The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1912-04-05
RURAL SCHOOL
NATION'S HOPE
IT SHOULD BE MADE COMMUN.
ITY'S SOCIAL, POLITICAL AND
EDUCATIONAL CENTER.
(By Associated Press. }

Nashville. Tenn. April "a plea
for rejuvenation of the agricultural
districts and development Of the
rural school as the social. political
and educational center Of the COM
munity. was made by President
Charles william Dabney OF the Uni
versity Of Cincinnati today In an ad-
dress before the Conference Of Edu-
cation in the South.
Speaking to the subject. Tho
Rural School as Center Of COun-
try Life" President Dabney called
attention to the dwindling of the
rural population and advanced his
cOntentiOn that a rem les In in
creasing the usefuln % of the
schools.
He said in part:
Everywhere the urban population
IL increasing ahead Of the rural. and
In most of the old states the total
rural population is steadily decreas-
ing. More ominOus than the trust
menace. the currency question. or
the labor problem. is this drift Of
the people away from the farm; for.
as Mr.. James j. Hill puts 1t. Land
without population Is a wilderness.
and population without land Is
mob
1.-The resources Of our soil and ell
mate are limitlcss, and the country
Is from every point OF view far
better place to live In than ever be-
fore; yet for some reason, the young
people In all the older states are es-
Gaping from the farms. Why? Be
cause the attractions Of the town are
greater than those of the country.
How to change this condition Is the
question Of the hour.
Heretofore, in our civilization,
the farmer, the descendant OF the
pioneer the finest representative OF
the individualistic class the world
has ever seen, has steadily developed
the greatest power, and has, there
fore, maintained his own In the re-
public.
"The relative loss of population by
the country threatens every business
and every interest. Land values de-
crease, farmers move away, the young
people drift to the cities, stores and
dwellings become vacant, schools and
churches dwindle. until finally all
life and enterprise drop into decay.
"This, 1 say, is the question of the
hour. How shall we restore the bal
ance between the urban and the rural
forces? Why have men nowhere
worked out q perfect relation be-
tween town and country? A fair
adjustment must be found before We
can have a permanent. happy civili.
zatiOn."
Referring to tho needs Of the
country, the speaker said:
1.-THE educational and social con-
ditions In the country must be I'M
proved IL we are to keep the young
people on the farms. The physical
discomforts of farm life have now
been largely ameliorated In the GEN.
trail states. AS the farm houses are
rebuilt. modern comforts and con-
veniences are introduced.
"The farmers who desert the cOun-
try, often the very best of meE. do
so in search of the higher things Of
life for their families. They fear
up their homes and make great sac
rifices that they may provide better
training in mind and in spirit for
their children and better social privi-
leges for their wives. So long as
there are better schools, better
churches, and better social oppOr-
tunities in the cities, so long will
men flock into them. So long as
practically no literature. art. and
music are TO be had in the country,
SO long will men and women seek
them where they are TO be found.
Neither the state nor the church
has done lis full duty by the farmer.
In the old days, the church was the
center of the life of the people. The
whole life of the people. social, edu-
rational and religious. ccntered
around the old church. Now all this
is changed In this way, fear, the
church is losing its hold upon tho
life of the country people. 1t has
certainly ceased to be the one center
of their life. as it formerly was.
There may be difference Of
opinion as to where the new center