78 RURAL CALIFORNIA 



Rates of interest were formerly too high considering 

 the security of legitimate country loans but consider- 

 able improvement has been secured by borrowers on 

 farm property and business during the last decade, 

 as will be noted in Chapter IX. 



Third: Average excellence of country homes. With 

 the understanding that light construction is advis- 

 able under existing climatic conditions, it can be 

 claimed that California country homes are of very 

 high average excellence. It is probably true that 

 there is a greater per capita consumption of periodical 

 literature in California country homes than in other 

 rural communities. The per capita supply of run- 

 ning water, hot and cold, in farm houses and the 

 use of it in all the devices of modern plumbing for 

 cleanliness and sanitation are also very large. Elec- 

 tric light and power for domestic purposes are widely 

 employed. It is reported that 91 per cent of 

 all houses where current is available are using it 

 and 79 per cent of all houses in the State are elec- 

 trified. 



Fourth: The benign influence of cooperation. 

 Unquestionably the most powerful agency for 

 advancement in the quality of rural life in California 

 during the last two decades has been cooperation. 

 While a degree of education is assumed, cooperation 

 is itself a potent educational agency. It not only 

 enables men to achieve, but it points the way con- 

 tinually to greater achievement. Strong cooperative 

 effort has secured protection and promotion for nearly 

 all the leading products of the State ; it has obtained 



