The Lancaster news. [volume] (Lancaster, S.C.) 1905-current, 1915-09-24

L SooiiSis uhuSi oato VI August 10,
1914:
"a certain class Of our fellow citi-
zens have been very unjust and un-
reasonable in their dealing with the
| poorer people, treating them with no
consideration whatever and showing
| a contempt for them. It did not
use to be so. and it ought not to be
so now. We should all address our
selves to the remedy lest it bring dire
disaster upon the commonwealth"
The rapid appreciation in land
values all over the state is constntaly
increasing the percentage of tenancy
and aggravating these conditions. 1t
is increasingly difficult for a young
man raised on the farm to secure
land of his own. The rapid apprecia-
tion in values, low rate of assessment
and taxation, and the good annual
returns on land investments offer
constant temptation to men of
wealth living in town to buy farms,
and to run them by white or negro
tenants. The South is rapily ap-
preaching the time when the state
must devise some way by which
farmers may purchase land to be
paid for in annual installments ex-
tending over period of twenty years
or more.
The vices of the country are the
natural outgrowth of isolation, ignor-
ance and the lack of religious direc- |
tion and leadership. The drinking
and rowdyism at school entertain. !
ments and other social gatherings in
the country usually spring from
Ignorance on the part of the partici-
pants of other and more intellectual
methods of having a good time. 1t
therefore appears that anything that
IS done to improve the conditions or
elevate the ideals of the men and
boys in the country will be done not
only for the present but for the fu-
lure generation.
THE COUNTRY CHURCH.
Along this line the country church
has peculiarly difficult problems to
solve. There are in the country more
churches than can be adequately
supported. Especially is this true
where there are two, three or more
denominations in the same COM
In this case neither is
strong enough to support a pastor
or furnish congregation. Each
perhaps has preaching once or twice ,
per month; sometimes in the morn
ing; sometimes in the afternoon, and |
sometimes at night. The gregarious
instinct is often stronger than denom-
national cohesion. The members OF |
the Methodist church, especially the
young people, want to go to the Bap-
list church on the day when there is
no preaching at their own church.
and vice versa. They frequently
cannot do this, and go to SUNDAY
school at their own church. The SUI
perintendent and teachers grow tired
of their efforts to hold the school TO-
gether, and it suspends operations
at intervals. A Bible study class
which would be great success II
made up of all the young people in
the community fails miserably when
these are divided up among three or
four churches.
The pastors of most country
churches live in towns and are some
what removed from the social life
OF the community. If il is not posi-
Die to consolidate organizations il
ought TO be possible for all to wor-
ship in the same building and TO
maintain common Sunday school
The isolation of country life, its
lack OF social organization, the alb
sence of satisfying recreation and
amusements for old and young, the
difficulties in some places of denomi-
national church work, must be
squarely faced before the rural prob
lem is solved. Social causes are
more powerful than economic causes
in determining the course OF the
rural community
UNION SUNDAY SCHOOLS.
How shall we permanently better
the rural community? We are told
to begin at the centre. but what shall
we agree upon as the centre? Is il
the country church? What if there
are two or three churches dividing
the community common fact