AMERICA 



of a flourishing and contented rural population, was another 

 such leader. During the ten years between 1900 and 1910 the 

 home owners of Rural America decreased and landlords in- 

 creased one per cent. Edward Everett Hale once said, " Who 

 ever heard of a man fighting for his boarding-house?" It is 

 the home that causes a man to shoulder his gun. And the 

 home in the country is as sacred as the home in the city. 

 Now, any reader of this book who has owned land at a 

 greater or less distance from his residence and is dependent 

 on renters, knows from bitter experience what a tenant nation 

 would mean. And if he has had experience with renters who 

 have later become home owners in the country, he has noted 

 the wonderful difference and is in a position to deplore the 

 trend of America toward tenantry. It is a step toward an 

 American peasantry, a step toward a decrease of population, 

 a step toward rising prices, a step toward the supremacy of 

 Urban Life and the submergence of Rural Life, a step toward 

 ultimate ruin. 



Fortunately, anyone may have a part in the work of elimi- 

 nating the perils (possibly " race admixture " is not a peril 

 per se) that are today jeopardizing both Urban and Rural 

 America. But he must dedicate himself to the task with no 

 thought of pecuniary reward. From the beginning down to 

 the present time there is possibly no record of a single achieve- 

 ment in elevating the human race that has been prompted by 

 the mercenary spirit and brought to fruition under the stimu- 

 lus of financial gain. And not only may everyone have a 

 part in the great work which is so diversified in character 

 that there is room for all kinds of talent, but one need not 

 seek far to find plenty to do. How aptly Charles Wagner 

 expresses this thought : " A common weakness keeps many 

 people from finding what is near them interesting; they see 

 that only on its paltry side. The distant, on the contrary, 

 draws and fascinates them. In this way a fabulous amount 

 of good-will is wasted. People burn with ardor for humanity, 

 for the public good, for righting distant wrongs, they walk 

 through life, their eyes fixed on marvelous sights along the 



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