EXHIBIT 10(j)

                NONQUALIFIED STOCK OPTION AGREEMENT



     THIS  NONQUALIFIED  STOCK  OPTION  AGREEMENT (the "Option Agreement"),
made as of this 1st day of April, 1997, by  and between Jerry S. Neely (the
"Participant"), and ISITOP, Inc. (the "Company"):


                       W I T N E S S E T H:


     WHEREAS, the Participant is a key management  employee of the Company,
its parent or any subsidiary of the Company, and it  is  important  to  the
Company  that  the Participant be encouraged to remain in the employ of the
Company, its parent or any subsidiary of the Company; and

     WHEREAS, in  recognition of such facts, the Company desires to provide
to the Participant an opportunity to purchase shares of the common stock of
the Company, as hereinafter provided.

     NOW, THEREFORE,  in  consideration of the mutual covenants hereinafter
set forth and for good and  valuable consideration, the Participant and the
Company hereby agree as follows:

     1.   GRANT  OF  STOCK  OPTION.   The  Company  hereby  grants  to  the
Participant a stock option (the "Stock Option") to purchase all or any part
of an aggregate of one thousand  eight  hundred seventy-five (1,875) shares
of its Common Stock, par value $1.00, (the  "Stock")  as  set  forth below,
under  and  subject  to  the terms and conditions of this Option Agreement.
The purchase price for each  share  to  be purchased hereunder shall be six
dollars and forty cents ($6.40) (the "Option Price").

     2.   TIMES  OF EXERCISE OF STOCK OPTION.   The  Participant  shall  be
eligible to exercise his Stock Option only after the Company has repaid The
Beard Company ("Beard")  for  all  advances  made  by  Beard to the Company
pursuant  to the Subscription Agreement attached as Exhibit  "B"  plus  any
accrued interest and Beard's initial $32,000 investment in the Company (the
"Exercise Event").  In addition, the conditions of Section 8 hereof must be
satisfied before  the  Participant  shall be eligible to exercise his Stock
Option.  If the Participant's employment with the Company (or its parent or
of any one or more of the subsidiaries  of  the  Company) remains full-time
and  continuous  at  all  times  prior  to  the Exercise  Event,  then  the
Participant shall be entitled, subject to the applicable provisions of this
Option  Agreement  having  been  satisfied, to exercise  on  or  after  the
applicable Exercise Event, on a cumulative  basis,  the number of shares of
Stock set forth in the foregoing Section 1.

     3.   TERM  OF STOCK OPTION.  Stock Options shall  be  granted  on  the
following terms and conditions.  Stock Options shall only be granted to key
management employees,  directors  or  key  professional  employees  of  the
Company,  its  parent  or  any  subsidiary of the Company.  No Stock Option
shall be exercisable more than ten  (10)  years  from  the  date  of grant.
Subject to such limitations, the Committee shall have the discretion to fix
the  period  ("Option Period") during which Stock Options may be exercised.
Provided,  notwithstanding   anything  in  this  Option  Agreement  to  the
contrary, if the employment of  the  Participant  is terminated for "Cause"
prior  to  the  expiration of the Option Period, to the  extent  any  Stock
Options under this  Option  Agreement  have  not been previously exercised,
such Stock Options shall automatically and immediately  expire  as  of  the
date  of  such termination of employment, regardless of the extent to which
it would have  been  otherwise  exercisable  at such time.  For purposes of
this Option Agreement, termination of the Participant's  employment  by the
Company  for Cause shall mean termination for one of the following reasons:
(i) the conviction  of  the  Participant  of a felony by a federal or state
court of competent jurisdiction; (ii) an act or acts of dishonesty taken by
the Participant and intended to result in substantial  personal  enrichment
of   the   Participant  at  the  expense  of  the  Company;  or  (iii)  the
Participant's  willful breach or habitual neglect of the duties which he is
required to perform  under the Employment Agreement between the Company and
the Participant.

     4.   NONTRANSFERABILITY  OF STOCK OPTIONS.  Except as otherwise herein
provided, any Stock Option granted shall not be transferable otherwise than
by will or the laws of descent  and  distribution, and the Stock Option may
be  exercised only by him.  More particularly  (but  without  limiting  the
generality  of  the  foregoing),  the  Stock  Option  may  not be assigned,
transferred (except as provided above), pledged or hypothecated in any way,
shall  not  be assignable by operation of law and shall not be  subject  to
execution, attachment,  or  similar  process.   Any  attempted  assignment,
transfer,  pledge,  hypothecation or other disposition of the Stock  Option
contrary to the provisions  hereof  shall  be  null  and  void  and without
effect.

     5.   EMPLOYMENT.  So long as the Participant shall continue  to  be  a
full-time and continuous employee of the Company, its parent or one or more
of  the  subsidiaries of the Company, any Stock Option granted to him shall
not be affected  by  any  change  of  duties  or position.  Nothing in this
Option Agreement shall confer upon the Participant any right to continue in
the employ of the Company, its parent or any of  the  subsidiaries  of  the
Company,  or interfere in any way with the right of the Company, its parent
or any of the  subsidiaries  of the Company to terminate such Participant's
employment at any time.

     6.   SPECIAL RULES WITH RESPECT  TO  STOCK  OPTIONS.   With respect to
Stock Options granted hereunder, the following special rules shall apply:

          (a)  ACCELERATION  OF  OTHERWISE UNEXERCISABLE STOCK  OPTIONS  ON
RETIREMENT,  DEATH,  DISABILITY  OR  OTHER   SPECIAL   CIRCUMSTANCES.   The
Committee,  in  its  sole  discretion,  may  permit  (i) a Participant  who
terminates employment due to retirement, (ii) a Participant  who terminates
employment  due  to  a disability, (iii) the personal representative  of  a
deceased  Participant,   or  (iv)  any  other  Participant  who  terminates
employment upon the occurrence  of  special circumstances (as determined by
the Committee) to purchase  all or any  part of the shares subject to Stock
Option on the date of the Participant's retirement,  disability,  death, or
as   the  Committee  otherwise  so  determines,  notwithstanding  that  all
installments, if any, had not accrued on such date.

          (b)  NUMBER  OF  STOCK  OPTIONS  GRANTED.   Participants  may  be
granted  more than one Stock Option.  In making any such determination, the
Committee shall obtain the advice and recommendation of the officers of the
Company, its  parent, or a subsidiary of the Company which have supervisory
authority over  such Participants.  Further, the granting of a Stock Option
under this Option  Agreement  shall not affect any outstanding Stock Option
previously granted to a Participant under the Plan.

          (c)  ASSUMPTION OF OUTSTANDING  STOCK  OPTIONS.   To  the  extent
permitted  by  the  applicable provisions of the Code, any successor to the
Company succeeding to,  or  assigned  the  business  of, the Company as the
result  of  or  in  connection  with  a  corporate  merger,  consolidation,
combination,  reorganization or liquidation transaction shall assume  Stock
Options outstanding  under this Option Agreement or issue new Stock Options
in place of such outstanding  Stock  Options.  Provided, such assumption of
outstanding Stock Options is to be made  on  a fair and equivalent basis in
accordance with the applicable provisions of Section  424(a)  of  the Code;
provided,   further,   in  no  event  will  such  assumption  result  in  a
modification of any Stock Option as defined in Section 424(h) of the Code.

          (d)  ADJUSTMENTS  UNDER CHANGES IN CAPITALIZATION.  The aggregate
number of shares of Stock under  Stock  Options  granted  under this Option
Agreement, the Option Price and the total number of shares  of  Stock which
may be purchased by a Participant on exercise of the Stock Option  shall be
appropriately  adjusted  or  modified  by  the  Committee  to  reflect  any
recapitalization,   stock  split,  merger,  consolidation,  reorganization,
combination, liquidation,  stock  dividend or similar transaction involving
the Company.  Provided, any such adjustment  shall be made in such a manner
as to not constitute a modification as defined  in  Section  424(h)  of the
Code.

     7.   METHOD OF EXERCISING STOCK OPTION.

          (a)  PROCEDURES FOR EXERCISE.  The manner of exercising the Stock
Option  herein  granted  shall  be  by  written  notice to the Secretary or
Personnel Manager of the Company prior to the date  the  Stock  Option,  or
part  thereof, is to be exercised, and in any event prior to the expiration
of the Option Period.  Such notice shall state the election to exercise the
Stock Option and the number of shares of Stock with respect to that portion
of the  Stock  Option being exercised, and shall be signed by the person or
persons so exercising the Stock Option.

          (b)  FORM  OF  PAYMENT.   Payment  for  shares of Stock purchased
under this Option Agreement shall be made in full and  in cash or by check,
Stock of the Company or a combination thereof, at the time  of  exercise of
the Stock Options as a condition thereof, and no loan or advance  shall  be
made  by the Company for the purpose of financing, in whole or in part, the
purchase  of  Stock.   In  the  event  that  common stock of the Company is
utilized as consideration for the purchase of  Stock upon the exercise of a
Stock  Option,  then,  such common stock shall be valued  at  "fair  market
value".  For all purposes  of effecting the exercise of a Stock Option, the
date on which the Participant  gives  the notice of exercise to the Company
will be the date he becomes bound contractually  to  take  and  pay for the
shares of Stock underlying the Stock Option.  The Committee may also  adopt
such  other  procedures  which  it  desires for the payment of the purchase
price upon the exercise of a Stock Option  which  are not inconsistent with
the applicable provisions of the Code which relate to Stock Options.

          (c)  PAYMENT  OF  WITHHOLDING TAXES.  No exercise  of  any  Stock
Option shall be permitted nor  shall any Stock be issued to the Participant
until the Company receives full payment for the Stock purchased which shall
include any required state and federal  withholding  taxes.   Further, upon
the exercise of any Stock Option, the Participant may direct the Company to
retain  from  the  shares of Stock to be issued upon exercise of the  Stock
Option that number of  initial shares of Stock (based on fair market value)
that would be necessary  to  satisfy  the  requirements for withholding any
amounts of taxes due upon the exercise of such Stock Option.

     8.   SECURITIES LAW RESTRICTIONS.  Stock  Options  shall  be exercised
and Stock issued only upon compliance with the Securities Act of  1933,  as
amended  (the  "Act"), and any other applicable securities law, or pursuant
to an exemption therefrom.

     9.   SHAREHOLDER  RIGHTS.   The  Participant shall have no rights as a
shareholder with respect to any shares  of  Stock subject to a Stock Option
prior to the purchase of such shares of Stock  by  exercise  of  the  Stock
Option.

     10.  NOTICES.   All  notices  or  other communications relating to the
Plan and this Option Agreement as it relates to the Participant shall be in
writing and shall be mailed (U.S. Mail)  by  the Company to the Participant
at  the then current address as maintained by the  Company  or  such  other
address as the Participant may advise the Company in writing.

          IN  WITNESS WHEREOF, the Company has caused this Option Agreement
to be duly executed  by  its  officers  thereunto  duly authorized, and the
Participant has hereunto set his hand and seal, all  on  the  day  and year
first above written.

                                ISITOP, INC., an Oklahoma corporation

                                By LLOYD A. KIRK
                                   Lloyd A. Kirk, Vice President

                                             "COMPANY"

                                    JERRY S. NEELY
                                    Jerry S. Neely, an individual

                                             "PARTICIPANT"