Popular Mechanics Magazine February 1938
New Billion dollar Crop

Cannabis Hemp can produce more than 5000 textiles and more than 25,000 other products

George Washington:
1^st U.S President from 1789 to 1797
 

"Make the most of the Indian Hemp Seed"
                  (Library of USA Congress 1794 vol. 33 p.270)

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. - Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776

Jefferson comments on  Hemp (Cannabis)
"Hemp. Plough the ground for it early in the fall & very deep. If possible plough it again in Feb. before you sow it, which should be in March. A hand can tend 3. acres of hemp a year. Tolerable ground yields 500. lb to the acre. You may generally count on 100 lb for every foot the hemp is over 4. f. high. A hand will break 60. or 70. lb a day, & even to 150. lb. If it is to be divided with an overseer, divide it as it is prepared. Seed. To make hemp seed, make hills of the form & size of cucumber hills, from 4. to 6. f apart, in proportion to the strength of the ground. Pinch about a dozen seeds into each hill in different parts of it. When they come up thin them to two. As soon as the male plants have shed their farina, cut them up, that the whole nourishment may go to the female plants. Every plant thus tended will yield a quart of seed. A bushel of good brown seed is enough for an acre. " 
-  Betts, Edwin M., ed. Thomas Jefferson's Farm Book: With Commentary and Relevant Extracts from Other Writings. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1953. Rep. 1976, 1987, 1999.

"Prohibition... goes beyond the bounds of reason in that it attempts to control mans' appetite through legislation and makes a crime out of things that are not even crimes...  A prohibition law strikes a blow at the very principles upon which our Government was founded"
(December 1840)

"Penalties for the possession of a drug should not be more damaging to an individual than the use of the drug itself."

"Congress should definitely consider decriminalizing possession of marijuana... We should concentrate on prosecuting the rapists and burglars who are a menace to society."
U.S. Representative , March 1977

Speaking at Western Carolina University in February 2002, former Surgeon General Jocelyn Elders said that it is time to decriminalize marijuana. She added that marijuana should be "treated like we treat alcohol," and that "giving people a criminal record for it" serves no useful purpose.

"Legalization would destroy dealer profits and remove their incentive to get young people addicted."

Awards:  Medal of Freedom, Seoul Peace Prize, Eisenhower Medal for Leadership and, Reagan Distinguished American Award