Title: Oil, taxes, and cats
Description: When David M. DeVitt died in 1934, both of his sons having tragically predeceased him, the future of his estate and the West Texas ranch he had founded in 1895 seemed precariously in question. Yet Christine DeVitt, the elder surviving daughter, was determined to prove herself a worthy heir and to look out for the interests of her mother and her younger sister Helen. Set on assuming her father's active interest in the Mallet Ranch, Christine soon became a woman in a man's world.

Her struggle to command respect in that world and to maintain control in managing the ranch threw the Mallet partners into a costly and protracted receivership battle, yet ultimately preserved not only the ranch but also great fortune for the partnership.

Although she was known for her stubborness, her procrastination, and her eccentric love for cats, Christine DeVitt ultimately managed to command the respect she sought. The Mallet partners came to recognize her as a formidable force. In 1974, John Archer, a bank officer representing two of the minority partners, found himself having to ask Christine pointed questions about her management of the ranch. Perhaps the art of persuasion dictated that he compare the minority partners to children gone astray:.

During this period to your great credit you became the resident keeper of the key, the son who stayed at home, the church of the middle ages, you kept the faith.... We now stand at February 2nd, 1977, as the prodigal son who has returned ... but will not be allowed to speak, contribute or even assert what he feels are injustices that have beset him during his absence. Unabashed, Christine underlined in bold his final phrases of contention, then penciled in the margin, "Nobody stopped you, Mr. Partner.".

Yet Christine could evince an appreciable flair for humor. Unable to attend the July 1976 dedication of the David M. DeVitt and Mallet Ranch Building at the Ranching Heritage Center, Texas Tech University, Christine asked University President Grover E. Murray to convey the gratitude she felt to her parents, to the Mallet partners, to the oil industry, and to "Uncle Sam's magnanimous tax structure which has prevented even greater contributions on her part.".

David M. and Christine DeVitt are but two of a distinctive and intriguing frontier family, drawn engagingly by David Murrah as he limns their roles in the shaping of the Mallet Ranch and its lasting impact on West Texas.
Subjects: History, History and criticism, Epic poetry, Epos, Epiek, Poesie epique, Histoire et critique, Epik, Geschichte, Aufsatzsammlung, Animal industry, Epic poetry, history and criticism
Places: Mallet Ranch (Tex.)
People: Devitt family