192 Heredity and Child Culture 



The magnitude and importance of the problem 

 raised by the abandoned child has not been suf- 

 ficiently realized. Last year, in New York 

 State alone, 31,177 dependent children were be- 

 ing trained and housed in institutions. Are 

 these little lives being badly warped from un- 

 natural surroundings? Shall they later be- 

 come assets or liabilities to the community? 

 We must always remember that children consti- 

 tute the greatest possible future asset of the 

 State. If they are improperly nurtured, 

 society will later be obliged to build other in- 

 stitutions for protection. It is cheaper and 

 wiser to try to raise the child in a wholesome, 

 normal manner. To this end, everything must 

 be done to conserve the home. Children must 

 be educated and the parents re-educated, if nec- 

 essary, along normal lines. The great re- 

 sponsibility of parenthood and the importance 

 of conserving family relationships must be in- 

 culcated. In some instances, shiftless parents 

 are encouraged too easily to cast off respon- 

 sibility for their children. 



For the abandoned, dependent child, sympa- 



