ld to live. Staying year after year in the same parish is
the secret of success in the case of most of the conspicuously successful
country pastors. Only thus can a man really become the parson of the
village, a person of dominant influence in all the affairs of the people.

This ideal suggestion of long country pastorates meets with two
objections. Laymen are saying, "How can you expect us to keep a minister
after he has said all he knows?" And some of the ministers will say, "How
can you expect us to stay, on less than a living wage?" At present both
objections are perfectly valid. Too many ministers are untrained men, and
therefore fail to succeed for more than a year or two. And certainly an
underpaid minister cannot be blamed for taking his family where he can
support them respectably.

As near as can be determined, about 20% of rural ministers the country
over (including all denominations) are educated men; though probably not
over 10% of them have had a full professional training.[34] They are about
as successful as any other professional man can be who lacks his special
training for his life work. There is a great demand for _trained_
ministers. The writer receives very many more requests from churches in a
year than he can furnish with men. Yet the theological seminaries are
training few men for the rural churches. Most of the graduates go either
to the cities or the villages, where there is a living wage. Dr. Warren H.
Wilson figures that a country minister with a wife and three children, in
order to educate his family, keep a team and provide $100 annual payment
for insurance for his old age, must have at least $1,400 salary. There are
ministers who are able to do this on less,--but not very much less. There
certainly ought to be a _minimum_ wage of $800 and a parsonage, or $1,000
cash, for every minister. A church paying less than this is simply
stealing from the minister's family. Churches unable to pay this minimum
living wage ought to unite with a neighboring church or close their doors,
except for itinerant preaching.[35]

In several denominations the plan of maintaining a minimum salary for
their ministers is being attempted. We have space for a single
illustration. The East Ohio Conference, Cleveland District, of the
Methodist Episcopal Church, under the direction of Rev. N. W. Stroup, as
district superintendent, has succeeded in raising the minimum to $750. It
was estimated in advance that $2,500 wou