259. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE FAMILY.—From whatever angle we approach society, the family is the ultimate unit and basis. The whole fabric of civilization, whether considered from an economic, a social, or a political standpoint, depends upon the integrity of the family, and upon the wholesomeness of the home life centering about the father, mother, and children. The home is the nursery of our fundamental institutions: it is the origin of our physical and mental inheritances; it is the center of our training for private and public life; it is the moral and religious fount which nourishes the ideals and beliefs which fashion our lives and mould our character. A nation built upon decaying homes is bound to perish; a nation composed of normal prosperous families is in a good way to perpetuate itself. It is of the very greatest importance, therefore, that we inquire into the character and tendencies of the American family.
260. THE FAMILY IN THE MIDDLE AGES.—Fully to appreciate the nature of the modern family we must know something of the family as it existed in Europe in the Middle Ages.
Unity was the striking characteristic of the medieval family. Economically it was very nearly self-sufficing, that is to say, most of the food, clothing, and other necessities consumed by it were prepared by the family members. Very little in the way of education and recreation existed beyond the family circle. In religious activities the family played an important role, family worship under the leadership of the father being a common domestic function. The medieval family was stable, partly because legal and religious authority was concentrated in the hands of the father, partly because the family members were economically interdependent, and partly because the social and religious interests of the family members tended to coincide. Divorce was uncommon, and the children generally remained in the home until their majority had been attained.
261. THE FAMILY IN MODERN TIMES.—We have already seen that since the close of the Middle Ages, and especially during the last two centuries, important economic, social, and political changes have been going on in civilized society. In common with other social institutions, the family has been greatly influenced by these changes. The family which we have described as the medieval type has been either destroyed or greatly modified, and a new type is being developed. Probably this new type of family will present substantial gains over the family of the Middle Ages, nevertheless the period of transition is fraught with danger. A great problem of American democracy is to aid in the social readjustment of the family. In order that we may be competent to aid in this readjustment, let us discover in what ways the family has been modified by the economic, social, and political changes referred to above.
262. THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION AND THE FAMILY.—We have examined somewhat in detail the effect of the Industrial Revolution upon our economic life; it remains to be pointed out that the same phenomenon has profoundly affected the character of our most vital social institution, the family.
Directly or indirectly, the Industrial Revolution has affected family life among all classes of the population. To some extent capitalism has given rise to a class of idle rich, living upon the proceeds of permanent investments, and resorting to extravagance and loose methods of living in order to occupy their time. This development is doubly unfortunate. In the first place it renders difficult the maintenance of normal homes among the idle rich. In the second place, the tendency of certain types of individuals to imitate and envy the idle rich encourages false standards and leads to a depraved moral sense.
To those classes which furnish the majority of our professional men, the complex division of labor has brought a serious danger. So great is the need of specialized training among these groups that marriage is often delayed until after the age of thirty. The individual is then in a better position to support a family, but often his habits are so firmly fixed that he finds it difficult to adapt himself to family life.
Even more important, perhaps, have been the effects of the Industrial Revolution upon the masses of wage earners. Men earning low wages are often unable to marry, or, if they assume that responsibility, they are unable properly to support their families. In spite of the fact that capitalism has greatly increased our material welfare, the dependence of large numbers of people upon day wages increases the hazards of family life. Industrial accidents, occupational diseases, or the interruption of earnings by strikes and unemployment,—any one of these mishaps may work a hardship upon the wage-earner's family. Poverty may induce child labor, deprive the family of proper food and other necessities, and retard the education of the children. Finally it may so emphasize the elements of strain and worry that parents are unable to give proper attention to the training of their children.
263. THE FACTORY SYSTEM AND THE HOME.—The Industrial Revolution has lessened the economic importance of the home. The typical modern family is no longer self-sufficing, but is dependent upon the factory system for many commodities formerly prepared within the home circle. Spinning, weaving, tailoring, shoe-making, soap-making, and other industries have moved out of the home and into the factory. Even the preparation of food is increasingly a function of agencies outside the home. Especially in cities there has been a steady development of restaurants, delicatessen shops, and factories engaged in the large- scale preparation of bread, canned soups, and other food products.
There is thus less work to be done in the home than formerly; at the same time the development of our industrial life has notably increased the amount of work to be done outside the home. The outcome of these two complementary forces has been that not only the father, but often the mother and the half-grown children as well, have been drawn into industry. As the result of this development, the economic interdependence of the family has been destroyed, and the way has been opened to the disintegration of the home. Social contacts between family members have decreased, while the specialized character of the individual's daily work has operated to break down the common interests which family members formerly had outside the home.
264. LACK OF PREPARATION FOR HOME-MAKING.—The factory system has rendered more difficult the preparation of our boys and girls for home-making. Where boys go out to work at an early age and are deprived of home training during the adolescent period, neither father nor mother has the opportunity properly to acquaint them with the nature and responsibilities of home-making. Girls very often are reared without adequate knowledge of cooking, sewing, and other household arts. This is due, partly to the transfer of many of the domestic functions to specialists beyond the home, and partly to the fact that where girls go into industry they spend most of their time outside the home. In the case of both boys and girls, the decreased amount of time spent in the home not only prevents proper training by the parents, but it stresses outside interests which are too often opposed to domestic ideals. Many parents either allow or encourage their children to acquire frivolous habits. As the result of all of these factors, both young men and young women frequently marry without having been properly prepared for the responsibilities of home-making.
265. DIFFICULTIES OF HOME-MAKING IN CROWDED CITIES.—With the development of manufacturing, a larger and larger proportion of our people have made their homes in large cities. To many, city life has brought increased opportunities for education and recreation, nevertheless it is difficult to maintain a normal home life in a crowded city. Urban life is highly artificial Simple and wholesome amusements are less common than expensive and injurious forms of recreation. The noise and jar of city life often result in strain and jaded nerves. The scarcity and high cost of house room is, for many city dwellers, an unavoidable evil. The poor are cramped into small, uncomfortable tenements, while even the well-to-do are frequently found in congested apartment houses. Under such circumstances, the home often becomes merely a lodging place. Social life is developed out of, rather than in, the home. For the children of the poor there is often no yard and no adequate provision for recreation. Among the rich, conditions are somewhat better, though in fashionable apartment houses children are frequently objected to by neighboring tenants or banned by landlords.
266. ECONOMIC INDEPENDENCE OF WOMEN.—Until very recently a married woman was economically dependent upon her husband. But one of the effects of the Industrial Revolution has been to make many women economically independent. Women are entering the industrial field with great rapidity, and their presence there is now taken as a matter of course. Many women now avoid marriage, partly because domestic interests fail to attract them, and partly because they have become genuinely interested in industry. Where domesticity is the ultimate aim, many women delay marriage because self-support renders them both able and desirous of retaining their independence for a considerable period.
Domestic tranquillity is sometimes disturbed by the fact that wives were formerly self-supporting girls. In most cases wives are dependent upon their husbands in money matters, a situation which is apt to irritate women who were formerly self-supporting. The husband is often inclined to rate the generalized character of housework as being of less importance than his own highly specialized work. The wife's irritation at this may be increased by the fact that often she, too, believes that her domestic duties are less dignified and less valuable than her former work.
Not only has the former independence of the wife made her less tolerant of domestic wrongs and slights, but the realization that she can support herself, frequently encourages her to seek a divorce. The temptation to take this step is increased by the fact that public opinion now rarely frowns upon a divorced woman. This is in striking contrast to the situation two hundred years ago, when most divorced women were not only unable to support themselves, but were socially ostracized.
267. POLITICAL EMANCIPATION OF WOMEN.—Until very recently women have been legally and politically subordinate to men. As recently as a century ago women in the leading countries of the world were allowed neither to vote, nor to contract debts in their own name, nor to hold or will property.
But within the last century women have been emancipated politically. Property rights have been extended them; the growth of the woman's movement has resulted in the winning of female suffrage. Economic independence and social freedom have combined with political emancipation to emphasize the spirit of individualism among women. Politics and club work have, in the eyes of many wives and mothers, become more attractive than domestic concerns, with a resultant neglect of the home. Higher education for women, including a wider knowledge of legal matters, has acquainted women with their legal rights and privileges, and has made them familiar with the steps necessary to secure a divorce.
268. INDIVIDUALISM MAY BE EXAGGERATED.—The American people are celebrated for their strongly individualistic character. This trait is closely related to the initiative and self-reliance which have helped toward our industrial success; on the other hand, individualism may be carried to the point of selfishness. It is desirable, of course, that both men and women maintain high standards of living, and that they cultivate their respective personalities. It should be noted, however, that marriage is often delayed or altogether avoided because of selfish ambition and the desire to live a care-free and self-centered life. The insistence which many young people place upon personal rights has encouraged the belief that marriage is intended for man's and woman's convenience, rather than for the building of normal homes and the development of community life. In too many marriages the contracting parties selfishly refuse to make the mutual concessions necessary in married life and so wreck their domestic happiness.
269. THE DIVORCE EVIL.—Family instability has been increased by the demoralizing influences which we have been discussing. A familiar symptom of family instability is the divorce rate. One out of every eight or nine marriages in the United States is dissolved by divorce. Not only do we have more divorces than all of the rest of the world together, but our divorce rate is increasing three times as fast as is our population.
The value of these statistics is affected by two factors. In the first place, much domestic unhappiness does not express itself in the separation of husband and wife. Or, where such separation does take place, it may not be through the divorce court. Among the city poor, for example, desertion is four times as common as is divorce. Thus the divorce rate indicates only a share of family instability.
The second modifying factor, however, lessens the force of our divorce statistics. A high divorce rate is to be interpreted with care. Our divorce rate is higher than that of European countries, but it should be remembered that in those countries where customs, laws, and religious beliefs are relatively conservative, families may be held together legally in spite of the fact that they have already disintegrated. Thus family life may be as unstable in a country in which the divorce rate is low, as in a country in which the divorce rate is high.
270. LAXITY OF OUR DIVORCE LAWS.—Although divorce may sometimes be necessary, it is clear that in many of the states of the Union divorce laws are too lax. The practice of the states as regards divorce is divergent: in South Carolina divorce is absolutely prohibited; in the remaining states there is a variable number of grounds upon which divorce may be secured. Divorces are often rushed through the courts, partly because of the overworked character of the divorce tribunals, and partly because public opinion tolerates the lax administration of divorce laws. In some states divorces have been secured in fifteen minutes, being granted without any attempt at solemnity, with no adequate investigation, and with numerous opportunities for collusion between the parties involved. The effect of this laxness has been to encourage the dissolution of the home for trivial and improper causes.
271. THE QUESTION OF STRICTER DIVORCE LAWS.—Uniform divorce laws among the several states are now being agitated. The essential provisions of such laws may be outlined as follows: It is desirable to have a court of domestic relations, which shall carefully and wisely attempt a reconciliation of husband and wife before divorce proceedings are resorted to. Applicants for divorce should bebona fideresidents of the state in which the suit is filed, and should be required to reside in the state two years before a decree of absolute divorce is granted. In some states at least, the number of grounds upon which divorce may be secured should be reduced. An adequate investigation should be undertaken, both in order to determine the justice of the suit, and to prevent collusion. The primary aim of the divorce laws should be to allow relief from a vicious and hopelessly wrecked union, but at the same time to prevent the misuse of the statutes by irresponsible and unscrupulous persons.
272. LAXITY OF OUR MARRIAGE LAWS.—The fact that unwise marriages are an immediate cause of divorce leads back to the question of our marriage laws. Marriage laws often permit the mating of couples unfit for home-making. In some states the authorities are not overcareful to prevent the marriage of persons who are mentally defective. There is among the several states no agreement as to the legal age of marriage, and no agreement as to the relationship within which marriage is forbidden. Hasty unions have been encouraged by the lack of solemnity which characterizes civil marriage. Marriage is more and more a civil contract, devoid of religious sanctions and spiritual associations. Many consider marriage as a civil relation not radically different from any other contract. The effect of this changed attitude has been to encourage the enactment of loose marriage laws, and the careless administration of sound marriage laws.
273. THE QUESTION OF STRICTER MARRIAGE LAWS.—Stricter marriage laws are being advocated in many states. We know far too little about eugenics to warrant prediction as to the type of individuals best fitted to build normal homes, but it is clearly desirable to prohibit the marriage of all mental defectives. There are also good reasons for the restriction of the marriage of minors, of persons between whose ages there is a wide disparity, and of persons who are members of widely divergent races. It would probably check hasty marriages to increase the length of time elapsing between the issuance of the marriage license and the performance of the ceremony. If modern marriages were more distinctly upon a religious basis, it is likely that many persons who now rush thoughtlessly into marriage would be led seriously to reflect upon the significance of the step.
274. LAW NOT THE UTLIMATE REMEDY FOR FAMILY INSTABILITY.—The careful enactment and wise administration of sound laws on marriage and divorce will undoubtedly check the number of unhappy and unsuccessful marriages. Nevertheless, law is not the ultimate remedy for family instability. Unduly restrictive marriage laws may result in abnormal tendencies among certain classes of the population, while severe prohibitions upon divorce may prevent individuals from securing release from a hopelessly wrecked marriage. Divorce is only a symptom of deeper-lying evils. Really to remove the dangers which threaten the integrity of the family we must go deeper than legislation.
275. ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL READJUSTMENT.—One fundamental method of safeguarding the family is to counteract the injurious effects of the Industrial Revolution. Poverty must be lessened or eliminated, so that men will be enabled to marry and support families decently. The evils of overcrowding must be attacked in the interest of a normal home life. Mothers' pensions and social insurance are desirable methods of protecting the laborer's family against the risks of industry. The prohibition of child labor and the safeguarding of women in industry will also tend to keep the family intact, and to permit proper home training. In short, any measures which will help individuals to adjust themselves to the economic and social changes of the present age will provide a more firm and solid foundation for a normal family life.
276. EDUCATION AND THE FAMILY.—Far more fundamental than legislation on marriage and divorce is the training of young people toward a fuller appreciation of the responsibilities of home-making. In the problem of family instability, laws reach symptoms, while education attacks causes. By education is here meant not merely formal training in the school, but character-building of every type. This includes training in the home, in the school, and in the church. Only when boys and girls are accorded sound training by these various agencies will they be properly prepared to make homes.
Our whole educational system ought to emphasize the importance of a pure and wholesome family life. The sanctity of the marriage bond, the seriousness of family responsibilities, and the duty to rear a normal healthy family, ought to be impressed upon every boy and girl. Young people should be taught to consider adolescence as a period of preparation for home-building. During this period it is the duty of the boy to fit himself for the proper support of a family, while the girl ought to feel obligated to become familiar with the tasks and duties of housekeeping. The choice of a husband or wife ought to be made, not on the basis of passing fancy, but with regard to a life of mutual service. Extreme individualism ought to be discouraged; personal pleasure ought to be interpreted in the light of marriage as a partnership. Above all, marriage should be faced with the realization that it requires adaptation and concessions on the part of both husband and wife. Mutual consideration and respect must predominate in the future American family, while the spirit of impatience and selfishness must be eliminated.
1. What is the significance of the family?
2. What were the essential characteristics of the medieval family?
3. Why is the modern family in a period of transition?
4. Outline the effect of the Industrial Revolution upon the family.
5. To what extent has the factory supplanted the home as an industrial center?
6. Discuss the difficulties of home-making in crowded cities.
7. How have many groups of women become economically independent?
8. Discuss the political emancipation of women.
9. What is the extent of divorce in this country? What two factors must be taken into account in interpreting these figures?
10. To what extent are our divorce and marriage laws lax?
11. What proposals have been made toward the correction of this evil?
12. Why is law not the ultimate cure for family instability?
13. What is the importance of economic and social readjustment in the problem of the family?
14. What should be the chief aims of education with regard to preparation for home-making?
1. Williamson,Readings in American Democracychapter xxiii.
Or all of the following:
2. Burch and Patterson,American Social Problems, chapter xxii.
3. Ellwood,Sociology and Modern Social Problems, chapters v, vi, vii, and viii.
4. Goodsell,The Family as a Social and Educational Institution, chapters xi, xii, and xiii.
1. Discuss the origin of human marriage. (Ellwood, pages 97-108.)
2. Distinguish between the maternal and paternal types of family. (Ellwood, pages 110-128.)
3. What was the character of the early Roman family? (Ellwood, pages 132-138.)
4. What influence has Christianity exerted upon the family? (Ellwood, pages 142-144.)
5. Summarize the ways in which industry may disintegrate the family. (Goodsell, pages 461-464.)
6. What is the origin of higher education for women in this country? (Goodsell, pages 439-441.)
7. Discuss the divorce rate in this country. (Ellwood, pages 148-154; Burch and Patterson, pages 315-321; Goodsell, pages 457-459.)
8. Name the various grounds upon which divorce may be secured. (Ellwood, pages 154-157; Burch and Patterson, pages 321-322.)
9. Why is our divorce rate increasing? (Burch and Patterson, pages 322-327.)
10. What proposal has been made relative to a uniform divorce law? (Burch and Patterson, pages 327-328.)
1. Interview an elderly friend for the purpose of discovering how many commodities now produced outside the home were made within the family circle a half century ago.
2. Make a list of the advantages which the city offers over the country or the small town. Make another list showing wherein it is more difficult to maintain a normal home in the city than in the more sparsely settled districts of the country.
3. The extent to which girls and women in your community are going into industrial pursuits.
4. The marriage laws of your state.
5. The divorce laws of your state.
6. What amendments, if any, would you offer to the marriage and divorce laws of your state?
7. The primitive family. (Goodsell,The Family as a Social and Educational Institution,chapter ii.)
8. The family in the early stages of civilization. (Burch and Patterson,American Social Problems,chapter vi.)
9. Influence of Christianity upon the family. (Goodsell,The Family as a Social and Educational Institution,chapter vi.)
10. The family in the Middle Ages. (Goodsell,The Family as a Social and Educational Institution,chapter vii.)
11. The English family in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. (Goodsell,The Family as a Social and Educational Institution,chapter ix.)
12. The family in the American colonies. (Goodsell,The Family as a Social and Educational Institution,chapter x.)
13. The feminist movement. (Annals,vol. lvi, part i.)
14. The home in the crowded city. (Riis,Peril and Preservation of the Home.)
15. Desertion. (Colcord,Broken Homes.)
16. Divorce statistics. (Willcox,The Divorce Problem,a study in statistics; Lichtenberger,Divorce, chapter v.)
17. Uniform divorce laws. (Wolfe,Readings in Social Problems,chapter xv.)
18. Education for family building. (Annals,vol. lxvii, pages 47- 53.)
19. Should Congress be granted the power, through constitutional amendment, to pass a Federal divorce law?
20. Should men be required to have a minimum income before being granted a marriage license?
21. Is domestic science more or less important now than it was a century ago?
22. Are the chances of a successful marriage greater or less if marriage takes place after both parties are more than twenty-five years of age?
277. THE MEDIEVAL NEIGHBORHOOD.—Throughout the earlier part of the medieval period the majority of the common people of western Europe lived in small agricultural communities. There was little in the way of trade or travel, for the area comprising the village or the feudal manor was relatively self-sufficing. The interests of the people centered almost wholly about the local neighborhood into which they had been born, and in which they lived and died. Life was stable, and the daily work of the peasants entailed few hazards. When, because of illness or accident, individuals were temporarily unable to support themselves, informal aid was extended them by neighbors and friends. In case of a more serious dependency, growing out of physical or mental defect, for example, the aid extended by neighbors might be supplemented by help from the feudal lord. The few strangers in the community found the monasteries always open to them, regardless of the character of their need.
278. BREAKDOWN OF THE MEDIEVAL NEIGHBORHOOD.—During the latter half of the medieval period, and during the earlier part of the modern period, a number of factors combined to break down this early type of neighborhood. The Crusades, the decay of feudalism, and the Renaissance disrupted the stable, isolated, and self-sufficing life of the medieval neighborhood. The discovery of America and the growth of towns and cities stimulated trade and travel. People moved about more, strangers came into the community, family contacts and friendships were broken, and community life became more impersonal. For many people a change of habitation or of occupation increased the hazards of life, while the decline of the neighborhood spirit made informal aid by neighbors and friends less available. To meet the growing needs of the dependent classes, the Church extended and improved its system of almsgiving. To a greater extent than ever before the monasteries became havens of refuge for the helpless and friendless. The clergy not only themselves dispensed alms, but encouraged the wealthy laity to do likewise.
Unfortunately, however, the aim of almsgiving in this period was not so much to help the dependent back to self-support, as to increase the piety of the individual dispensing the alms. Pauperism was looked upon as inevitable, and the moral effect upon the giver was generally of more importance than was the use that the needy made of the alms received.
279. RISE OF THE URBAN NEIGHBORHOOD.—The breakdown of the medieval neighborhood was completed by the Industrial Revolution. The factory system drew large numbers of countrymen to the cities. Here they worked long hours in insanitary work-shops, and lived in crowded tenements devoid of many improvements which we now regard as necessary to health and comfort. Home life was disrupted, and neighborhood ties were broken in the process of adjusting agricultural laborers to the factory system. The medieval neighborhood began to be supplanted by a new type of neighborhood, one primarily urban and impersonal in character. This new type of neighborhood brought with it greater hazards for the poor, and at the same time offered fewer opportunities for mutual aid between neighbors. Under such circumstances, the problem of dependency became increasingly serious.
280. EXTENT OF DEPENDENCY IN MODERN TIMES.—One of the vital problems of American democracy is the proper care of those individuals who are unable, either to support themselves, or otherwise to protect themselves against the hazards of modern life. The extent to which individuals are dependent for help upon agencies outside their family circle is unknown. Statistics are meager, and the complex nature of dependency renders it difficult of measurement. Perhaps a reasonable estimate of dependency in the United States is that at some time during the year about five per cent of the population seeks charitable assistance. The total amount expended annually for the care of the dependent classes in the United States is more than half a billion dollars.
281. CAUSES OF DEPENDENCY.—The causes of dependency in a modern community are difficult to analyze. Generally the applicant for charity is not in a state of dependency because of a single isolated cause, but because of a number of combined causes, interlocking in a most confusing way. In the effort to throw light upon this tangled situation, let us briefly survey the problem from the economic, social, personal, and political viewpoint.
From the economic viewpoint much dependency is the result of maladjustments in industry. Most laborers have little or no savings, so that when unemployment, strikes, industrial accidents, or crises interrupt their earnings, they are soon forced to fall back upon charity. Economic causes figure in from fifty to eighty per cent of charity cases, either as minor or major factors. In the majority of these cases the unemployment or other handicap of the laborer is due to industrial maladjustments beyond his power to control.
Closely connected with the economic causes of dependency are the social causes. The crowding of large numbers of workmen into cities leads to abnormal living conditions, which encourage ill-health, disease, and vice. Among unskilled laborers, poverty and the large number of children often prevent the young from securing a helpful amount of education. The lack of wholesome and inexpensive recreation, and the existence of costly and injurious forms of entertainment, encourage unwise expenditure of savings, and, to that extent, may influence dependency. Child labor and the employment of mothers in industry prevent a normal family life, and may be intimately associated with illiteracy, low moral standards, and pauperism.
Often indistinguishable from social causes are the personal causes of dependency. Laziness, irresponsibility, and thriftlessness figure in from ten to fifteen per cent of charity cases. Penniless old age is often the outcome of bad personal habits in youth and middle life. Idling, gambling, and other vicious habits are important causes of pauperism. Sickness is a factor in at least a third of charity cases, while disease figures in seventy-five per cent of such cases. Physical or mental defect is of great importance in dependency, often accompanying bad personal habits as either cause or effect. The feeble-minded, the epileptic, and the insane constitute a serious burden upon the community.
Defects in government have in some cases either encouraged dependency, or have perpetuated it. In so far as we have neglected legislation designed to reduce the force of industrial maladjustments, political factors may be said markedly to influence dependency. Our tardiness in protecting the labor of women and children is certainly responsible for a share of dependency. Our failure to adopt a comprehensive program of social insurance has added to the burden upon charity. Housing is receiving more and more attention in our cities, yet the living quarters in many districts continue to be sources of ill-health and vice. Probably we shall eliminate a share of dependency when we shall have established a comprehensive system of state and Federal employment bureaus. The wise restriction of immigration is also important, as is the matter of vocational education for the unskilled classes.
282. THE GIVING OF ALMS.—Until the period of the Reformation in Europe, the distribution of alms by the clergy and by pious laymen was the chief method of dealing with the problem of dependency. Then the Reformation crippled the temporal power of the Church, and ecclesiastical almsgiving declined in importance. The place formerly held by the Church was filled, partly by public almshouses or workhouses, and partly by indiscriminate and unorganized almsgiving on the part of kind-hearted individuals. Individuals distributed alms chiefly to dependents with whom they were personally acquainted, and whose needs could be effectively met without their being removed to an institution. Wandering dependents, and unfortunates whose needs were relatively serious and permanent, were cared for in the almshouse. This latter institution developed very early in England, and appeared in colonial America in the seventeenth century. Until about 1850 it was often the only institution in American communities which cared for the helpless adult dependent. The almshouse, as it existed in this country a few decades ago, has been described as a charitable catch- all, into which were crowded paupers, the insane, the feeble-minded, the blind, the orphaned, and other types of dependents.
283. ALMSGIVNG PROVES INADEQUATE.—The attempt to meet the problem of modern dependency solely by the giving of alms illustrates the difficulty of employing an ancient and simple method of treatment for a disease which has become highly complex.
Almsgiving by individuals very often pauperizes rather than helps the individual to help himself. When the dominant aim of the almsgiver is to satisfy himself as to his piety, it is only by accident that the alms really help the recipient. Very often what is needed is not money or material aid in other form, but wise direction and friendly advice. There is still a great deal of unwise and indiscriminate almsgiving by individuals, but the spread of new ideals of social help is probably cutting down the amount.
The almshouse, as it existed in the last century, was productive of much evil. Very often superintendents were allowed to run these institutions for personal profit, a practice which allowed the exploitation and neglect of the inmates. The practice of herding into this generalized institution every variety of dependent had great drawbacks. Specialized care and treatment were impossible. Disease was transmitted, and vice encouraged, by the failure properly to segregate various types of dependents. Inmates were in many cases allowed to enter and leave the institution at will, a privilege which encouraged shiftlessness and improvidence.
284. THE EVOLUTION OF NEW IDEALS.—After the middle of the last century our attitude toward the dependent classes began to change rapidly. There was a gradual abandonment of almsgiving as the sole method of attacking dependency. Rising standards of conduct contributed to the development of new ideals, some of them now fairly well established, and some of them still in the formative process. The general content of these new ideals may be briefly described as follows:
The primary aim of those who come in contact with the dependent classes should be to help those classes, rather than to satisfy pious aspirations or to indulge sentimental promptings. Rather than believing that alms are helpful because they are gratefully received, we should first discover what will help the dependent, and then train ourselves and him to take satisfaction in that which is helpful.
Poverty is not to be taken for granted. It is neither inevitable nor irremedial. It is a social disease which we must attack with the aim of destroying.
When individuals are found in an emergency they should be given relief, regardless of personal merit. The extension of relief in case of fire, flood or other accident is only an act of humanity.
A different and more productive form of help is remedial work. This type of work often accompanies and follows relief work. It is corrective, for example, the finding of employment for a friendless man, or the medical treatment of a sick man, is remedial work.
A still higher form of social work is preventive. Hand in hand with the giving of work to friendless men, and the curing of sick men, for example, we must undertake measures which will prevent a recurrence of unemployment on the one hand, and illness on the other. Preventive work is often indirect, but ultimately it is the most important type of social work.
Recently there has been a reaction against almsgiving or pure charity, and a distinct tendency to develop what may be called the concept of social service. Charity is too often concerned with the pauper class; social service is a wider term and includes not only what was formerly known as charity, but also child welfare, settlement work, folk dancing, and other socializing activities which are helpful in a modern community, but which have nothing to do with alms. Charity too often pauperizes and degrades; social service encourages self-help and self-expression in the vital social relations. Formerly charity was almost exclusively the function of the pious and the sympathetic; the present tendency is for social service to become a distinct profession, administered by highly trained specialists.
285. THE STAGE OF SPECIALIZATION.—One of the signs that we are recognizing the growing need of an individualized treatment of dependents, is the degree to which our social service agencies are becoming specialized. The treatment of the dependent may take either an institutional or a non-institutional form. Let us briefly notice the specialization in each of these forms.
The almshouse, almost universal a century ago, is being rapidly displaced by a series of specialized institutions. In most states there are now separate institutions for the treatment of the pauperized, the diseased, the blind, the deaf, the insane, the feeble- minded, and the otherwise dependent. Inmates of these institutions are given special treatment by experts. When the defect has been remedied, the patient is released; in case remedy is impossible, the individual is segregated and accorded humane and sympathetic treatment during the rest of his life. This prevents the untold harm of releasing defective and irresponsible people into the community. Institutions of this character are largely under state control, and are intended primarily for individuals who cannot be properly treated in their homes.
Dependents who are only slightly or temporarily handicapped, or who are not in need of special treatment, may be best cared for in their homes and by private individuals or associations. In this non- institutional form of social service there is also a high degree of specialization. The casual almsgiver has been succeeded by a whole series of social service agencies. Prisoners' aid societies, employment bureaus, immigrant aid societies, flower missions, Americanization clubs, recreation centers, housing clubs, community nursing clubs, and scores of other organizations have sprung up. Every large city in the United States has several hundred of these organizations, each attacking social problems of a special type.
286. NECESSITY OF COÍRDINATION.—Specialization in social service has been followed by the development of means of co÷rdinating the various specialized agencies.
That there is urgent need of such co÷rdination has been repeatedly called to our attention. It is still true that often the institutions for the dependent classes within a single state pursue different methods, and so limit their separate fields that many types of dependents are inadequately cared for.
Among the large number of private agencies there has been a great waste of time and energy. The fact that each society is independent of its fellows has meant that in some fields of social service efforts were duplicated, while other fields were neglected. Cases demanding treatment by several agencies could not be given adequate care because of the lack of correlation among such agencies. Beggars often imposed upon a number of different societies by assuming different names. Each society had its own periods of campaigning for funds, a practice which meant an excess of tag-days and campaigns and a waste of time and energy on the part of social workers.
287. COÍRDINATION OF PUBLIC INSTITUTIONS.—The co÷rdination of public institutions for the dependent and defective classes proceeded rapidly after 1880. At present the situation in the various states is somewhat as follows:
The actual administration of local institutions is generally in the hands of the town or county authorities. Large cities, however, often have a system of institutional relief separate from that of the county in which they are located. In many states the local authorities are subject to some measure of central supervision by a state board, which is called by various names. In most cases this is merely an advisory board with power to inspect state institutions, and to make recommendations to the governor or state legislature. More recently, there is a tendency to go still further, and to reorganize and consolidate the various state institutions so as to bring them directly under the control of a state board or commission. In several states the board is already one of control, that is to say, it has the power not only to inspect the various institutions of the state, but also the power to appoint their superintendents, and, in general, to administer the institutional relief of the state.
288. COÍRDINATION OF PRIVATE AGENCIES.—The movement to co÷rdinate social service agencies of a private nature has been relatively slow and unsatisfactory. This has been due, partly to the large number of societies involved, and partly to the lack of any centralized authority to supervise such organizations. In some large cities there has been a considerable degree of consolidation among societies which are purely charitable, but among the large number of social service organizations which are not purely charitable, the co÷rdinating process has not gone beyond the functional stage. In this stage the various social service agencies of a city remain separate and distinct, but may become members of a council or federation which serves to co÷rdinate their various functions. [Footnote: In this functional co÷rdination the "consolidated" or "united" charities of the city generally appear as a single organization.]
The aim of this functional co÷rdination is to secure the greatest degree of co÷peration possible without the actual amalgamation of the co÷perating agencies. Imposition by beggars is unlikely, because a clearing house of information keeps the various agencies informed as to the work of one another. By periodic reference to a centralized system of card indices, different societies may keep informed to what types of social work are being duplicated, and as to which lines of effort are being neglected. Where the social service agencies of a city are thus co÷rdinated, an applicant applies to the central agency and is then directed to the organization best suited to meet his needs. Such co÷rdinating agencies stress the necessity of scientific work which will aid in the adjustment of personal relations and help secure the maximum of result with the minimum of expenditure.
289. THE NEIGHBORHOOD OF THE FUTURE.—The small, stable, and relatively unprogressive neighborhood of the early European period has disappeared before the important economic, social, and political changes of the last five centuries. The typical neighborhood of modern times is larger, more inclined to be made up of transient and dissimilar types of people, and more impersonal. It is more progressive, but more likely to hold hazards for the average individual. The whole period since the Industrial Revolution has been one of neighborhood readjustment, of which many aspects of the problems of crime, the family, and dependency are phases. The new type of neighborhood has probably come to stay, but there are indications that life in the community of the future will prove less and less hazardous. The development of professional social service, growing out of the charity movement, but now embracing community work of every kind, will probably lessen the evils of the modern neighborhood, and retain its desirable features.
1. Describe the character of the medieval neighborhood.
2. What factors contributed to the breakdown of the medieval neighborhood?
3. What effect did the Industrial Revolution have upon the neighborhood?
4. What is the extent of dependency in modern times?
5. What are the economic causes of dependency?
6. What are the social causes of dependency?
7. What are the personal causes of dependency?
8. How may defects in government contribute to dependency?
9. Discuss the giving of alms in early Europe.
10. Why is almsgiving inadequate as a method of treating dependency?
11. Outline the new ideals which recently have begun to influence the treatment of the dependent.
12. What is the nature of social service?
13. Discuss specialization in social service.
14. Why is co÷rdination a necessary step when social service agencies have become highly specialized?
15. What may be said as to the character of the neighborhood of the future?
1. Williamson,Readings in American Democracy, chapter xxiv.
Or all of the following:
2. Devine,Misery and its Causes, chapter v.
3. Devine,Principles of Relief, chapter ii.
4. Guitteau,Government and Politics in the United States, chapter xiv.
5. Warner,American Charities, revised edition, chapters iii and xxii.
1. Why is it difficult to classify the causes of poverty? (Devine, Misery and its Causes_, pages 167-169.)
2. What are the objective causes of dependency? (Warner, page 41.)
3. What are the subjective causes of dependency? (Warner, page 42).
4. What is the Charity Organization Society? (Warner, page 450.)
5. Why did the Charity Organization Society arise? (Warner, page 451.)
6. Where did the first society of this type arise? (Warner, page 451.)
7. Discuss the methods of the Charity Organization Society. (Warner, page 458.)
8. What is the nature of the machinery employed by the Charity Organization Society? (Warner, page 458.)
9. What are the essentials of a sound relief policy? (Devine,Principles of Relief, page 13.)
10. Under what circumstances should charitable aid be refused? (Devine,Principles of Relief, page 21.)
11. What is meant by the term "medical charities"? (Guitteau, page 154.)
12. What is the great aim of social service? (Devine,Misery and its Causes, page 235.)
1. Make a study of your neighborhood with regard to some or all of the following points: (a) Increase in population (b) Changes in the racial type of the population (c) Changes in the occupational tendencies of the population (d) Changes in the spirit of neighborliness (e) Changes in the administration of relief to dependents.
2. Study the causes of dependency in your community with regard to the influence of economic, social, personal and political factors. (For this information, interview local social workers.)
3. Study an actual charity case, and make a diagram or sketch showing the number of factors involved.
4. Make a visit to an almshouse (sometimes called the poorhouse), and report to the class upon conditions there.
5. List and classify the types of institutions which care for dependents in your state.
6. The extent to which institutions for the dependent have been co÷rdinated in your state.
7. Classify the agencies which are performing some type of professional social service in your community.
8. Interview a local social worker with regard to his or her ideals of social service. (Compare the result with the ideals set forth in Section 284 of this chapter.)
9. The personal causes of degeneration. (Warner,American Charities, chapter iv.)
10. The social causes of degeneration. (Warner,American Charities, chapter vi.)
11. Desertion. (Devine,Principles of Relief, chapter xi.)
12. Dependent children. (Devine,Principles of Relief, chapter ix; Warner,American Charities, chapter xii.)
13. Relief in the home. (Devine,Principles of Relief, chapter vi.)
14. Relief in disasters. (Devine,Principles of Relief, part iv.)
15. Beggars and impostors. (Conyngton,How to Help, chapter ix.)
16. Volunteer work in charitable relief. (Devine,The Practice of Charity, chapter vi.)
17. The social settlement. (Conyngton,How to Help, chapter xxvi.)
18. The insane and the feeble-minded. (Warner,American Charities, chapters xiv and xv.)
19. Medical charities. (Cabot,Social Work; Henderson,Introduction to the Study of the Dependent, Defective and Delinquent Classes, part ii, chapter viii.)
20. Organization of charity in England. (Henderson,Introduction to the Study of the Dependent, etc., chapter iv.)
21. Organization of charity in France. (Henderson,Introduction to the Study of the Dependent, etc., chapter ix.)
22. Organization of charity in Holland. (Henderson,Introduction to the Study of the Dependent, etc., chapter v.)
23. Organization of charity in Germany. (Henderson,Introduction to the Study of the Dependent, etc., chapter i.)
24. The spirit of social work. (Devine,The Spirit of Social Work.)
25. Tendencies in social service. (Warner,American Charities, chapter xxiii.)
26. To what extent is the number of inmates in institutions for the dependent classes an accurate guide to the extent of dependency throughout the state or nation?
27. Should all institutions for the dependent classes be placed under the direct control of the state authorities?
28. Should the state authorities attempt to administer relief to dependents who remain in their homes?
29. Should the giving of alms by individuals be abandoned in favor of the practice of treating dependency entirely through professional or official agencies?
30. What should we do when street beggars ask us for money?
290. THE SIGNIFICANCE OF RURAL LIFE.—Agriculture is our oldest and most basic industry. Almost half of our people are found in the rural districts, most of them subsisting directly upon the products of farm, forest, and range. Directly or indirectly our cities are largely dependent upon the country. The foodstuffs consumed in cities, as well as the vast quantities of raw materials used by our manufacturing industries, come largely from the rural districts. To some extent even our urban population is recruited from the ranks of the country folk. Altogether, American rural life is a matter of vital concern to the nation. "Our civilization rests at bottom," Theodore Roosevelt once said, "upon the wholesomeness, the attractiveness, and the completeness, as well as the prosperity, of life in the country."
291. NATURE OF THE RURLAL PROBLEM.—Contrary to popular belief, the rural problem arises not so much from the actual degeneration of rural society, as from the fact that many rural districts have failed to progress as rapidly as have urban communities. Compared with his predecessor of a century ago, the farmer of to-day is better fed, better clothed and housed, and better able to secure adequate education and recreation. At the same time the relatively greater advances which urban communities have made in economic and social activities render the improvement of rural life highly desirable. The specific problem of rural life is to develop in the country economic and social institutions which are especially adapted to the farmer's needs. Not until this is done shall we be able to maintain on our farms a class of people who can make the maximum contribution to American life in all of its phases.
292. THE RURAL PROBLEM IS OF RECENT ORIGIN.—The most spectacular development in American economic life has been the introduction and growth of the factory system. Commerce and manufactures were important during even the colonial period, and during the first half century of our national history our dominant economic interest was the fostering of manufacturing, domestic trade, and transportation. With the development of manufacturing came the growth of the cities, and with the growth of the cities added attention was called to immigration, crime, health, and related social problems. Farm life, so familiar and apparently so healthful, was not thought of as constituting a national problem until late in the nineteenth century.
293. THE CITYWARD DRIFT.—A half century ago more than three fourths of our population was rural; to-day less than half of the people of the United States live in the country. Both urban and rural districts have been steadily increasing in population since the opening of the nineteenth century, but since 1900 the city population has increased three times as fast as has the rural population. One reason for this more rapid growth of the cities is that since the eighties the majority of our immigrants have flocked to the cities rather than to the rural districts. Another reason, however, is that the country people have been drifting to the towns and cities. This cityward drift has an important bearing upon the character of rural life.
294. REASONS FOR THE CITYWARD DRIFT.—A number of factors explain the tendency of rural people to move to the cities. The perfection and wider use of farm machinery have decreased the need for farm laborers, and the excess laborers have gone to the towns and cities. The fact that urban industries offer shorter hours, better pay, and cleaner work than does farming has attracted many young country people. The isolation of farm life and its frequent lack of comforts have impelled many country dwellers to move to the cities. Some country people have gone to the city in order to be near schools and churches, and in order to have access to competent doctors and well-equipped hospitals. The craving for a more fully developed social life than many rural districts afford, has been an additional cause of the cityward drift. Unfortunately, the glamour of urban life, with its spectacles and its artificial pleasures, has also been a factor in the movement away from the country.
295. WHEREIN THE CITYWARD DRIFT IS DESIRABLE.—In some respects the cityward drift is a desirable development. When laborers who are no longer needed on the farms move cityward, the cityward drift may have the beneficial effect of removing such laborers to where they can find employment. It should also be remembered that successful rural life requires qualities which may be lacking in many individuals born and raised in the country. In so far as the cityward drift is composed of such individuals, it may be a helpful movement, since individuals unsuited to rural life may find themselves adapted to some type of urban life. When unneeded and unhelpful individuals are removed from the country, the rural population may be more efficient and more prosperous, even though relatively more sparse.
296. WHEREIN THE CITYWARD DRIFT IS UNDESIRABLE.—In so far as the cityward drift brings to the city individuals unsuited to urban conditions, the movement away from the country may be undesirable. It is certainly undesirable when the individuals in question are really suited to rural life. The tendency of young people to move to the cities may ultimately deprive the country of its natural leaders. Certainly the colleges and factories of the cities often drain the country of its most able and ambitious boys and girls. The cityward migration of such persons may strengthen the urban population, but it weakens rural society and retards the progress of rural institutions.
297. STATUS OF THE "BACK TO THE LAND" MOVEMENT.—Some reformers have sought to offset the cityward drift by an artificial "back to the land" movement. In so far as it would bring to the country persons really able to contribute to rural life, this movement is a desirable one. In so far as it would bring to the country persons unprepared or unable to adapt themselves to rural conditions, such a movement is injurious. On the basis of the data now available, we are warranted in concluding that the "back to the land" movement is founded upon sentiment and caprice rather than upon sound principles. It attacks the rural problem at the wrong end. If the natural leaders of the country are repelled by rural life and attracted by urban conditions, the remedy is not to create an artificial movement toward the country, but rather to make rural life so attractive that country boys and girls will prefer it to city life. The chief question before us is this: How can the country be made so attractive that individuals interested in, and suited to, rural life may be encouraged to lend themselves to its fullest development? Let us see what is being done toward answering this question.
298. HOW THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS HELPING TO MAKE RURAL LIFE ATTRACTIVE.—The material prosperity of the American farmer is due, in considerable part, to the activities of the Federal government. For more than a half century the Department of Agriculture has systematically encouraged various phases of agricultural industry. The Department conducts investigations and experiments designed to give farmers helpful information concerning soils, grains, fruits, and live stock. It distributes seeds gratuitously, and attempts to encourage scientific methods among farmers. The Department issues a Year-book, a Monthly Weather Review, a Crop Reporter, and a series of Farmers' Bulletins. Among the more important subdivisions of the department are the bureau of animal industry, the bureau of soils, the bureau of markets, and the office of farm management. The work of the Department of Agriculture is ably supplemented by the work of the Reclamation Bureau, which, under the direction of the Secretary of the Interior, is increasing the productivity of waste and arid lands.
299. THE FEDERAL FARM LOAN ACT.—The growing need of credit facilities among farmers resulted in 1916 in the passage of the Federal Farm Loan Act. By the terms of this act, the United States is divided into twelve districts, in each of which a Federal land bank is established. A Federal Farm Loan Board has general charge of the entire system, but each Farm Loan Bank is allowed a large measure of freedom in its own district in the organization of local Farm Loan Associations. A local association is made up of a number of farm owners, or persons about to become owners, who desire to borrow money. The Bank will not deal with the individual farmer except through the local association, but when a farmer has been vouched for by this association, he may receive from the Bank of his district a loan at not more than six per cent interest. The Bank authorizes loans for the purchase or improvement of land, for the purchase of live stock, and for the erection of farm buildings. Loans must be secured by first mortgages not exceeding in amount fifty per cent of the assessed value of the land and twenty per cent of the value of the improvements thereon pledged as security. Loans may run from five to forty years, and provision is made for the gradual payment, in small sums, of both principal and interest.
300. MARKETING NEEDS OF THE FARMER.—A problem vitally affecting not only the farmer but the urban consumer as well, has to do with the marketing of farm produce. The price of farm produce often doubles or trebles between the farm and the urban kitchen. This is largely because of a cumbersome marketing system and an overabundance of middlemen. Often the farmer gets entirely too little for his produce, while the city housewife pays too much for it. If the farmer is to secure a larger return for his labor, and if the cost of foodstuffs in cities is to be reduced, we must devise more efficient methods of marketing farm produce.
There is a general agreement among experts that in the marketing of farm produce there ought to be some method of securing the co÷peration of farmer, urban consumer, and government. The further improvement of country roads, together with the development of trolleys, motor trucking and other means of farm-to-city transport would reduce haulage charges. The number of public markets in cities should be increased, so that farm produce might be sold to consumers without the interference of unnecessary middlemen. The grading and standardization of farm products would also facilitate sale by making it unnecessary for prospective purchasers minutely to examine goods offered by the farmers. In some cases farmers might advantageously sell their produce directly to urban consumers. The co÷perative marketing of farm produce, also has the effect of reducing the number of middlemen. [Footnote: See Chapter XII, Section 116.]
One of the most important phases of marketing reform is the regulation of commission dealers. Many farmers commonly ship their produce to commission dealers in the city. These dealers are supposed to sell this produce and to return to the farmer the money thus secured, minus a small commission. In many instances these middlemen return to the farmer smaller sums than market conditions entitle the farmer to. At the same time, commission dealers often add an excessive amount to the price which they in turn ask of retailers and consumers. In a few states commission dealers handling farm produce must now be licensed. They are obliged to keep records which will enable an inspector to tell whether or not they have made false returns to farmers concerning the condition of goods on arrival, the time at which sold, and the price secured. A dealer convicted of dishonest methods loses his license. The future should see an extension of this licensing system.
301. OTHER ECONOMIC NEEDS OF THE FARMER.—The economic position of the farmer has been materially strengthened within the last forty years, yet much remains to be done before farming may be considered an altogether satisfactory and attractive occupation. Tenancy in rural districts needs to be studied carefully. Tenancy is not necessarily an evil, especially where it is a step toward ownership, but its rapid increase in this country has caused many serious problems to arise. From both the economic and the social point of view it is desirable that farmers own their land. Tenants have no permanent interest in the upkeep of the farm or in the rural community. Where tenancy is widespread, land and buildings deteriorate, and the development of rural institutions is slow.
Machinery is shortening the hours of labor for the farmer, and scientific farming is increasing his efficiency; nevertheless, in most sections of the country rural life still means long hours of hard labor for small returns. Many farmers still work ten hours a day in winter, twelve in summer, and from thirteen to fifteen in the harvest season. Despite this sustained effort, the perishable character of his product, the uncertainty of weather conditions, and his dependence upon commission dealers, too often jeopardize the returns to the farmer.
302. RURAL HEALTH.—We have noticed that in some cases people have moved to the city because in the country doctors tend to be both scarce and poorly trained, while frequently hospitals are inaccessible.
Recently a number of influences are counteracting this relative backwardness. The isolation of the rural dweller is disappearing before the automobile and the telephone. In many sections able doctors are increasingly plentiful. In most rural districts which are near large cities, there is now an efficient system of visiting nurses, free clinics, and health bulletins. Health campaigns are spreading the fundamental principles of sanitation into many of the outlying districts also.
But these measures, while helpful, are only a beginning. In the more isolated rural sections especially, ignorance of sanitary methods is still a serious evil. Many rural dwellers still rely upon traditional but ineffective remedies for common complaints. Quacks having nostrums and injurious patent medicines to sell often prey upon rural communities in which there is no adequate provision for doctors, nurses, and hospitals. Rural diet is often so heavy as to encourage stomach disorders. Farmhouses are in many cases poorly ventilated in summer and overheated in winter. Stables and stock pens are invariably so close to the farmhouse as to render difficult the protection of the dwelling against flies and mosquitoes.
303. THE RURAL SCHOOL.—The chief educational institution in rural districts has long been the small district school, inadequately supported and often inefficiently conducted.
But recently rural education has shown many signs of improvement. In most sections of the country the development of farm machinery has so reduced the amount of manual labor on the farm that rural children are enabled to remain in school for a longer period than formerly. The district school is in many cases being supplanted by the consolidated school. Under the consolidation plan, a single large and well-equipped school-house takes the place of a number of separate, small schools, indifferently equipped. When consolidation is accompanied by improved means of transporting children to school, the advantages of the plan are numerous. Because consolidation is a more economical arrangement than the old district plan, it allows larger salaries to be offered. This in turn allows the rural school to secure a higher grade of teacher. The trained educator is also attracted by the fact that the consolidation of rural schools allows curricula to be standardized and enlarged. Scientific agriculture and allied subjects are slowly finding their way into the rural grade school. The rural high school is beginning to appear.
In some sections of the country, on the other hand, the rural school is still in an unsatisfactory condition. In a number of states the rural school needs a more intelligent and consistent support from the taxpayers, in order that better teachers, more and better schoolhouses, and better working equipment may be provided. In many sections of the country there is very little understanding of the advantages of school consolidation and the necessity of more adequate rural education. It is desirable that rural schools be more closely correlated with the admirable work being done by experiment stations and agricultural colleges. The agricultural press might well co÷perate with the rural schools in attacking the problems of country life. Without doubt the rural school curriculum should place more emphasis upon practical agriculture and other subjects which will demonstrate the dignity and attractiveness of rural life. Finally, it is desirable that an increasing use be made of the schoolhouse as a social center.
304. THE RURAL CHURCH.—The rural church, though an older institution than the rural school, is advancing less rapidly. In many sections the cityward drift has drained the able ministers to the city, leaving inferior men to carry on the work of the rural church. Other rural sections have never had the benefit of an able clergy. In every part of the country it often happens that country ministers are not only inadequately trained, but are uninterested in rural problems.
One of the greatest needs of the American farming community, therefore, is for a vitalized church. In many places rural districts are overchurched, and there is great need of some such consolidation as has been developed among rural schools. This development would so decrease the number of ministers needed that higher salaries could be offered. This, in turn, would attract more highly trained ministers to the country. It is also desirable that rural ministers be trained to a keener appreciation of the economic and social problems of the country, with a view to making religion a practical help in solving the problems of everyday life. An efficient and vitalized church could advantageously be used as a focal point for the development of every phase of rural community life.