The ways of service are manifold. Every community has its civic and welfare organizations whose aim is the general good. They draw their members and their active workers from among those citizens who are public spirited. Boards of trade and chambers of commerce devote themselves to advancing the economic interests of the community. Municipal improvement leagues, citizens’ associations, men’s clubs, and women’s societies are to be found in every large town or city; they have various aims but all are guided by the same general aspiration, which is to better the environment in which the people live. The opportunities for women have been greatly increased by giving them the same responsibilities as men in all public activities. There are organizations for the care of the poor, for visiting the sick, and for the prevention of cruelty in all its forms. All depend for the effectiveness of their work, and even for their very existence, upon the degree of interest given to them by public-spirited citizens. There is no one so poor or so busy that he can give no money, no time, and no sympathy to any public cause. The citizen who centers all his interest upon his own personal affairs is not only missing one of the durable satisfactions of life but is giving himself a schooling in selfishness. He is not a good citizen in the proper sense of the term. [Sidenote: The value of experience in public office.] Service in public office is the best training for good citizenship, although not all men and women can have this form of civic education. Yet everyone has a right to aspire to it, and ought to welcome the opportunity of such service if it comes. It does not usually come unearned. Like most other opportunities, this one knocks at the doors of those who have earned their right to it. Men and women who have displayed no evidence of public spirit are rarely called upon to let their names go on the ballot. The first step to honorable public office is taken when one joins a civic or welfare organization and shows ability to work with and for others. Thus a man’s acquaintance, or a woman’s acquaintance, gradually broadens; the confidence of others is gained; and in time the hand of the public beckons to those who have demonstrated their spirit of service. Public office is a public trust. The proffer of its opportunities to any man or woman is a high compliment. Election to public office is the highest honor a democratic community can bestow. As a means of becoming well versed in public affairs and in the practical problems of government there is no training which surpasses it. General References EVERETT KIMBALL, _National Government of the United States_, pp. 73-80; W. B. MUNRO, _Government of the United States_, pp. 71-87; J. A. WOODBURN and T. F. MORAN, _The Citizen and the Republic_, pp. 1-31; S. W. MCCALL, _The Liberty of Citizenship_, pp. 1-31; JAMES BRYCE, _The Hindrances to Good Citizenship_, especially pp. 43-74;