The purpose of this study was to determine the extent of poverty in some rural areas of Texas, to determine and evaluate the attitudes of local leaders toward the anti-poverty effort, and to prescribe remedial action. The extent of poverty was based on the incidence of low income, then questionnaires were developed, tested, and used to obtain information from county, city, business, professional, and religious leaders, and representatives of the poor. Much of the work of the project staff was inconclusive, and in many cases the data were insufficient. Some conclusions were: (1) an annual census-type survey in the area, combined with an input-output analysis conducted by the regional planning body, can eliminate the deficiency in reliable, disaggregate data; (2) the most important form of poverty is the lack of formal education; (3) transportation facilities, racial discrimination, and lack of skills contribute to this lack; (4) poverty can as easily be identified by its effects as by its causes, and these effects contribute to a circular process of continuing poverty over time; and (5) private charitable groups are totally inadequate to the task of eliminating poverty, but the American economy is capable of supporting the anti-poverty effort while remaining affluent. (The questionnaire and a bibliography are included.) (nl)