616 RURAL SOCIOLOGY 



of road construction, local, state, and national systems of reg- 

 ulation, rural mail delivery, telephones, rural parcel post, inter- 

 urban lines, automobiles, every means by which social activities 

 are transacted and furthered, demand attention in the ratio 

 of their importance. The creation of means of communication 

 appears to lie near the heart of the evolution of society. Good 

 roads and quickened transit may introduce a new rural society. 

 But there is also a reverse side to the shield which must be re- 

 garded. With their power to quicken the community pulse, 

 these agencies likewise possess a tremendous thrusting power 

 toward urban life. It is conceivable that some sort of derural- 

 ization may be the outcome of improved communication. 



A fifth center of interest is that of health. I do not stop to 

 argue that rural health conditions have social import. That is 

 conceded. These questions arise : How does health in the country 

 where the facts are not so well known compare with that in the 

 city where the facts are better known? To what unsanitary 

 conditions are rural diseases due ? What are effective and valid 

 remedial measures? What devices and agencies are best adapted 

 to reach the rural mind, respecting health and sanitation? 



A sixth important consideration concerns neighborhood insti- 

 tutions and organizations. Perhaps the rural home and the 

 family demand more attention than we have accorded them. The 

 domestic institution in the country has its own peculiar prob- 

 lems. Some of the domestic concerns needing investigation 

 and discussion are : the family system of control, whether patri- 

 archal or modern ; the home atmosphere and facilities for home 

 satisfactions; woman's work, hours of labor, and the facilities 

 for carrying on the work ; her leisure and opportunities for 

 recreation, association, and culture; rural child labor, perhaps 

 the largest aspect of national child labor; the ethical basis of 

 the participation of women and children in the agricultural 

 process ; educational, recreational, and associational facilities and 

 privileges of country children. 



The various neighborhood institutions and organizations of 

 the country, as the community framework and the agencies of 

 prosecuting the essential activities, deserve careful study. Those 

 organizations which deal with economic production exclusively 

 should be considered under production to the degree that they 



