The Life of Pat Neff: The Land, The Law and The Lord

Baptist History and Heritage, Spring, 2008 by Dan G. Kent

The Life of Pat Neff: The Land, The Law and The Lord. By Dorothy Blodgett, Terrell Blodgett, and David L. Scott. Austin, TX: Home Place Publishers, 2007. 383 pp.

My older brother, Harry, and his wife Nelda, both graduated from Baylor University a decade before I did. I remember how they talked in reverent tones about Pat Neff, who was then the school's president. At my fiftieth college anniversary in Waco in 2007, I met and got acquainted with Terrell Blodgett, who autographed my review copy of this book. I became fascinated with its content and am sorry that I did not get to know his wife. The foreword was written by my former classmate and all-time Texas hero, Ann Richards, who was Texas governor and is a native of Waco. This first full-scale biography of Neff is compact but full of personal details.

A life-long Baptist, Neff was speaker of the Texas House of Representatives and the first governor who graduated from the University of Texas or, for that matter, any Texas institution. He received two degrees from Baylor, but went to the University of Texas for his law training.

Reading about Neff takes us back to the days in Texas when everybody voted for the Democratic Party, and Democrats went unopposed in the general election. During his time as governor, Neff established Texas Technological College and initiated the contest to suggest a new state song, "Texas, Our Texas." He appointed an unprecedented number of women to various posts, including the first female members of the University of Texas and Texas A&M boards and the State Highway Commission. During his tenure, Neff appointed a woman as his chief of staff, making her the first female in the country work in that role. Neff was also the father of the Texas Parks system. Using the first gasoline tax, he funded the foundation of an extensive road-building program, making Texas the envy of all over states.

A man of his times, Neff was influenced by the racial attitudes of his day. Abner McCall, another of Baylor's former presidents, called Neff "an Old Testament man without mercy," whose primary weakness was his failure to delegate any authority. He was also rigid and standoffish with the legislature, which did not work well. Legislators gave his overall record as governor only a "C."

Invited by the board of regents of the University of Texas to become that school's president, Neff declined and accepted the call from a very desperate Baptist college, Baylor, where he succeeded his college roommate and life-long friend, Samuel Palmer Brooks.

Neff kept Baylor open during the Depression, and chapter 9 of this book is appropriately entitled, "The Miracle of the Brazos." In February 1932, Baylor had a debt of $1 million, and Neff found that his plans to lead the school were opposed by the faculty. Yet, he was an iron man, who acted and saved the school. He also saved Baylor Medical School in Dallas and supervised its move to Houston. As president, he was able to raise money for Baylor without reserve. The result was the famous "miracle."

Memorable hires and events during his years at Baylor include the hiring of Paul Baker (theater), Glenn Capp (debate), and Abner McCall (law), and the visit of Eleanor Roosevelt, who spoke on campus. While Neff did not award her an honorary degree because of board opposition, Harry Truman did receive one. With Baylor saved and successful, Neff, who had little interest in big-time athletics, eventually wore out his welcome at the school and retired.

A helpful feature of the book is Appendix A, which includes a condensed timeline. The endnotes are extensive as is the bibliography.

I looked forward to receiving and reading this book, and it fascinated me for the book includes history, biography, Texas politics (including the background of today's situation), and information about Baylor. The book deserves an A .

At the end of Neff's term as president, the administrative building was built and named Pat Neff Hall. This building is decorated with appropriate Neff quotations, such as this one that is fitting for the Baptist History and Heritage Society: "The preservers of history are as heroic as its makers."--Reviewed by Dan G. Kent, retired professor of Old Testament, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, Fort Worth, Texas. Dr. Kent, a former president of the Baptist History and Heritage Society (2001-2003), died June 26, 2008.