USG Corp., the country’s largest gypsum producer,...

USG Corp., the country’s largest gypsum producer, kept silent on a possible takeover attempt by a partnership of two Texas oilmen. “Our answer to the press all day has basically been no comment,� USG spokesman David Grabill said when asked for a reaction to the acquisition of a 9.83% stake in the company by Desert Partners of Midland, Tex. Desert Partners, headed by Cyril Wagner Jr. and Jack E. Brown, filed papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission saying they had paid $224.5 million for 5.03 million of USG’s 51.2 million shares outstanding. The filing said the partnership might seek control of the Chicago-based company.