Woodrow Wilson: “The old cry for the defense of your hearth and home does not seem to me a very handsome appeal.”

Very little reflection would lead any one to conclude that the measure would not furnish in any substantial degree the relief sought by the producers of most of the staple commodities which it covers.

Actual relief can come only from the adoption of constructive measures of a broader scope, from the restoration of peace everywhere in the world.

We have been vigorously building up a great merchant marine and providing for improvement of marketing in foreign countries by the passage of an export trade law.

A recommendation at this time that suitable legislative action should be taken may appear somewhat premature, but in view of the approaching termination of my administration I have brought this matter to your attention, hoping that…