William French Smith; Served 4 Years As Attorney General In Reagan Cabinet

WASHINGTON - William French Smith, who served as Ronald Reagan's personal lawyer before joining Reagan's Cabinet as attorney general in 1981, died of cancer yesterday at University of Southern California Hospital in Los Angeles. He was 73.

A soft-voiced, white-haired New England native who maintained a relatively low profile in Washington, Mr. Smith was credited with leading the nation's attack on drugs and organized crime and with helping ease the way for corporate mergers during his four years as head of the Justice Department.

Mr. Smith, a longtime partner in one of California's largest law firms, submitted his resignation to Reagan in January 1984. But difficulties surrounding the confirmation of his successor, Edwin Meese, kept him in office for a year longer.

Attorney General Dick Thornburgh said Mr. Smith ``served the United States with great distinction.''

As the nation's chief law enforcement officer and principal guide on legal issues, Mr. Smith was considered an important participant in the Reagan administration's effort to impose a more conservative stamp on the nation's domestic policy.

Although there was a sharp policy turnabout in such controversial areas as busing and affirmative action, Mr. Smith said the enforcement of civil rights laws was vigorous under his tenure.

But critics contended that there had been a decline in the number of cases filed in the areas of housing and educational

discrimination.

Mr. Smith also asserted that his administration had inflicted severe damage on organized crime and had brought about a 100 percent increase in resources allocated to the war on drugs.

Mr. Smith was born Aug. 26, 1917, in Wilton, N.H. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of California at Berkeley and a law degree from Harvard before serving as a naval officer during World War II. After the war, he joined a Los Angeles law firm, specializing in representing the firm's corporate clients in labor negotiations.

He also became a member of the group that, impressed by Reagan's televised speech on behalf of Barry Goldwater in 1964, persuaded Reagan to run for governor of California two years later.

According to one news account, Reagan seldom made a significant move as governor without asking, ``Has this been cleared with Bill Smith?''