New-York tribune., 1922-03-19
Hoorer zntimates Congress
VIII Back Small Home Builders
Says Building Industry Should Have Support simi-
lar 10 That Given Business and Farming:
Construction Prices ON Downward Path
By L. Porter Moore

II there IS any reader 0. The Tribune
Small House Page Who has suffered
great mental anguish snd financial
strain recently in meeting the house
rent, or one who has not whole-hoart-
cdiy desired ownership OF coy little
nome amidst encircliag trees, that
gentle reader may as we'll pass up this
article right now. = Just as
] expected No one, unless that reader
.ow is the proud possessor Of house
and lot, consigns this page 20 the fire.
So we may IS well proceed with the
consideration Of the subject, Home
Ownership, and How:
is It better 80 buid CT buy g hons
than To pa rent for 3 house or apart
nient owned by some one else? Are
building materials and house const.uc-
t.on costs lower today than q fey
government doing 10 aid in the solu-
tion Of TIE national housing problem ?
i o get down to brass tncks. Is Il best
10 '0wa Iour Own Home ?''
To better answer such questions IS
these for the bereft OF Tribune read
crs il took me to Washington, to that
ulanca OF government activit, to the
Department OF Commerce, where. under
Secretary Herbert Hoover, Uncle Sam
"a endoav0riGg 10 make money easier
4or the prospective home owner for
mo tgage purposes, lower costs Of
building m~teriels, decrease construc-
tion costs through better standardiza-
ton of small house plans simplify mu-
nicinai building codes ana bring ABOUT
greater efficiency Of labor ~ lower
r..f, = !. !!
along these lines, and part Of this story
is told ana nany pertinent questions
&C answered us Herbert Hoover IN
thi7 story Is told and many pertinent
questions are answered by Herbert
Hoover II this article
What Hoover Discovered
For htsie over q year, Secretary
Hoover has heen the cabinet officer re-
sponsible Tor certain governmental in
Vvs-!gaton, survey and cooperation in
She construction hc' d des gned, in part,
20 stimulate the resumption of small
house build a., INK ugholt the country.
ilrs~ IN var-swept Belgium, Herbert
Hoover had mucn 30 DO with the saw
ing o. tens of thousands Of homes and
on families: ia-er throughout niddie-
kur0Te, and noH II famine-strie.<en
Russ q, tnorch the Belgian and Anlere-
can Rehef Administration, so-called
IN consequence. believe the great
majority of Americans, x least, have
1alih i'm Herbert hoover rs the right
nan IN the right place when it comeu
20 governmental cid in providing mere
and better homes At lower cost tor our
average citizens.
have just given ray rinion OF Why
the majority OF Americans have that
falth IN this man; bu; the reasons just
stated are not the reasons why Secre-
tAfy hooVel's dcpartmcnt and its chief
were aNocatcd the job Of solving the
nations housing problem on Goa
eressiopal appropt alton Of $4,000.
President Harding selected Herbert
Hoover 20 head the Department q
Commerce g the best man in the land
1or the job For the same reason, AND
because Hoover headed that depart-
ment in which the job Of an analysis
or our housing problem from a nation
al ataadnoint naturally fell, he IL en-
ceavoriug TO do it.
The Division Of Housing and Con
structlon Of the Bureau OF Standards
Of the Department Of Commerce was
created 10 function on the Job There
found Herbert Hoover Just q few
days after he had dispatched report
TO President Harding on the pro-ress
Of the work Of his department with re-
lation 10 the national housing situa-
ton.
Nation Needs 100000 Homcs
THAT there is national shortage
OF houses requites TO repetition" said
Secretary Hoover. The shortage prob
ably amounts 20 nearly million
homes, and il, Of course, the result Of
suspension OF building during the war.
ne Department of Commerce has.
: believe, a least contributed to ths
resumption Of construction during ths |
'ast teW months on scale larger than |
any period since the war began" Re-
sumpticn Of small house building
throughout the country is due in part I.
10 somewhst lower costs OF building /
Materials in many sections, and /
slightly lower labor costs in some
rades in the construction field. Win /
to which Secretary Hoover
Our first enor. was through CO.
p"r'rfon DitA unofficial bodies In
f~Ng ng about local conferences on the
or7'rg situation in the different cit
ss ~~.h u view TO ameliorating con-
Itions. These conferences have been
cid in over 100 cities. They COM
rised representatives. Of chambers Of
9mnaerce, labor organizations, build
ig and other trade associations,
ankers material manufacturers and
'ntraetors.
"Ihr- aga these conferences and
rough other forms Of local initiative
considerable amount of good has ,
,en accomplished, although the re-
IT'S have varied 4 great deal between c
sics. Positive plans have been ]
7' opt IN rnany of them and great !