=The Areas of Community Government.=—For purposes of local administration the counties are divided into towns, townships, or county districts, but whenever any portion of the county becomes thickly settled it is usually organized as an incorporated village, an incorporated town, a borough, or a city. It will be seen, therefore, that there are at least seven different units of community government in the United States, not to speak of the special districts which exist in some individual states. The reason for this great diversity is to be found in the fact that the American system of local government has grown up gradually and in each state independently. In most European countries the system of local government is uniform; in the United States it is not. Each state has its own system and in no two states are these systems exactly alike. For this reason only the broad outline of the subject can be presented; the details must be studied in the localities concerned. [Sidenote: The town meeting.] =The New England Town.=—Among the areas of community government the New England town is the oldest and the most interesting. It is not always, or even usually, a thickly-settled place. These towns differ greatly both in size and in population; they are usually quite irregular in shape and may contain anywhere from a few hundred to several thousand people. The New England town does not possess a charter of incorporation but it has the usual corporate powers (see p. 177). The chief governing organ of the New England town is the town meeting, an assembly of all the voters, both men and women. This town meeting is called together at least once a year and often three or four times. It elects the town officers, votes the appropriations, and decides all questions of general policy. Sometimes the town meeting lasts all day; occasionally it continues even longer. Every citizen has the right to a voice and a vote. [Sidenote: The selectmen.] During the interval between the town meetings the affairs of the town are managed by a board of selectmen, composed of three or five members, elected by the voters. The selectmen prepare the business for the town meeting and carry out its decisions. The larger towns also maintain various other boards, such as a school board, a water board, and a board of health, the members being in all cases elected at the town meeting. Other town officials include a town clerk, a treasurer, an auditor, and a superintendent of schools. [Sidenote: Recent changes in the system.]