RURAL AMERICA 



that His sojourn on earth would be short, yet His whole life 

 was a continuous training for longevity. So both at intervals 

 and daily, He sought repose, and as a result He was always in 

 perfect condition physically. 



The highest ideal of the American people is to make the 

 National Life whole and integral. What is being done in 

 Rural America toward the accomplishment of this great end, 

 will be considered in the remainder of this chapter under the 

 six heads Play, Work, Worship, Health, Love and Rest. 



Before undertaking this delightful task, however, it might 

 be well to decide just what Rural America is. Of course all 

 persons living in the country are rural residents, as are all 

 persons living in the hundreds of small villages and towns 

 of the nation. But to divide larger centers of population into 

 two arbitrary classes and say that all places with a population 

 of so many thousand shall be called cities and all other places 

 shall constitute a part of Rural America, would be unscien- 

 tific, for the reason that centers of population differ greatly 

 in different parts of the country. This general statement may 

 be made : Rural America consists of the farming communi- 

 ties of the nation and all centers of population, regardless of 

 size, that are more dependent on the surrounding country 

 for their livelihood than on manufacture and industry. 



Now, in Urban America there is only one unit the city. In 

 Rural America, on the other hand, owing to the factor of 

 distance, there are several units, the four most important of 

 which are the county, the township, the school district, and 

 the village. Besides these, there are numerous arbitrary 

 units, the classification depending on the unifying element. 

 Of all the units found in Rural America, the county has come 

 into greatest prominence within recent years, and the reason 

 for this is, it is best adapted to the realization of progressive 

 ideals. The nation has in round numbers 3,000 counties, of 

 which 2,500 are rural, and among the 2,500 there are 200 that 

 have no incorporated villages. The 3,000 counties have been 

 divided into three classes : those which have very large cities, 



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