED

OFFERS-

Statewide Title Service

NO EXPENSE TO THE ESTATE

REPRESENTfNG-

Louisville Title Insurance CO. OF lOUISVillE, KENTUCKY

WORLD路WIDE SERViCE FOR

COURTS - LAWYERS - TRUST OFFICERS ADMINISTRATORS - .EXECUTORS

TITLE PLANT CONSTRUCTION BY

-.American -.Archiue:J -.At}:JOcialion INTERNATIONAL PROBATE RESEARCH 449 WASHINGTON BUILDING

WASHINGTON, O.

c.

TITLE DATA OF ARKANSAS, INC. P.O. Box 644 Benton, Arkansas 72015

OFFICES AT, 223 National Investors Building. Little Rock 126 N. Main Benton, Arkansas

JAMES A. GRAY President JAMES E. VILLINES Vice President LOLA L. GRAY Secretary-Treasu rer

MEMBER OF: Arkansas Land Title Association American land Title Association

ARKANSAS BAR ASSOCIA TION DEL EGA TES -UNION COUNTY - DISTRICT NO. 24-

RICHARD H. MAYS Mays And Landers EI Dorado, Arkansas MARCH 1973

WILLIAM I. PREWETT Brown, Compton & Prewett EI Dorado, Arkansas 97

THE UNION COUNTY Minutes of the Union County Bar Association begin January 13, 1926, but there is evidence that there was an organization earlier.

This firsl meeting of the EI Dorado Bar was at 5 p.m. in the office of Marsh and Marlin with T. O. Abbott, Chairman and others present were M. P. Matheney, Secretary, Neill C. Marsh, Henry S. Yocum, Walter L. Goodwin and Jordan Sellers.

Others who were members at that lime were Martin L. Allday, J. E. Anderson, H. V. Betts, Frank M. Betts, L. S. Britt, J. S. Brooks, Waller L. Brown, A. L. Brumbelow, Miss Aurelle Burnside, John Carroll, John Bruce Cox, N. A. Cox, C. B. Crumpler, Nat T. Dyer, John E. Harris, N. E. Hendrickson, J. W. Wallace, R. M. Hutchins, Gus W. Jones, Robert A. Kitchens, Robert C. Knox, Bert B. Larey, Geo. M. LeCroy, E. W. McGough, W. C. Medley, Earle W. Moorehead, E. H. Murphy, Oren Parmeter, W. E. Patterscn, H. S. Powell, James A. Plotner, Albert L. Wilson, A. D. Pope, J. G. Ragsdale, W. H. Rector, J. N. Saye, John M. Shackleford, H. P. Smead, Allyn Smith, G. E. Snuggs, W. A. Speer, Harry C. Steinberg, I. W. Stennett, Zeb A. Stewart, Alvin D. Stevens, Austin B. Taylor, Miss Enid Tilbury and J. R. Wilson.

On February 4 of that year there was a dinner meeting at the Garrett Hotel Dining room with the EI Dorado Bar and their ladies being entertained. W. E. Patterson was president, Robert C. Knox was master of ceremonies and

toastmaster for the evening. The program included a violin solo by Mr. Bernstein; a short talk by Judge Neill C. Marsh; a vocal solo by Mrs. Keith Jones; and the speaker of the evening Han. Edward B. Downey of Little Rock, who was made an honorary member of the EI Dorado Bar Association.

For years the EI Dorado Bar Association has had the dinner meetings with the ladies as their guests. Since the date in 1926 the records of the association have been kept and are in order.

However, the name is now Union County Bar Association and includes all lawyers in the county.

In 1963, the Union County Bar Association received the Arkansas Bar Foundation Award for the Outstanding Large Local Bar Association in Arkansas. This was the first year that such award was given. In the same year, the Asso-

eiation received the American Bar Association's Award of Merit for its Law Day USA Program. Two of the recent programs sponsored by the Association have been the purchase of judicial robes for all the judges and the remodeling of most of the courtrooms in Union County.

1 The most honorable men I ha ve known ha ve been lawyers; they were men whose word was their MEMBERS

Edwin B. Alderson Beryl Anthony, Jr. James D. Baine

Bruce Bennett J. S. Brooks, Jr. Miss Aurelle Burnside James J. Callaway Worth Camp, Jr. Marvin Clark Robert Compton Claude B. Crumpler Bill J. Davis Jeff Davis H. Derrell Dickens Chadd L. Durrett Emmette F. Gathright

Judge John M. Graves Chester L. Greene Ronald L. Griggs Albert R. Hanna Judge Oren Harris Raymond B. Higgins Jabe Hoggard W. Robert Hollinger William L. Hopper Thomas P. James Wayne Jewell Edward P. Jones Anthony G. Kassos Michael R. Landers Robert E. Little

We would like to "borrow" the above q u ot a t 1011. ••• #~;;.~.~

:~~ .~ .. ~-~/.~,~,

.,..;:.,..-

;~~.~ ,~.~~ ,

....

-

~--

-

-

~~ ~

YOUNG'S FUNERAL DIRECTORS OF DISTINCTION EI Dorado

Arkansas

HURLEY PRINTING & STATIONERY CO. S25 N......

98

W.'~""tooo

A...

•

16)·6Ul

•

ft 0.•• 010, .." •• 7lUO

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

BAR ASSOCIA TION

bond, and Vice路President Waf/ace M. Moody

President Michael F. Mahony

who would have preferred ruin to breaking it.

George Borrow MEMBERS Judge Claude E. Love Emon A. Mahony Joseph K. Mahony II Michael F. Mahony M. P. Matheney Judge Melvin Mayfield Richard H. Mays Wallace M. Moody James H. Nobles, Jr. William C. Nolan, Jr. J. A. O'Connor, Jr. R. H. Peace Norwood Phillips Joe A. Polk William L Prewett

JUdge J. G. Ragsdale Homer T. Rogers

Judge James M. Rowan H. Y. Rowe John M. Shackleford, Jr. Dennis L. Shackleford G. E. Snuggs James V. Spencer, Jr. James V. Spencer, Iii Lewis D. Smith James E. Stein Denver l. Thornton

Secretary- Treasurer Albert R. Hanna

Jerry W. Watkins William J. Wynne Judge Henry S. Yocum. Jr.

.................as it applies so well 10 our lawyers - - Compliments of

EL DORADO COFFEE COMPANY

MARKS COMPANY FORD - MERCURY - LINCOLN

"Helpillg Arkallsas to Grow" EI Dorado

MARCH 1973

Arkansas

EI Dorado, Arkansas

99

Introducing . . . .

The Four Best Buys In Arkansas Legal Reference Materials

Arkansas Manual Of Domestic Relations Practice and Procedure

Arkansas Desk Book With 1971 Revision

(1'lIb/is/iedJllly 1,19(9)

An Absolute MUST in Family Law Practice

'11.00

(il/c/lldes poS/age)

Arkansas Form Book For Law Graduates

The READY REFERENCE to !.i.Fields of Law Practice

'13.50

(il/c/lldes postage)

1971 Revision to The Desk Book

(rel'lsed IlllglIsl, 19(9)

142 Pleadings and Forms in 10 Fields of Law Practice

'11.00

(il/c/lldes postage)

Update Your DESK BOOK with 11 Re-edited Sections

'5.50

(il/c/lldes poslage)

Send your order to:

100

Arkansas Bar Association 408 Donaghey Bldg.

Little Rock, Arkansas 7220 I

THE ARKANSAS LAWYER

South Arkansas and First National Bank Growing Together.

At First National, we're proud of the rapidly increasing growth of South Arkansas.

And as a financial leader in the community, we're also aware of our responsibility to meet the increasing needs brought on by that growth and to help that growth continue.

As such, we've worked to become more and more professional in every department of the bank. And from friendly tellers to one of the most experienced and talented Trust Divisions in the state, all the evidence says that we're succeeding.

FIRST NATIONAL BANK OF EL DORADO

The EI Dorado story would not be complete without recognition of the late Colonel T. H. (Thomas Harry) Barton .

"The Lord takes care of His Innocents" was the favorite saying of Colonel Barton - but the Colonel did his share too. He came Irom Texas to Arkansas in 1920 to join in the fury of activity around El Dorado during the early discovery days. Concentrating on the natural gas business, he organized the El Dorado Natural Gas Company in 1921, merged his company with the old Arkansas Natural Gas Company in 1928, and then sold out to Cities Service. At this time, he relused the olfer of the presidency of Lion Oil Company to travel. Fate took him to Kansas City, where he paid a courtesy call at the office of the Company's principal stockholder. An hour later, he walked out with the control 01 the Lion Oil Company. On January 1,1929, he assumed the presidency 01 the Company. Hard work stood him in good stead until the Schular Field was discovered just west 01 El Dorado in 1937 and Colonel Barton again quoted his favorite saying. The rest is history.

Colonel Barton, 1881-1960

Colonel Barton served as Chairman 01 the Board Irom October 22, 1947 until September 30, 1965, when Lion Oil Company was merged into the Monsanto Chemical Company.

Although he was chosen by popular vote as "Arkansan 01 the Year" lor 1952 and received the "Great Living Arkansan" Award lor 1959, he was most proud 01 his "Golden Boy" Award from the Boys' Clubs of America and his "Silver Beaver" Award from the Boy Scouts of America.

Colonel Barton's honors were myriad - and in direct proportion to his many philanthropies.

Colonel Barton was a success by all man's standards. Undoubtedly, the Lord had something to do about it, too.

LION OIL COMPANY EL DORADO, ARKANSAS 71730