2OO Instinct and Intelligence 



one belonged to this latter class. He states 

 that they were so deficient in mental, moral, or 

 physical capacity, and sometimes in all three, 

 as to make it exceedingly probable that at man- 

 hood in competition with other adult workers 

 they would tend to be rejected for regular em- 

 ployment. 



Uninteresting and difficult to teach as the 

 latter class of pupils is, they form a class which 

 requires the special attention of their teachers. 

 An inquiry should be instituted regarding the 

 parents, and hereditary instincts of each one of 

 such lads, and also into the homes and environ- 

 ment in which they live ; their teachers, armed 

 with knowledge of this kind, should, in con- 

 sultation with the school's medical officer, then 

 recommend the course of treatment to be 

 adopted in each case. If insufficient food, a 

 filthy home, want of sunlight and fresh air are 

 at the root of the evil, they can only be over- 

 come by removing a lad into a more salubrious 

 atmosphere, or by forcing his parents to take 

 better care of him ; it is hardly likely that con- 

 finement in a board school for five or six hours 

 a day would tend to promote the development 



