the little houses the tenant people sifted their belongings and the belongings of their father and of their grandfathers" (Steinbeck 111). This describes how after many generations of farming on their land these people had to gather their property and memories and then try to sell whatever they could. The farmers were so desperate for money that they had to sell for literally pennies.Steinbeck describes the desperate conversation of a farmer to a persepective buyer "Well, take it-all junk-and give me five dollars. You're not buying only junk, you're buying junked lives" (Steinbeck 112). The desperation for work and money became so bad that they were willing to work for as little as was offered just so they could have some sort of job and make any amount of money. Soon it was a fight for life or death (Steinbeck). In a desperate search for a job farmers moved themselves and their families all over the country. As people wandered the country looking for work they were unable to live in one place. Large numbers of homeless people led to Hoovervilles. The farmers and their families had to build homes out of anything that they could acquire as Steinbeck describes "The south wall was made of three sheets of rusy corrugated iron, the east a square of moldy carpet tacked between two board, the north wall a strip of roofing paper and a strip of tattered canvas, and the west wall six pieces of gunny sacking"(Steinbeck 310-311). The homes were usually near water source so they could have water to drink from, cook and wash their clothing (Steinbeck 311). To cut down the number of people seeking jobs or needing help, the government decided to try to come up with some sort of relief. Among other things, they limited immigration, returned hundreds of Mexicans living here,and sought other methods to help the farmers. Hoover's Federal Farm Board urged farmers to plant less so that prices would go up but there was no encouragement to do so.From 1920 to 1...
