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SENATE RESOLUTION NO. 54

	WHEREAS, Hatton William Sumners was a native of
Lincoln County, Tennessee, who grew up to become one of the most 
influential members of the United States House of Representatives
as congressman for the Fifth District of Texas; and
	WHEREAS, Lacking the money to pursue his education, but 
with a burning desire to study law, Mr. Sumners was hired as a 
clerk by the law firm of McLaurin & Wozencraft and was permitted 
to sleep in the offices and "study law" under the supervision of 
Dallas attorney Alfred P. Wozencraft; and
	WHEREAS, Mr. Sumners passed the Texas bar examination and 
was admitted to the bar in 1897; three years later he was elected 
Dallas County attorney, thus beginning a distinguished career in 
the law and public service; and
	WHEREAS, In 1912, he was elected to a new at-large seat
in the United States House of Representatives; two years
later he was elected as the United States congressman for the 
Fifth District of Texas, a position he held from 1914 through 
World War I, the Roaring Twenties, the Great Depression, and 
World War II, until his retirement in 1946; and
	WHEREAS, Mr. Sumners was appointed to the House Committee 
on the Judiciary in 1919; he rose to the chairmanship in 1932 and 
served with such distinction in that capacity that, along with 
fellow Texas Congressman Sam Rayburn, he was considered one of 
the most powerful men in congress; and
	WHEREAS, During the course of his service as chairman of 
the House Committee on the Judiciary, Mr. Sumners became known
as the congress's foremost authority on constitutional law; he 
appeared before the United States Supreme Court several times in 
cases involving the constitutionality of New Deal programs, and 
he drafted the constitution for the Philippine Islands in 1934; 
and
	WHEREAS, Mr. Sumners was considered an almost certain 
appointee for the United States Supreme Court until he led the 
opposition to President Franklin Roosevelt's court–packing plan 
of 1937 and uttered the famous comment, "Boys, here's where I 
cash in my chips"; and
	WHEREAS, Following his retirement from congress,
Mr. Sumners served as director of research in law and government 
at Southwestern Legal Foundation in Dallas and lived in the 
Lawyers' Inn on the campus of Southern Methodist University; 
remembering his early days of poverty, which frustrated his 
ambition for a formal education, he spent the remaining days of 
his life helping thousands of deserving young Texans secure their 
own education; and
	WHEREAS, In 1949, Mr. Sumners established the
Hatton W. Sumners Foundation for the purpose of encouraging 
"study, teaching and research into the science and art of 
self-government, to the end that the American people may 
understand the fundamental principles of democracy and be
guided thereby in shaping governmental policies"; and
	WHEREAS, In furtherance of its purpose, the
Hatton W. Sumners Foundation has, from that date to this,
awarded loans, scholarships, and other funding to thousands of 
Texas youth to aid them in the pursuit of their education, and
for many other worthy educational endeavors, such as lectures, 
seminars, academic contests, and other educational programs on 
the fundamental principles of American self-government and free 
enterprise and, when appropriate, their relationship with 
current public policy issues; and
	WHEREAS, The YMCA Youth and Government Program was formed 
in 1946 to teach Texas youth about their state government and the 
blessings and responsibilities of democratic self-governance 
through its model legislature and model state government
program held annually in the chambers and meeting rooms of the 
State Capitol; and
	WHEREAS, The YMCA Youth and Government Program has joined 
many other educational and youth organizations throughout Texas 
as a beneficiary of the foundation established by Congressman 
Hatton W. Sumners, and it is appropriate to take this opportunity 
to recognize the lasting influence of one of this state's great 
political leaders; now, therefore, be it
	RESOLVED, That the Senate of the State of Texas,
78th Legislature, 1st Called Session, hereby join the YMCA
Youth and Government Program in expressing gratitude for and 
acknowledgment of the legacy of leadership, accomplishment, 
devotion to the virtues of law and self-governance, and 
generosity of Congressman Hatton W. Sumners and recognize the 
longstanding contributions of the Hatton W. Sumners Foundation 
to the education and training of Texas youth in citizenship
and public service, and in the challenges, blessings, and 
responsibilities of self-governance and freedom in a democracy.
                                                                  Staples, West,
                                                                    Wentworth   




 
                ______________________________ 
                      Member, Texas Senate



____________________________________________________________ 
     Member, Texas Senate               Member, Texas Senate




                                          ______________________________ 
   President of the Senate
 
     I hereby certify that the 
above Resolution was adopted by 
the Senate on July 14, 2003.



______________________________ 
   Secretary of the Senate