Explore Quotes by Herbert Hoover

Being a politician is a poor profession. Being a public servant is a noble one.

To go fishing is the chance to wash one's soul with pure air, with the rush of the brook, or with the shimmer of sun on blue water. It brings meekness and inspiration from the decency of nature, charity toward tackle-makers, patience toward fish, a mockery of profits and egos, a quieting of hate, a rejoicing that you do not have to decide a darned thing until next week. And it is discipline in the equality of men - for all men are equal before fish.

The gods do not deduct from man's allotted span the hours spent in fishing.

Fishing is the chance to wash one's soul with pure air. It brings meekness and inspiration, reduces our egoism, soothes our troubles and shames our wickedness. It is discipline in the equality of men--for all men are equal before fish.

Twenty million people are starving. Whatever their politics, they shall be fed!

The sole function of Government is to bring about a condition of affairs favorable to the beneficial development of private enterprise.

Free speech does not live many hours after free industry and free commerce die.

Freedom conceives that the mind and spirit of man can be free only if he is free to pattern his own life, to develop his own talents, free to earn, to spend, to save, to acquire property as the security of his old age and his family.

The outlook of the world today is for the greatest era of commercial expansion in history. The rest of the world will become better customers.

Any lack of confidence in the economic future or the basic strength of business in the United States is foolish.

Doctors think a lot of patients are cured who have simply quit in disgust.

Prosperity is no idle expression. It is a job for every worker; it is the safety and safeguard of very business and every home. A continuation of the policies of the Republican party is fundamentally necessary to the future advancement of this progress and to the further building up of this prosperity.

The only problem with capitalism is the capitalists.

Prosperity cannot be restored by raids upon the public Treasury.

The future of nations cannot be frozen . . . cannot be foreseen. If we are going to accomplish anything in our time we must approach our problem in the knowledge that there is nothing rigid or immutable in human affairs. History is a story of growth, decay and change. If no provision, no allowance is made for change by peaceful means, it will come anyway - and with violence.

You will expect me to discuss the late election. Well, as nearly as I can learn, we did not have enough votes on our side.

The rigid volunteer rules of right and wrong in sports are second only to religious faith in moral training.

Through baseball we channel boys desire for exercise and let off their explosive violence without letting them get into the police court.

I returned to the white House after midnight more depressed than ever before. I had long since arranged to attend the World Series in Philadelphia the next day. Although I like baseball, I kept this engagement only because I felt that my presence at a sporting event might be a gesture of reassurance to a country suffering from a severe attack of 'jitters.'

I protest that we fans are being emotionally starved and frustrated by long periods of perfect performance of these batteries. More over, when there are nothing but strikes and balls going on, you relapse into your worries over the Bank of England, or something else.

I want more runs in baseball itself. When you were raised on a sandlot, where the scores ran twenty-three to sixty-one, you yearn for something more than a five to two score. You know as well as I do that the excitement, temperature and decibels of any big game today rise instantly when there is someone on base. It reaches ecstasy when somebody makes a run.