in which to store a life's vitality. Circumstances may force your child in later years to lead a top sedentary life, and nothing but that abundance of constitutional vigor in youth will pull him through the unnatural confinement.

Correct body carriage and position in sitting are easily taught to the youngster; in fact, it is much easier to shape the pliant young body than that of a person even sixteen or eighteen years old. Only the student of respiration adequately appreciates the health significance of correct carriage. Consider that the difference in position means a difference of several cubic inches of lung capacity used in every breath, and weigh for a moment the value of that abdominal massage resulting from free diaphragmatic action, and we can realize that erect posture is far more than a matter of appearance.

Encourage the child to breathe deeply at all times, and never permit any restriction of clothing to interfere with this. As he grows older suggest that he devote a few minutes each day to deep breathing gymnastics, and that he quit work a time or two during each day to inflate the lungs and stretch the respiratory muscles. I know a child who has been so thoroughly taught along these lines that he never enters a room without noting whether it is ventilated, and he would no sooner breathe the same air rerepeatedly all night than he would drink water in which he had bathed.

Teach boys and girls reverence for the body. Teach them to respect, develop and care for it. Show the purpose of exercise, its possibilities and dangers; the relative value of the different kinds of exercises, and that the vital organs are not in the arms and legs. Educate the youngster to regard daily physical exercise as equally important with eating. See that he has his daily bath, preferably after exercise, and let it be cold, or at least cool, if he is robust. This one measure is his best safeguard against susceptibility to colds.

Teach that relaxation is just as important as work or play. Never permit the formation of "tension habits." Show him how to let down instead of keying up-never to fume and fret over anything. Many a child is permitted to wreck his nervous system when a modicum of instruction would prevent it. Parents and teachers should "nip in the bud" the first hint of nervousness. The old comparison of prevention and cure is particularly applicable to nerv

ousness.

But all these things will fail, or be only partially successful, if the child's sexual nature is neglected. Though nervousness may have many causes other than sexual, children's nervousness is associated with sexual irregularities so often that a parent is wise to assume a casual relation and start rigid investigation. Carrying a child safely over the pitfalls of puberty is no weakling's work, it probably is parents' greatest difficulty. "How shall I meet that time in my child's life?" is a question that looms large before every conscientious parent. The importance of this matter to health-we are not discussing its other phases cannot be overestimated. Here is a battle for which the young athlete must be trained about ten or twelve years and the price is not too great. The trainer who waits till the year of the contest to condition his charge-who permits his protege untrained to meet the giant Temptation who is always trained to the minute-will lead away a defeated warrior, will see his fondest hopes dashed. Not always, you say? Granted-but what true parent wants to take the chance?

Build up your child's resistance by years of such intimacy with him that you will be at his elbow when he needs you-so that you will see the enemy's first hostile move. Have his health in such perfect condition that such causes as constipation and introspection will not have to be feared. You will have battle enough with the causes which you cannot reach directly.

8

administration of the office, only one jury was ever had.

The trials are public, but the Judge, in his discretion may exclude from the room any person whose presence is deemed prejudicial to the interests of the child or the public, when such person does not have a recognized personal interest in the case.

No minor should ever be permitted to remain in a court room, if, in the judgment of the Judge, there is anything in the case being heard which might be of harm to the child.

Any person may make a petition to the Court, setting up the facts which go to show that the child is a delinquent child, and, upon the filing of the petition, the Court gives notice to the County Agent, who is appointed by the Governor for the care of dependent, neglected and delinquent children, and said County Agent then makes an investigation of the facts set up in the petition, and of the home surroundings and past life of the child, and makes a report to the Court, with a recommendation of what he thinks ought to be done in the particular case.

If, after a full investigation, the Court considers it for the public interest and that of the child, a summons issues to the person having custody of the child to bring the child into Court; and, if the petition was made by other than the parent, the parent must have notice.

On the return day, the Court proceeds to hear the case, and, if the allegations are proven, the child would be adjudged a delinquent child. The Court may then either return the child to its parents, or place the child under probation in the custody of someone other than the parents; and, if the offense be malicious trespass, the Court may, as a condition of probation, require the damage to be made good; or, if the offense be larceny and the stolen property be not restored, the Court, as a condition of probation, may require it to be paid for by the child, if it be shown that the child is capable of earning. money, or has money of his own.

If the child is found to be wilfully wayward and unmanageable, and, in any case, upon adjudication of delinquency, if, in the judgment. of the Court the welfare of the child and the interests of the public require, the Court may cause him to be sent to the Industrial School for Boys at Lansing or to any institution bearing the approval of the State Board of Corrections and Charities until he is seventeen years of age; and, if it is a girl, she may be sent to the Industrial Home for Girls at Adrian, or to any institution

bearing the approval of said State Board until she is twenty-one years of age.

No child under twelve years of age can be placed in any jail; and no child under seventeen can be confined with any adult.

It would be well worth the time of every father and mother to take the laws of this State and study carefully as to what constitutes a juvenile delinquent or criminal, and then to consider well what circumstances might place their boy or girl in the way of becoming a juvenile delinquent or criminal, for I want to impress on you that juvenile delinquents and criminals are not, as a rule, born, as some would lead you to believe, but made.

At the same time, I want you to understand that I am a firm believer in the fact that your child will inherit your bad points as well as your good. If you doubt this at all, stand on the street corner and watch father and son go by. Even their walk, the stoop of their shoulders and the way in which they smile, is the same. Inheriting, as we do, the physical characteristics of the parents, look to the dispositions and see how nearly alike they are, and you will realize why we say: "Like father, like son."

I have seen boys and girls, who were better than their fathers and mothers; but, is it not reasonable to suppose that if they had had a better start, a better chance, they would have been still better.

I have also seen children of the finest parents, who were not all that might be wished; but, is it not also reasonable to expect that if their homes had not been of the best, they might have fallen still lower.

Each and every boy and girl is entitled to a good start in life, and it cannot and should not be any source of satisfaction to any parent, who has not given their child such a chance, to look around at others who have been unfortunate and try to get consolation out of that fact.

In treating of the work of the Juvenile Court. I want to impress on you that the Court doe, not and cannot take the place of the homes Bear in mind at all times that the home is the work of God, while the Court is the creature of mankind. The home is the place where the boy and girl get that influence which makes for stability of character, the home is the place where they are watching father and mother all the time to see what the parents hold up as a criterion of right and wrong. All that the Judge can do is to help you to solve the problems which a busy world is always confronting you with. To solve these in such a way as to do the

best for the child and society is the work of the Juvenile Court.

It would be easy enough, so far as the work involved is concerned, when your boy or girl is brought into Court, to enter an order admitting them to the Industrial School; but what man, with red blood running in his veins, could do so and ever look himself in the face again. Those boys and girls are worth saving, is the only spirit for the Judge to have. They are worth ones' laying awake nights trying to think out some way to work out their salvation. As you know, they are the future citizens of this great and glorious country, and it will not be long before you are leaning your weary selves on their strong, young shoulders. It is a child of someone who is before the Court, and the Court is not only dealing with the present, but his act may be of vital importance in the future of the child. The Industrial School only should be used as a last resort, when every other alternative has failed.

If you find that you are losing your hold on them; if you find that some influence outside of the home is getting a hold on them, and that influence is for the worse; do not wait until the wrong is committed or the sorrow comes before going to the Judge. You need not necessarily file petition with him, no one need to know that you have been to him, but you will find him at all times willing to help you, at all times ready to advise with you and with your boy or girl and show them what life means, what it holds in store for them; who their friends are in the true sense of the word. Do not threaten them with being taken into Juvenile Court, but, rather, give them to understand that the Juvenile Court is their friend, constituted for the purpose of helping them and get them to go with you and have a talk with the Judge. Always be sure though that you see the Judge first and let him know where the real trouble lies. If the Judge is able to win their confidence, he may be able to get them to continue coming to report to him and thus save them from future unhappiness.

During my term of office, I always made it a practice of having each child given a thorough examination by a physician to see whether or not there was any physical defect that was in any way contributing to the delinquency. Some were found to be suffering with adenoids, some with bone trouble of the nose, some with enlarged tonsils, and some defective vision.

In all these cases, they were either operated on or treated with very good results; one doctor making the remark "that it seemed strange

that so many of these little devils had adenoids; but," he went on to say, "possibly it is the adenoids that makes them little devils." Possibly it is news to some of you that adenoids do affect both the mental and physical development of the child. Your child may have adenoids, you may think nothing of it, may think it is only a trifle; but, my friends, it is sometimes the things we think the least of that have the most to do with the future of the child. The Chinese employ their physicians to keep them well. Would it not be worth the while of each and every parent to give the child the benefit of a thorough examination at least once each year and see if there is anything needing attention. Eternal vigilance is the price of a good child.

Furthermore, if your boy or girl do not get along as they should in school, or seem at all different to what you think they should be, you should at once take them to a doctor for a thorough examination. If you cannot afford to take them to a doctor, take them to the Judge and he will assist. My experience as a Judge with doctors was that they are a very charitable class of men. You may feel that you do not care to accept charity; but, bear in mind that it is not your future, but, rather, the future of your child that is at stake. You have no right to let your personal feelings or pride enter into a matter of this kind. Your action may mean all the world to the child. Each and everyone of us is interested in the welfare of each and every child and nothing should stand in the way of their getting a fair start in life. If the teacher notices anything out of the ordinary with your boy or girl, you should only be too glad to have them call and talk it over with you. You must not feel they are finding fault and criticising your boy or girl, but rather realize that they are trying, as you are, to make good citizens of them. Matters of this kind should be sacred between the parents and teacher and should not be bandied about the streets. Did you ever stop to realize that a child born in the most remote part of the world from us may be of vital interest to us; that the life of that child may affect our lives or the lives of those near and dear to us. This being true, how interested we should be at all times to see that boys and girls get a fair start in life and that everything possible is done for them. It is barely possible that the child who is refused help by us today, may be the man or woman whose life may most affect ours later on. Therefore, my dear friends, take an interest in the boys and girls of today and see that everything possible is done for them.