The Pleasantville press. (Pleasantville, N.J.) 1912-1929, 1927-09-20
CAN CITY N COUNTRY UNDERSTAND EACH
OTHER2

The most vital phase of contemporary American
history is the amazing growth of the city. Nearly sixty per
cent of our entire population now lives in larger or smaller
cities; and If all contiguous suburban areas are included
the percentage is considerably larger. This means that
with all our millions of broad and fertile acres, over hall
our population for one reason or another prefers to CROWD
into a few thousand animated square miles OF barren brick
and motar.
This stupendous pyramiding of population in urban
centers exceeds anything the world has ever seen, even IN
Guiding the historic past when certain ancient cites are
supposed to have attained enormous size; and looked at
from any one of a number of angles, it may be regarded as
the major social phenomenon of our time. Parsons, pro-
fessors, publicsts, and political thinkers are all disturbed
and perplexed by the problems it is creating. and are trying
to forecast the effect it will have upon our civilization.
If. SO far, it has spelled no danger, it is because OF our
widespread prosperity, and the fundamental political
sanity of the man with the ballot, and possibly, also, because
we still have the check of healthy ruralism. But surely
this urban concentration has high political potentialltles.
AT all events, the problems of the cities as now organized
~ under any other conceivable organization are already
perplexing and bound to increase. They become very
acute a few years ago during the era OF MUNICIPAL scahdais'
they are becoming equally acute now that there are SO many
signs of an impending conflict between city and country.
In Younger DAYS we used to try out our oratorical wings
by debates on the relative merits and dement's OF city lie
VS.. country life. The difference then turned mostly on a
difference of taste as place of abode or method OF lie; at
heart city and country were still one. Today all this has
changed very materially; there is not only a growing con
1flict Of interests between city and country, but mere Is
a growing conflict also of spirit and OF outlook, OF cnitufai
ideals and political aspirations. :,
There is an entire difference of mental attitude and
anproach towards most individual and public questions.
The people of the city are becoming resentful and rebel
lions AGAINST rural interference. The people OF the country
resent annexation, absorption and loss OF local or COM
munity individuality.
1t is a conflict that goes deeper than most us OF realize
and has obvious elements of danger. Ii probably explains
in part the sort of social antagonism and bitterness tnal
manifests itself in such movements as that OF the ku hiux
Khan. or yolsteadism. or undamentalism, and that under
lies the various phases of such religious and racial soon
flicts and intolerances as %unhappily still exist.
If town and country are still in accord IN their 1aiih
and allegience to all the traditional institutions OF our
nol;tical system. nevertheless these institutions can well De
mi in peril if these two elements in our population are
permitted to misunderstood each other.
The countryman, has always been dubious about 'e
sunerior character Of the city, and now his doubts seem to
he nase;no INTO convictions. He cannot understand the
,b;nps that animate the life of the city. man; he canho,
understand why with all our wealth and high wages ana
cbort hours and abundant leisure we LETT the old Adam III US
lead us % often to such a waste of time and substance IN
nIav and Measure. The urbanite, on his SIDE, mas Jus.
,bn,t a 6 MANY ideas that are wrong or hall wrong apou'
Tho co,,ntrvman. So far in our history such dlscordahs
views have not done much more than add to the saye'y VI
life Today they have become an important FACTOR III me
noIit;cal equation; and serve to illustrate how important !,
: To our future stability to shape our political course anu
develonment in such a way that all these sorts Il cohih''
re minimized rather than intensified.