22 THE PEOPLE OF THE FARM 



country life. Some features of farm life have failed to 

 satisfy man's nature. Man is a social animal. He craves 

 companionship, and is not satisfied with the isolation that 

 has been so marked in the past, and which is yet a charac- 

 teristic of many farms. Many people, therefore, have left 

 the country for the city for social reasons. The greater 

 business opportunities and educational opportunities of 

 the cities have also influenced a considerable body of 

 country people to move there. 



c. The third cause lies in the character of the farmer. 

 Some farmers are not successful in their work. They 

 may not be good farm managers. They can succeed best 

 when working under the direction of a foreman. The big 

 enterprises that require many foremen are naturally 

 located in the centers of population. These unsuccessful 

 farmers often move to the city to work under the direc- 

 tion of foremen. Then, too, some city occupations are very 

 remunerative. Farmers' sons who desire to be engineers, 

 enter a profession, become a merchant, or engage in indus- 

 trial work, find the financial opportunities of the city 

 attractive. 



13. What Does Rural Migration Mean ? We have learned 

 that, considering the entire United States, the rate of 

 growth of the rural communities has been gradually de- 

 clining for more than a century, but that in certain states 

 the decline is greater than in others, and that especially in 

 the South there has been no decline at all, but a large 

 increase, in the population of rural districts. 



What does all this signify to the American farmer? 

 What does it mean to the nation, to its institutions, to its 

 future ? 



The trend to the city is found not alone in our country ; 

 it is world-wide. It is particularly marked in Europe. 

 It is one of the marks of present-day civilization, and is 



