European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - September 19, 1980, Darmstadt, Hesse Parie 20 the stars and stripes Friday. September 19, 1980 iss epitome of a Young corporate lawyer by Barbara Gamarekian new York times when William o. Douglas who served on the supreme court longer other Justice died last january at i Cage of 81, he left behind a Long Memoir of his 36 years on the Bench As Well As a wealth a correspondence unpublished manuscripts and other per Sona papers. And for his Young wife. Cathleen he left a manuscript Clit cd Force or a document that his will stipulated was especially for i Haven t shared its contents with anyone said mrs. Douglas As she sat at lunch the other Day in a Georgetown restaurant overlooking the Potomac River. Ii is very personal very special and 1 will treasure it All of my she added with a smile when i m a Little old lady i la have it la is difficult to imagine that Cathy Douglas will Ever be a Little old lady. At the age of 37 she is just a slightly older version of the fair haired open faced Young woman who arrived in the capital 14 years ago from Portland ore., As the Bride of the much married Bill Douglas 44 years her senior. My husband was a Man who Felt most comfortable when he was writing and to have him write his most inner thoughts to know that he was obviously thinking of his death and writing with the recognition that i would live a great Deal longer than he and that there were a lot of things he wanted to say Well it took me a Long time to reach the Point where i could even read it she said softly of the 12-Chaptcr manuscript that he left for her As a testament of his love. Justice Douglas s memoirs the court years have been published recently by random House. His papers relating to his work on the supreme court including his records on Case conferences and personal correspondence and notes arc being turned Over to the Library of con Gress where they will be scaled for five years and then opened to the Public. Other papers up to inc year 1958, arc already catalogued at the Library and were opened to the Public upon his death. They Are quite extensive papers said mrs. Douglas who serves As literary executor of her husband s estate along with a new York lawyer Sidney David and prof. Vern countryman of Harvard. Hopefully they will comprise a body of data thai will help historians under stand inc Workings of the she met her husband while working As a summer waitress in a Portland restaurant and they married before she finished her undergraduate work in sociology at Marylhurst College. His three previous divorces caused a great stir including the threat of � congressional investigation of his character. So Ca thy Douglas was the focus of much Washington attention and curiosity. Her baptism into the capital s limelight was not As painful As it might have been she said because Dill was a very casual person and he did t impose his mores on me he gave me time to figure out what i wanted How i wanted to fit into the l or instance she said. There was never any discussion about whether it was proper for the wife of a supreme court Justice to go to school w Hen she decided to continue her education. After earning her Bachelor s degree at american University she went to Law school and received a master s degree in Law from Georgetown University in 1974. As she looks Back now at that 23-year-old woman she says while i was very naive and immature. I thought that i was Quile grown up. I had worked As a House Mother in a residence for disturbed children and since i had three Brothers a lot of inc traditional role of clean ing and cooking fell to me. My family was t poor in the Eastern sense of ghetto poor but we were aware from earliest childhood that life was not going to be easy and 1 had always worked starting with Berry picking when i was in the sixth Douglas was known for his acid Tongue and stubbornness As Well As for his Charm humor. Bill always kept an Eye on the Ball everything he did he did for a purpose lie would just ignore the things that did t interest him and sometimes that included the amenities. But i found him an easy Man to live with and he had a marvelous capacity for life thai was Cantagi his interests did nol diminish after his so Rock in 1974 and his Long illness and struggle with paralysis and pain. Their roles were subtly reversed she says i was Happy and Able to have Bill dependent on illness i think is very taxing for she continued. It just take a lot of Energy and Good will. And it is a one Way situation the person who is ill is not capable of responding and the giving person just has to get away some part of the Lime to get revitalized. " there was a great sense of the inevitable about the process but his life was As Rich As it could be under inc circumstances and he became closer to other members of his family his sons and his daughter and his nieces. He was Able to express his affection for them in a Way that had been difficult for him throughout his Long illness he took a daily interest in her work As a lawyer with leva Hawks Symington Martin & Oppenheimer. Today she is he epitome of the successful Young corporate lawyer who sits on boards of directors gives frequent speeches on regulatory Reform and women s rights and is Active in her work with environmental groups and the feminist movement. As for remarriage she says it is too soon. In the future perhaps there will be people i will come close to but at this Point i am con Lent with some Quiel Cathy Douglas wife of the late supreme court Justice in her Washington office at wife end by Erm Bombeck when you think about in. The Btu Cen parents and children breakdown into three Hlll words a poker inc Case of a teenager who wants tomorrow the car. He opens Wilh a pair of promises ill go to the store for our eggs and pick up the cleaning in the Way Mother i la raise you taking Jour sister to the Ortho teenager Okay i la raise you a full Lank of Gas and be Home by 10. No Mother Okay Here arc inc keys. Natya got teenager just what i opened with. A couple of Prim uses and a i m picking up in half an i be seen in happen a thousand limes. The Rico and Lake. The emotions when the Slakes Are High. The breathless anticipation As Parent and child gel Down to their last card. I thought 1 was the world s greatest player in the game until god sent me the natural enemy of poker players everywhere. A kid thai could nol be bluffed. Even when i was 36 inches taller 26 years older 114 pounds heavier and played by my own rules. I could t beat him. I d say do you know what i m going to do if you Don t turn off that Hose right now i m going to Call off our vacation and put you in your bedroom without food or television and Mommy is going to leave the room and when i get Back i want to Sec the water off. Without so much As a flinch or a moment s hesitation he d look me in the Eye and turn on inc spigot full Force. The rest is Loo humiliating to dwell upon. The mean in the i m going to Tell you one More time this is absolutely your last Chance i m not kidding and finally i am going to leave the room and when i gel Back i Anllo Sec that water off. In retrospect there were Many hands i d have played . 1 would never have drawn on sympathy to fill an inside straight. I would never have paired my wild card with something insignificant. I would never have counted my winnings until inc game was played but mostly that first Day when he turned the Hose on. I d have Cal cd off our vacation put him in the bedroom without food or television and Sal in the Kitchen and cried until i got sick let Field Erncr Palm no
