The bystander. [volume] (Des Moines, Iowa) 1916-1922, 1920-07-09
MAPS ARE TO Be
Sent TO PASTORS
ALL over The U. S.
Country Church Not Reaching
Community and ministering
Only to a Percentage.

"dSA4uS% Observation-Disclosures t0SAt inc
surveys Of the Interchurch World
Movement in rural America are of
such accuracy as to constitute a def
mite scientific contribution to present
day information on the country
church, the United States Govern
ment. through Charles -Bosiah Galpin
Of the Office of Farm Management OF
the Department OF Agriculture, has
contracted to buy copy Of the sur
vey map of each of the 1858 counties
to be surveyed by the Town and coun--
try Division of the Inter church
Movement.
This county map Is q concrete ex-
preston in graphics OF the first
going and wholly compre-
hensive church and community sur
vey ever attempted In this country.
the location Of every church, the
residences of the ministers, tho cir
cults on, which they travel in reach
ing their charges, the parish lines of
every church and the community
boundaries. BY the graph. areas of
UNCONVENTIONAL competition are dis
covered a. we'll b the areas which
are untouched BY any religious minis
tration.
The survey to date has revealed the
fact that the average country church
is in NO sense reaching the commun-
ity and Is ministering only to per-
csntagekof certain creed of Sect and
also that there are very few buildings
In which provision has been made for
tho social and recreational needs of
the young people. The survey has
disclosed that more than one-hak of
the rural pastors are receiving less
than q living wage
Tho plan Of presenting church con-
dittons on a county map began with
the establishment of the Country
Life Commission by President Roose-
welt. It was developed by Clifford
Pinchot and the Rev. c. o. Gill, as
Congregational clergymen Of New
England, who intensified the idea Of
obtaining specific information on the
churches in a community. DR.. War
rem H. Wilson, known as the dean of
specialists on the rural church In
America and the Rev. H. N. Morse,
both OF the rural life work depart
ment OF the Presbyterian Board Of
Home Missions, together with DR..
Edmund des Brunnsr, head of the
town and country survey department
Of the Interchurch World Movement,
brought the graphs to their present
perfection in presentation of COM
munity matters This graph Is = vi
vid picture, Ineligible on first glance
to the lay mind, Of how the church
is or 10 not reaching q community.
The maps ordered by Mr.. Galpin
are made in the field by an Inter,
church surveyor, checked up in the
national office and traced by expert
craftsmen. To date surveys on 1872
more than $50 finished maps are
available. In more than 1000 OF the
2,96S counties the survey Is actually
underway.
Mr.. Galpin, who decided that the
Government should have the maps,
was formerly a professor in the Wis
consin State school Of Agriculture
and is the author of many books and
pamphlets and a pioneer in the study
Of farm life and farm communities.
He was particularly attracted by the
maps in that the manner Of dividing
up q county into normal, communities
instead of townships or other arbi-
trary and fixed lines shaped into the
kind Of work he is doing for the Gov
eminent.
Aside from their use by the Govern
ment. the rural maps will be distri-
buted among pastors all over the
United States in the areas concerned
as the basis, of programs to recon
struct the rural church in America.
Cooperation with the local church.
Is in carrying out the community
plans in the promotion Of the Lenten
Evangelistic campaign urged, in the
letters sent from the national Head
quarters, 1888 d.