Biographies: Clifton Matthews, 1935, Winn Parish, LA. Submitted by Greggory E. Davies, 120 Ted Price Lane, Winnfield, LA 71483 ********************************************** Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ********************************************** From: March 29, 1935 Winnfield News American Clifton Matthews Recently Appointed To U. S. Court Was Steno Here in 1903 The people of Winn Parish as well as those of all north Louisiana acquainted with him read with interest the account in the Shreveport Times of the remarkable success of Clifton Matthews, a former resident of Winnfield, and who was appointed to the circuit court of appeals in the largest circuit of the United States at San Francisco, California. In 1903-04 Mr. Matthews was a stenographer and at the same time read law in the office of Grisham, Matthews and Oglesby here. The Matthews in this firm was his brother, John H. Matthews. Soon after he was admitted to the bar and moved to Farmerville where he hung out his shingle. In speaking of his career Judge R. W. Oglesby who knew him will said, "He is one of the keenest and most brilliant men I have ever known. And to show you just how keen, while he was teaching a small school in Bienville Parish some years before one of the school boys asked him if he could teach shorthand. He had never had a lesson in it in his life but he secured the necessary books and began teaching himself so that he could teach the boy, and he did." After regaining his health in the west he began casting about for something to do and got in communication with Sam D. Stennis, another attorney who had practiced in Winnfield, and through Mr. Stennis he was employed as attorney in a case that brought him to the attention of the legal fraternity of that section and assured him immediate success. The Shreveport Times of last Sunday gave this story of Mr. Matthews: "Success last week crowned the second career of a former Farmerville lawyer whose life stopped still in 1912 and was set in motion again only through great determination and courage. "The man is Clifton Matthews, and the crown was his appointment by President Roosevelt as judge of the United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit, with headquarters in San Francisco. "Washington dispatches received here Saturday carried the confirmation of Judge Matthews' appointment. What they did not carry was a story that overshadows fiction. Predicted Notable Career "Judge Matthews was born in Winn Parish of unmoneyed, hard working parents. He worked his way through school and managed to attend old Ruston College and the Louisiana Industrial Institute. With his eye on the courts, he studied law and was admitted to the bar in Lincoln Parish and practiced for several years at Farmerville in Union Parish. "At intervals the young lawyer teamed with J. B. Crow, Shreveport's Judge Crow, in cases which became so worthy of attention in the legal fraternity that currently lawyers speak of cooperation as a partnership. Judge Crow assures questioners that no formal partnership was formed. "Judges praised Attorney Matthews' petitions as masterpieces of force and logic, and with other old and wise heads they predicted for him an outstanding career in Louisiana law. Their predictions neared fruition in 1912 when Matthews entered the race for district judge. "But in the midst of his campaign Matthews collapsed, a victim of tuberculosis in an advanced stage. Detour In His Life "For many a man that has been the end of the road. For Attorney Matthews it was only a detour. "Matthews gave up his law practice, sold his property and moved with his family to New Mexico to engage in a hand to hand battle with death. "And at the end of six months he returned to Shreveport to visit friends, amazing them by his stoutness and his excellent color. "Unsatisfied with leisure, Mr. Matthews returned to Roswell, N. M., and set out his law shingle again. Shortly afterwards he moved to Bisbee, Ariz., to practice with Ross and Ellinwood, and in 1920 he moved to Globe, Ariz., and formed a partnership with Edward Rice. "Legal victories and natural acumen attracted the attention of Arizona's governor, who appointed the Louisianan to the state board of examiners, delegated him to codify the law procedure and employed him to represent Arizona when that state sought an injunction against the Boulder Dam. " ' He gains some real concessions, too,' witnesses of that legal battle chuckle today. Gained Notable Promotion "In 1933 he was appointed United States Attorney for Arizona and for two years conducted that office with such skill and vigor that he was appointed last week directly to the circuit court of appeals, in the largest circuit in the nation, having jurisdiction over all of the states of the Pacific Coast and the Rocky Mountain region. "The appointment is regarded as an unusual distinction since such appointments customarily are made from among the district judges of state supreme court judges of the circuit. It is for life and carries with it a salary of $12,500 a year. "Judge Matthews is at present living in Phoenix, Ariz., with his wife and two daughters."