THE LITTLE DEMOCRACY
largement of an old institution, that we ought not willingly to let die. The movement to organize local self-governing Communities takes us back not only to the New England Town-meeting, but still farther back to the Teutonic "Mark," the Russian "Mir," and to the ancient Swiss Cantonal Assembly. The fact that free village Communities in some form have existed in so many parts of the world is significant indication of a universal conviction that such organization is a necessity to human welfare.
The Community Center aims to form such a free village Community, a town, a borough, a little democracy both in the cities and the open country. Its capitol and headquarters is the schoolhouse, because this is the most American institution and the only one suitable for the purpose. It alone provides a place where all can meet on equal terms of self-respect. It is conveniently distributed in every city, town and village in America. The term "Center" applies to the schoolhouse, the place of meeting. The term applied to the organization of the
32
