Missouri Counlrij Life Conference. 



191 



that idea which pauperizes, but that help which visionizes the 

 community. 



Organized Social Activity. — Organization for social reaction 

 is a thing necessary in every community, and it is one of the 

 things that we lack very materially in the open country. If you 

 want to develop leadership it is absolutely necessary to have 

 social reaction, and that is why more leaders come from the city 

 and centers of population than from rural districts. 



I conceived the idea that we might have a home-coming 

 day. Four years ago last June we held our first. My primary 

 idea, of course, was to get all the people who once lived here 

 and have them meet in a splendid, social time. We have this 

 on Sunday; we have in the morning Sunday school and after the 

 Sunday school a sermon. Then we have a community dinner 

 together. In the afternoon we have men to speak on current 

 events, on country life development and agricultural problems, 

 giving time for short talks from the old residents. This was 

 our first and there were about six hundred people present, and 

 during the years they have increased in this ratio: the first year, 

 six hundred; second year, eight hundred, third year, eleven 

 hundred, and this last year we had fifteen hundred people. 

 This shows the popularity of it. 



"We organized a band and it has made good.' 



