o do effective work. In fact,
there is strong opposition to any pastor who attempts to influence the
decision of the congregation on any social question. Many towns and
rural communities have several churches, though their population and
wealth may be hardly large enough to support one properly. This
condition, however, is not peculiar to the South. Here and there in the
country districts a new type of pastor has appeared. He is a good farmer
himself, interested in better farming and able to discuss fertilizers and
methods with his parishioners. He is not afraid that prosperity will turn
his members away from their church duties but considers that improving
the economic conditions of the neighborhood is quite as vital a part of
his work as ministering to their spiritual needs. Largely because of the
work of some of these men the exodus to the towns has slackened in some
neighborhoods and contributions to the work of the church have been greatly
increased.

This movement from country to town has become a serious matter in some
localities. The social level of neighborhoods once attractive because of
the presence of families of intelligence and character has fallen. The
land of the families which have moved to towns has been turned over to
tenants, either whites of a lower status or negroes, the standards of
the community have suffered in consequence, and the atmosphere of some
of these communities has become depressing. Such conditions, however,
are not peculiar to the South but have been observed in central New York
and in New England. Better roads, the motor car, and improvement in
communications have helped to check this cityward movement, and, on the
whole, the educational, economic, and social standards of the country
districts generally are higher than they were ten years ago.

Generally speaking, the South is a law-abiding section. This is true
even when the negroes are included, and as the prohibitory laws are
enforced more strictly, it is becoming increasingly true. The chain gang
which was so common years ago has been discontinued in hundreds of
counties, chiefly for lack of convicts, though partly for humanitarian
reasons. The offenses of the negro were, for the most part, petty
larceny, gambling, and offenses against public order. Affrays are
certainly less frequent since the spread of prohibition, and larceny
seems to be decreasing, though statistics of crime are few and
unreliable. The gambling is usually n