The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 54, July 1950 - April, 1951 Page: 65
544 p. : ill., ports., maps. (some col.) ; 23 cm.View a full description of this periodical.
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Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Texiana
thropy. I have heard of one collector who in running down
rarities brandishes an axe handle.
I bought Mr. Matt Weeks' collection in January, about a
thousand Texas books. I had to go to Mr. Weeks, look him
squarely in the eyes, tell him I wanted his library and ask his
price. Since I had sold him a lot of the books, he began to throw
my own prices right back at me and there I was, hog-tied and
helpless. What to do? No romance at all.
In Houston I could not sell this collection in bulk largely
because it was only a ten thousand dollar deal. The oilmen
there are not interested in anything that will not give them at
least a hundred thousand dollar tax deduction. Therefore the
Weeks collection had to be sold piecemeal. That put the books
back in circulation and did not boost prices. The acquisition by
the Texas History Center of a collection like Earl Vandale's
increases the value of every book already there and every book
in every collection in the state. And I think it was worth about
twice the amount Earl got for it.
Houston is not quite all oil. The big town is also saturated
with history. You cannot talk to anyone about Sam Houston, for
instance, because that person is probably related to either the
general or one of his enemies and is likely still to be fighting
the war.
Whereas Clarence Wharton often regarded his research com-
pleted when he found some evidence that agreed with him, Lou
Kemp, on the other hand, delights in spoiling a good story. You
will recall that yesterday he interrupted Maury Maverick on a
historical point. From where I sat, I could see that the room
was just full of impulses to interrupt Maury. But Lou Kemp
actually did. Into the jaws of death, you might say, but he made
it stick.
Texas penal law and procedure is not as barbaric as Maury
would have it. Once, during the first session of the Harris County
Criminal Court, a kind-hearted judge ordered a couple of mur-
derers hanged at once rather than subject them to the rigors of
the primitive Harris County jail. Now this makes a quaint and
plaintive little anecdote, but Lou Kemp would interrupt me
right now to say that there was no jail at all until the third
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Texas State Historical Association. The Southwestern Historical Quarterly, Volume 54, July 1950 - April, 1951, periodical, 1951; Austin, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth101133/m1/87/: accessed April 30, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Texas State Historical Association.