The Depression Papers of Herbert Hoover

Press conference statement, April 19, 1921

In reply to questions on the legislative program for farm relief in today's press conference, the President stated:

I regret to that some farm organizations are again divided on measures of agricultural relief. One primary difficulty in the whole of this last eight years has been the conflict in point of view in the ranks of the agricultural organizations and the farmers themselves.

A definite plan of principles for farm relief was adopted by the Republican Convention at Kansas City. It was the plan of party; it was not then or now the plan of any individual or group; it was necessarily the result of compromise; it represented an effort to get together and secure fundamental beginnings and necessitated the yieldings of views by all of us; it was supported by all elements of the party in the campaign and upon it we have a clear mandate.

Without entering into the merits or demerits of any other suggestion at the present time, I can deplore that divisions in the ranks of the farmers themselves encourage those who oppose all farm relief and can at best only bring great delays and danger of entire failure. If after eight years of agitation and debate on a matter so vital to a large part of our people we are to succeed in putting the question out of politics and on the way to solution under economic guidance, we have need of unity in the ranks of the farmers themselves and the different groups which reflect their views in Congress. No great step in public action can ever succeed without some compromise of views and some sacrifice of opinion.