that, Nancy.”
“Yes I do, we see it early
on.”
“I’m thinking about getting
in that business. Fuzzy’s term
is up this year, and I think he’s
about through with it. I’m
going to look into to it some,
but my buddy said all you had
to do is register with the
Texas real estate folks.”
“Yeah that’s about right,
you have to have a good sur-
veyor, and a good oil lawyer.
I’m sure you know people
that you could ask about get-
ting a little of their business.”
“Would you ever be inter-
ested yourself, Nancy?”
“As it happens I retire this
year.”
A little time went by, and
Emmitt put together some
folks that were all experienced
people. Larry Don came on
board, and told Emmitt about
a couple of small pipelines
that they could practice on.
Nancy retired, and made a
fair deal with Emmitt, but still
had the run of the Railroad
office, and the maps were
public.
Emmitt had to put up a lit-
tle money on the first pipeline
easement, but after the first
one their company stayed in
the black, and started
approaching bigger deals.
Nancy and Emmitt would get
together every day or two,
and pick out some good
prospects.
“Emmitt, you know there’s
going to be a new refinery
built in south Texas, and
there will be a lot of new
pipelines built to it. Here are
the maps, and roughly where
they come from.”
“Nancy, what would you
think about us building the
pipelines ourselves?”
“That could be done, the
important job would be you
handling the money right
with the investors.”
“Well, I’ve got a couple of
sources.”
Emmitt, Nancy, and Larry
Don formed their own
pipeline company called “The
Pipe.” A year later they built a
couple of small ones, and then
they started their own
pipeline west to east in south
Texas that was 165 miles
long, and a 42-inch line.
Emmitt had ten investors that
put up all the money, and he
still operated on his ten per-
cent.
Of course it wasn’t smooth
every day. They ran into a
few landowners that didn’t
want their land torn up, and
didn’t need or want the
money. If Larry Don came to
a dead end, then Emmitt
would get involved with the
negotiations.
Once Larry arranged a
meeting and introduced
Emmit Domain, “No joke,
that’s his real name. Emmitt,
I’d like you to meet Rod
Mitchell, the biggest rancher
in this county.”
“Pleased to meet you Mr.
Mitchell, I’m sure we can
come to some agreement to
please us both.”
“Mr. Domain, I want
nothing to do with a pipeline,
and just find a way around
me.”
“You know you’re just
going to lose in court fighting
Eminent Domain. The state
already wants it to go through
here, and we just play by their
rules. It’ll just be in front of a
judge, not a jury, and we
know all those judges. After a
few years you won’t be able to
tell if there’s a pipeline there.”
“Yeah, but you still have
the right to come and go on
my place forever, and that
changes things a whole lot for
me.”
The next morning Rod got
in touch with his lawyer, and
was sitting at his desk by 10:00
that morning. “Rod, I don’t
think you have a chance, it’s
been happening in Texas a
long time, and nobody’s won
one yet. They’ll just money
whip you Rod, and that’s the
state of Texas behind them.
No need in you wasting your
time here, and me spending
your money, I’m helpless.”
When he got home there
was a pickup staking out a
250-foot wide opening just
inside his fence. Rod got out
and walked over to the kid,
and told him to pack up his
stuff, and to get off his land.
About that time Emmitt
pulled up, and walked up to
Rod. “Rod, I figured you had
been to your lawyer, and I bet
he told you the same thing I
told you. He could have told
you that we didn’t have to
wait on the court, and could
just go ahead.”
“Emmitt, I intend to talk to
my local sheriff, my state rep,
the Railroad Commission,
and the Governor. They all
know me, and I’ve helped
them all get elected.”
“Do you realize we’ve paid
a right smart more money to
all of the judges, the sheriff,
your state rep, the Railroad
Commissioner, the Governor,
and now the President is on
our side too?”
“Emmitt, are you telling
me I don’t own this land, and
it's been in the family since the
18th century, when it was
given to us as a Spanish land
grant?”
“That’s right, if we need
the sheriff to come out here
after we start, he’ll arrest you
if you’re trying to interfere
with our surveyor, or our
right of way.”
“I’m sure everything is in
your favor, but don’t be too
comfortable. You never know
when I may decide to come
looking for you, with nothing
to lose. I don’t know how you
sleep at night taking people’s
land away from them. Texas
ain’t much of a state these
days, is it?”
Emmitt thought every day
about what Rod said, about
not sleeping at night. He had
made a lot of enemies. “The
Pipe” had made a great big
stack of money, and after
three or four years Emmitt
wanted out of the business.
He decided to leave his
Cadillac at the Odessa-
Midland Airport/Space Port,
left the window down, and the
keys in it along with a note.
“I’m changing names, don’t
know where I’m headed, and
when I figure out another
name, that’ll be me.”
Murphy St
Mercado
100 W. Murphy St
Alpine
432 837 0914
Monday 9-6 • Wednesday- Saturday 9-6
Sunday 10 -2 • Closed Tuesday
Cenizo
Second Quarter 2017
23