The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1935-09-14
BY EARL SPARKLING
Times Special Writer

Quer He went through the state
constitution and found that the only
political Job without a minimum age
limit was that Of Railroad Commits
siOner. He was "a He announced
for the lob and defeated the vet
Gran who was running for re-elec-
ton
In that race he demonstrated his
Uncanny judgment Of what the
people wanted He was advised 10
wear old clothes and go about the
countryside in a buggy. Instead he
laid in supply Of white linen suits,
borrowed enough money TO buy an
automobile. and campaigned in
style. I wanted those folks 10 think
I was somebody, and they did" ne
explained later.
He also explained later that what
gave him his edge in that first
political race was that he had called
on a lot Of farmers when he was
selling stuff from door 10 door. He
had kept a file Of their names
which he called the backbone Of
the Huey Long political organiza-
ton"
Avoided Hotels in Campaign
Never, If he could avoid il, did he
stop at a hotel while on a speaking
campaign. He knocked on some
farm door and asked lodging for
the night In the morning the
farmers name went down in his
file. and later the farmer would be
flattered with a letter asking how
crops we're coming and about things
in general.
AS member Of the three-man
railroad commission, which was
equivalent to a general public SER
vice commission, Huey Long began
his never-cnding attack on the
foreign corporations" which he
claimed were dominating the state.
Chief of these corporations, he de-
cided, was the Standard Oil Co. He
fought Standard Oil throughout
his career and he admitted frankly
that his antagOniSm began as a per-
sonal thing.
In his autobiography he states:
I had done certain legal work con-
nected with the oil business. They
paid me in oil stock. I bought adj
ditional stock from some of them.
Several companies in which I was
interested were very successful 1t
was just at this time the big COM
panieS (headed by Standard OLD
threatened to begin pipeline embar-
goes. designed to freeze out small
companies and independent opera
tors.
Dreamed of Making Millions
Like flash all the Independents
were told they would take no more
oil I had gone to sleep one night
with a good chance to become a
millionaire only to awake in the
morning to read that nothing I had
was of value because the little pipe
line companies said So"
Now, there is little doubt that
Standard Oil did attempt to freeze
out independent producers in Louis
lana, nor any doubt that Huey Long
kept the octopus from doing it.
When pipe lines serving the field
i'll which he held leases were closed
to independent producers the young
commissioner demanded that Gov
Rufin G. Pleasant call a special
session of the legislature and have
the pipelines declared common car
riers. which would have put them
under the jurisdiction of the Rail-
road Commission and Huey P Long
Gov. Pleasant was deaf to his ap-
peal
Decides to Run for Governor
The 1920 gubernatorial campaign
40
remotest sections of the country
side in behalf of John NJ. Parker
in the belief that Mr. Parker, if
elected, would favor a pipe line bill
Mr.. Parker was elected but instead
of pushing the pipe line legislation
Long wanted he effected a compro
mise with Standard Oil by which
the octopus agreed to transport the
oil of independents. The young
commissioner was so enraged and
said such vitriOlic things that Gov.
Parker brought criminal libel actions
against him and he was convicted,
with a suspended sentence.
Huey decided there was nothing
to do but run for governor himself
which he did in the campaign Of
1923-24. He ClamOred in that cam
paign for an "oCCupatiOnal tax on
the refining of oil. about 40 per
cent of which was being done by
Standard.
He lost the race. but by a sur
priSingly small margin. Four years
later. carrying on the same fight.
he swept the state and was elected
governor. In those years between
1920 and 1928 he had become a COM
paratively wealthy man. The rail-
road COmmiSSiOnerShip had not been
a demanding Job. 1t left him plenty
of time for private law practice.
Money had rolled in. He had built
himself a $4,000 home in Shreve-
port.
Starts Building Dictatorship.
His inauguration was hardly over
before he began building up his
dictatorship. He had the legislature
reOrganiZe the various state depart
mentS and manned them with his
own supporters. Before appointing
them he forced most of his ap-
pOinteeS to sign undated reSigna-
tionS. It became apparent that he
wanted nothing less than full polit-
iCal control of every state board and
commission. with even the power 70
appoint judges temporarily to the
Court of Appeals He made no bones
about his intentions.
During one of his appearances
before a state senate committee, an
irate senator heayed a copy of the
state constitution at his head and
shouted: Maybe you've heard of
this book" Huey picked it up,
looked at it. and replied. I'm the
constitution. Just now" In 1882. he
was able to say: Gentlemen. I am
the Democratic party in Louisiana. "
Neither statement was an idle
boast. He became all that and more.
E--- hi. .snt c,-r,, ~, . tinl, 70 hum bic