The Great Depression, the New Deal, and World War II 221successfully address the dreadful conditions that existed throughout the
country. Again, he pledged that he would provide a dynamic program of
action to restore prosperity. “This great nation,” he exclaimed, “will en-
dure, as it has endured, will revive and prosper. So, first of all, let me as-
sert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself.”
It was exactly what Americans needed to hear. And the New Deal,
as FDR’s program was called, began to function immediately. First,
Roosevelt shut all the banks in the country for four days. Next, he
summoned Congress to a special session on March 9. As members of
the House were still finding their way into the chamber on the desig-
nated day, the Speaker, Henry T. Rainey of Illinois, started reading the
only available copy of the administration’s Emergency Banking Relief
bill, which contained last-minute corrections written in pencil. After
thirty-eight minutes of supporting speeches, the bill passed the House
sight unseen by a unanimous voice vote. Within the first four hours of
the session Congress enacted a banking bill that authorized the secre-
tary of the treasury to investigate the financial conditions of every bank
in the country and permit only those banks that proved sound to re-
open. The bill also declared illegal the ownership of gold and in-
structed the treasury secretary to call in all gold and gold certifi cates.
By midsummer at least three-quarters of all banks in the country had
reopened and resumed normal operations. Confidence had been re-
stored, if slowly, and the runs on banks virtually ceased.
This special session, which lasted until June 16 and was known as
the “Hundred Days,” succeeded in enacting a comprehensive corps of
legislation involving banking, agriculture, labor, industry, and unem-
ployment relief. Indeed, this First New Deal aimed specifically at ad-
dressing the problems of relief and recovery.
Even before the New Deal got under way, Congress had begun the
process of responding to popular demand for the repeal of the Eigh-
teenth Amendment. The Tw en t y -First Amendment passed both
houses on February 3 , 1933 , and won ratification by the states on De-
cember 5 , 1933. At the same time this amendment made its way through
the states, FDR asked Congress to end Prohibition by legalizing beer.
Within a week the bill passed, and the President signed it on March
22. Beer and wine of 3. 2 percent alcoholic content were now legal.
Prohibition proved to be an excellent example of what not to do in