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{hoo'-vur} Herbert Clark Hoover was the 31st president of the United States. During his first year in office the Wall Street crash of 1929 occurred. He was blamed for the resulting collapse of the economy, and his unpopular policies brought an end to a brilliant c ....

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.... traveled through much of Asia, Africa, and Europe as a mining entrepreneur, earning a considerable fortune. At the outbreak of World War I in August 1914 he was in London. Hoover, who as a Quaker passionately believed in peace, was appalled by the human costs of the war, and he determined to devote his life to public service. He volunteered to direct the exodus of American tourists from war- torn Europe and then to head (1915-19) the Commission for Relief in Belgium. This position brought him public attention as the "great humanitarian," a well-earned reputation that he lost only after the 1929 Wall Street debacle. The commission fed 10,000,000 ....