Before departing, FDR signed the federal court legislation and the silver purchase bill. While on the Sequoia, he reviewed the National Housing Act, which led to the creation of the FHA, and signed the railroad labor dispute legislation. Additionally, he took part in Yale's commencement exercises, where he was awarded an honorary degree, and observed the Harvard-Yale regatta, in which Franklin Jr. was competing. FDR also directed Governor Frank Merriam's request for federal intervention in the California longshoremen strike to Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins.