174 THE FARMER AND THE NEW DAY 



fore, in seeking community improvement, we have been 

 content with the scattered efforts of various agencies. 

 Now what we want is to have the community as a whole 

 act and plan for itself. But it cannot do this unless it 

 has the will to do it and to keep at it. A plan that 

 everybody can understand and discuss and have a part 

 in, helps to develop and strengthen the community will. 



THE COMMUNITY MEETING 



The New England town meeting is the most demo- 

 cratic institution of the American government, because 

 it calls together the people of the community to talk 

 over their common interests. In the old days, it was 

 decidedly a community meeting because it dealt with 

 all of the interests of the people. Gradually, it be- 

 came purely a political or governmental meeting and 

 so is restricted in its operations. It deals only with 

 those affairs for which public money is to be expended. 

 But we need everywhere frequent community meetings 

 for the discussion of all these common needs and pur- 

 poses of the community. 



Regular Meetings. Community meetings should be 

 held regularly at least four times a year, or better, once 

 a month; perhaps in some communities during a part 

 of the year they could be held as often as once a week; 

 but it is vital to bring the people of the community 

 together rather frequently to confer about their com- 

 mon welfare. 



Definite Objects. There is little good in meetings 

 of a general character, certainly no good at all in meet- 

 ings for the sake of a meeting. There must be some- 

 thing worth while to discuss, such as the big problem 

 of community organization ; the items in the community 

 program; reports of progress in the community pro- 



