Evening star., 1960-04-03
PORTRAIT HI. -,
What Man Does With $500 Million


been nominated for president, Mr..
Hunt says, I'd have gone all out
for him financially"
He is not optimistic about the
state Of the world or his country.
He thinks the United States faces
imminent danger of bankruptcy
and SIS moving fast toward COM
munism." He thinks the United
States should pull out of the
United Nations unless it gets a
greater voice in that body which,
he says. already is dominated by
the Communists"
a.. And If we 90 along as we
are, as We get sold on co-existence,
we ourselves will become a Com
munist country. I don't want q
war but the tolerance and friend
ship evidenced by the KhruShchev
and Mikoyan visits here are alarm
ing. Such things would not have
been tolerated three or four years
ago"
Mr.. Hunt thinks the times call
for a strong man" in the White
House and feels Senator Lyndon
johnson may be the answer.
Curiously. Senator johnson is not
among Mr.. Hunts favorite Sen
atorS because Of his new deal
voting record" He much prefers
the work Of Senators Eastland,
Talmadge, Bridges, Goldwater,
Byrd and other conservatives.
Then why does he favor john
son for the Democratic nomina-
ton?
Because, if we are to be saved
from communism, q strong man
will have to do it,"
How He Mode Fortune
Haroldson Lafayette Hunt was
born in Vandalia, H., the son of
a large-scale farmer and grain
speculator. His education stopped
at the fifth grade and he roamed
the Far West as a farm hand, cow
boy and lumberjack. In Arkansas,
he began to. taste real wealth.
trading in cotton land, parlaying
his speculation into 10000 acres.
But suddenly, in the panic of
1921, his cotton land became
worthless. He had nothing ne
gotiable and, for all practical
purposes, was broke. Borrowing
$50 for walking around" money.
NE went TO El Dorado, Ark, to
investigate an oil boom there.
Il began trading in oil land. ="
Yes, but how did you do that
without money!"
We'll, when you have no cash,
you have to rely on other things.
Like conversation. I'd drive out
to see a farmer. offer him $2S
an acre for an oil lease, drive
back into town and find some
body willing to pay $35 an
acre.
He got rolling that way and
four years later had many wells
OF his own and sold a half in
terest in some properties for
$500, 900.
In 1880, Hunt went to East
Texas, bought 1000 acres for
$4,000 cash, S45,00O Short-term
notes and about $l.2 million to
be paid out Of one-fourth of the
production. he says. This was TO
become the greatest oil field dis
covered in the world up to that
time.
mo Stopping PIoee"
He expanded into other oil
fields, other States, finally other
countries. Now at II. with one
of the worlds biggest fortunes
piled up around him, why does
he keep going-why not quit?
There Is no stopping place"
he says. Il couldn't live in re-
tirement. don't want TO hunt
or play golf. I just want to do
what I'm doing. I have a good
time doing it.
e.. There are times when I've
wished I'd wake Up stone broke.
1t would be a great adventure
to see how good I was, to see if
could create lots of wealth again"
And as this is read across the
land, millions of minds will begin
to stir, wheels will turn within
wheels, and people without num-
Der will start getting IDEAS for
separating Haroldson LAFAYETTE
Hunt and his money.