Askov American. [volume] (Askov, Pine County, Minn.) 1914-current, 1926-10-21
NEW YORK WRITER
is VISITING ASKOV
David Lloyd, Representing the
Institute of Social and Religious
Research, is Gathering Facts
Here.

A tribute to the distinctive pro-
gress shown by the village and COM
munity of Askov is made by the In
stitute of Social ond Religious Re
search, New York, by including Askov
for special attention in the American
Village Studies which the Institute
| is now conducting. The Institute,
which co-operates with other social
and religious bodies but is itself in
dependent, was organized in January
1921. 1t conducts and publishes stu
dies and surveys and promotes con-
ferences for their consideration, its
aim being to combine the scientific
method with the religious motive.
Kenyon L. Butterfield, president of
the Michigan Agricultural College, is
director of the Institute, others be-
ing John r. Mott, chairman, Raymond
B. Fosdick, James L. Barton, w. H.
P. Faunce, and Paul Monroe.
In its village investigation, which
is under the direction of DR.. Edmond
deS. Drummer, the Institute has just
published a book by G. Luther Fry
called American Villagers. DIR.
Fry's volume makes statistical anal
ysis of data gathered in the files of
the United States Census Bureau but
hitherto unpublished. DR.. Fry's con-
illusions have been received as up
setting the prevalent theory that,
owing to the/drift of population city
wards, the American villages have
declined in Importance. He shows
that they are increasing both in num-
Der and population, housing one-eighth
of the total population of the nation,
and having a distinctive effect upon
the national life.
A special phase of the study of the
economic, social, and religious con-
ditions in agricultural villages is
that concerned with the situation of
the rural immigrant, and the oppor-
tunities and obstacles which he finds
in his American setting. In this part
of the Institutes work now going
forward, Askov has been recommend
ed for special study because of its
success, in developing in the past
twenty years a thriving Danish colony
of American citizens. The Insti-
tute's representative, David Lloyd, ar
rived here from New York Friday
last to conduct this investigation af-
ter comforting at the University of
Minnesota with several members of
the faculty there whose studies have
made them familiar~with this COM
munity's aims and record. Mr.. Lloyd
will be here for several weeks as the
guest of the Rev o. H. Dyreborg, and
hopes to make a wide acquaintance
| among our people in the course of
his stay. He~is not a member of the
regular field staff of the Institute of
Social and Religious Research, being
specially selected for conducting this
| Investigation as an editorial worker
of varied experience. For the past
three years he was managing editor
of the Outline of Christianity, a five
| volume work just published this fall
in New York and designed to show
! the influence of Christianity in shap-
ing our modern civilization. The
Most Rev. Nathan Soderblom, Arch
bishop of Upsala, was one of the one
hundred writer's participating in this
work, which included also an ex-
tensive account of the part taken in
| American progress by the Lutheran
churches,