The principal duties of local governments are those of education, police, sanitation, charity, the construction and maintenance of public roads, the administration of justice, the assessment and collection of taxes, etc. There are three types of local government in the United States: First, the New England type, in which the unit of government is the town or township; second, the Southern type, in which the unit is the county; and third, the Western system, in which the New England and Southern systems are combined. _#1st. Local Government New England.#_--Here the unit of government is the township, or town, as it is usually called. There are few towns exceeding five square miles in area, and the population is generally less than 3,000. The New England township is therefore not a thickly settled area. When a town becomes closely settled it is incorporated as a city. In the New England towns the people govern themselves directly. In the State and Federal governments the people are governed not by themselves, but through representatives chosen by themselves. The town or township form of government is that of a pure democracy; the States and Federal governments are representative governments or republics. The supreme governing power of a town is in the town meeting, composed of all qualified voters of the town. The town meeting is held in the Spring of each year. After the choice of a Moderator, officers are elected for the ensuing year, reports of officers for the past year read, and the amount of taxes to be raised and expenditures to be made during the year, determined upon. The officers are the Selectmen, three, five, seven or nine in number, who constitute the executive officers of the town, and administer the ordinances passed by the town meeting; a town clerk, who keeps a record of the proceedings of the town meeting, and a record of births, deaths, marriages, etc.; a treasurer, assessors and collectors of taxes, constables, and various other petty officers. Several offices are frequently given to the same individual. The county also exists in New England, and is formed by the union of several towns, but it is of very little importance, and has but few duties. The township system is found in the Middle States, but in a modified form. It is less democratic as a rule--officers being elected by ballot, the town meeting generally absent, and county government more important.