APPENDIX A< 



i. EXTRACTS FROM ANNUAL REPORT OF THE 

 ASSOCIATION FOR BEFRIENDING BOYS 1 



OF the boys reported upon, 1,318, or 56.85 per cent., are satisfactory, 

 as against 1,310, or 58.7 per cent, in 1909. This is a drop of 

 2 per cent., and consequently rather disappointing. These numbers, 

 however, must vary from year to year ; and a movement of 2 or 3 

 per cent, upwards or downwards is not very important if the number 

 of boys reported upon is taken into account. The other numbers 

 show but little change. As we pointed out last year, it by no means 

 follows that because 58 per cent, are reported satisfactory the 

 remaining 42 per cent, are unsatisfactory. This is by no means the 

 case. There are a good many boys about whom reports have not 

 been received recently ; then there are the boys on the Exmouth^ 

 and in two Homes in South London, who, as long as they are in 

 these institutions, are reported upon directly to the Guardians by 

 the authorities. A very large proportion of these is doing well. 

 Even if those who are classed as "lost sight of" are counted as 

 unsatisfactory, which, of course, by no means follows, and added 

 to those we know are unsatisfactory, the number is only 196, or 

 just over 6 per cent. This is an astonishingly good result, and 

 would be regarded rightly as extraordinary amongst any set of 2000 

 boys in the kingdom. It is one more proof if proof were required 

 of the excellent training given in the much-decried Guardians' 

 schools. If those people who consistently and without knowledge 

 are trying always to bring these schools into disrepute could see 

 for themselves the products of the schools, we think that less would 

 be heard of the drawbacks and inferiority of the schools they are 

 pleased to term " barrack." The boys from the Guardians' schools 



1 The work of this Association in the first instance is the care of boys up to the 

 age of 20, coming from the Poor Law Association (Metropolitan). 



89 F 2 



