[Congressional Record Volume 143, Number 94 (Monday, July 7, 1997)]
[Senate]
[Pages S6906-S6907]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                  TRIBUTE TO J. MELVILLE BROUGHTON, JR

  Mr. HELMS. Mr. President, North Carolina lost a very special, very 
valuable and very distinguished leader this past April. He was known 
affectionately and respectfully across our State, and far beyond in 
every direction, simply as Mel Broughton. His full name was J. Melville 
Broughton, Jr., but you seldom heard all of that name.
  Mel Broughton, by all measurements, was one of those nature's 
noblemen who comes along only once in a while. Though his family was 
one of North Carolina's most distinguished, Mel Broughton was one of 
the least pretentious men I have ever known.
  His grandfather was North Carolina's Governor during the World War II 
years, 1941 to 1944. And in November 1948, former Governor Broughton 
was elected to the U.S. Senate. But fate was to allow Senator Broughton 
to serve in the U.S. Senate only a few months, because he had been 
sworn in as a Senator shortly after his having been elected in November 
1948 but he died of a heart attack the following March.
  Incidentally, Mr. President, misfortune hovered over North Carolina 
throughout the 10-year period between the late 1940's and the following 
10 years. Our State had a succession of 10 U.S. Senators during that 
decade. Five of them died in office; three were defeated in their 
reelection bids; and the two surviving Senators of that decade were Sam 
J. Ervin, Jr. and B. Everett Jordan. Senator Ervin served 20 years; 
Senator Jordan served 17.

  But let me return, Mr. President, to Mel Broughton, Jr., who was 
honored by North Carolina's general assembly on June 26 of this year 
when both Houses of our State legislature adopted ``A joint resolution 
honoring the life and memory of J. Melville Broughton, Jr.''
  As that resolution states, Mel Broughton was devoted to North 
Carolina and to the people of our State. And he served in countless 
ways. Only once did he venture into Federal service, and that was when 
President Ford nominated him to serve on the board of directors of the 
U.S. Legal Services Corporation. And during those years, one of his 
colleagues on the Legal Services Corporation board was a young lady who 
today is the First Lady of America, Mrs. Hillary Rodham Clinton.
  Mr. President, needless to say, Dot Helms and I have long been 
devoted to the Mel Broughton family. As a matter of fact, Mel's 
parents, Governor and Mrs. Broughton, were very dear to us and 
thoughtful to us in so many ways.
  And last, but certainly not least, I am privileged that Mel 
Broughton's son--one of them--whom all of us call Jimmy, is 
administrative assistant and

[[Page S6907]]

thereby leader of the Helms Senate family. I do not have a staff. The 
fine, dedicated people in our offices are truly a family.
  Mr. President, I ask unanimous consent the text of the June 26, 1997, 
resolution adopted by the North Carolina General Assembly honoring Mel 
Broughton be printed in the Record.
  There being no objection, the material was ordered to be printed in 
the Record, as follows:

  Joint Resolution by the General Assembly of North Carolina June 26, 
 1997 Honoring the Life and Memory of J. Melville Broughton, Jr.--June 
                                26, 1997

       Whereas, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., a lifelong resident of 
     the City of Raleigh was born on March 24, 1922, and attended 
     Wake Forest University, Duke University, and graduated from 
     the University of North Carolina School of Law; and
       Whereas, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., proudly served his 
     country in World War II as a First Lieutenant in the United 
     States Marine Corps; and
       Whereas, following his admission to the North Carolina 
     State Bar, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., served for four years 
     as a prosecutor in Raleigh Municipal Court and then entered 
     the general practice of law with the firm founded by his 
     father (now known as Broughton, Wilkins, Webb and Sugg) where 
     he remained for 45 years; and
       Whereas, from 1957 to 1961, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., 
     served as Chairman of the North Carolina Highway Commission, 
     and later under Governor Dan K. Moore served as the Chairman 
     of the North Carolina Democratic Party; and finally in 1968, 
     ran for the Democratic nomination for Governor against then 
     Lieutenant Governor Robert Scott and Reginald Hawkins, 
     finishing second in the primary; and
       Whereas, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., was devoted to his 
     State above all else and counted among his friends and those 
     he supported at the polls both Democrats and Republicans; 
     and, indeed, his bipartisanship was such that in 1975, 
     President Gerald Ford nominated him to the National Legal 
     Services Board, which was dedicated to providing legal 
     representation to indigent persons; and
       Whereas, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., was an active and 
     lifelong member of Christ Episcopal Church in Raleigh and was 
     involved in the Laubach Literacy national movement; and
       Whereas, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., was a beloved figure 
     in this General Assembly and in our entire State, warming us 
     with his easy laugh and ready smile; his tall, rumpled 
     figure, with his coat pocket full of pencil stubs, moving 
     gregariously among all sorts and conditions of men, 
     encouraging, listening, advising, and at all times embodying 
     the very essence of a true Christian gentleman; and
       Whereas, J. Melville Broughton, Jr., passed away on April 
     17, 1997, and is survived by his wife, Mary Ann Cooper 
     Broughton; his daughter, Harriet B. Gruber; two sons, J. 
     Melville Broughton, III and James Wesley Cooper Broughton; 
     and five grandchildren;
       Now, therefore, be it resolved by the Senate, the House of 
     Representatives concurring:
       Section 1. The General Assembly expresses its high regard 
     for the life and service of J. Melville Broughton, Jr., and 
     mourns the loss to this date of such a distinguished citizen.
       Section 2. The Secretary of State shall transmit a 
     certified copy of this resolution to the family of J. 
     Melville Broughton, Jr.
       Section 3. This resolution is effective upon ratification.

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