The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 38, July 1934 - April, 1935 Page: 23
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Grass Lease Fight and Attempted Impeachment
and Clark struck off toward the capitol. Goodnight sat around
the office in a sweat until finally Clark came puffing back to report
that everything was all right, that he had gotten the bill tabled
and needed only one more day to finish it.
"The next day he went back," recalled Goodnight, "and when
it came up those old East Texas fellows jumped on it and just
stomped the hell out of it. Houston looked like lightning had
struck him. When Clark came back to the office, I said:
"'Look here, Clark, how did you do it? I've been here two
weeks and didn't do a thing.' Clark sat down and explained:
"I went up to these old corn-cob pipe fellows, from down in
East Texas and referring to the enclosure bill, said:
"'What are you going to do with Goodnight's bill?'
"'Goodnight's bill?' they would say, 'that's not Goodnight's bill.
That's Temple Houston's bill. I understand that Houston and
Goodnight don't even speak.'
"'Why should they speak? Don't you know Houston is work-
ing for Goodnight, and that that rascal wants this law passed be-
cause he wants free grass.'
"'Oh,' the old corn-cobber would say, 'is that so?'
"'Of course, it's so!' Aren't you a hell of a fine feller to be up
here trying to serve the state,' " Clark would answer with simu-
lated, biting sarcasm. And so from one to another the suggestion
had its effect. The Legislature tore the bill to pieces, George Clark
went back to Waco to resume his practice, and later to run against
Hogg for governor in one of the bitterest campaigns the State has
experienced, while the Legislature returned to a disposal of the
lease question.9
At the meeting of the Texas Live Stock Association at Dallas,
in January, Goodnight went on record with other leading cowmen
of the State as favoring a ten-year lease system "to the end that
lessees may be secure for a term of years in all improvements they
may make . . .," and in March he pulled out of Austin for the
convention of the Northwest Texas Stock Association to urge better
organization because "there was a deep seated feeling against cattle-
men in the state . . gaining strength, while cattlemen were
doing nothing comparatively for their own protection. . ."40
"Goodnight to J. E. H., June 15, 1929; Burton, History of the JA
Ranch, 95.
"oThe Gazette, January 12 and 13 and March 10, 1887.
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 38, July 1934 - April, 1935, periodical, 1935; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth117143/m1/31/?rotate=90: accessed April 25, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.