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CHILD LABOUR PROBLEM.

CHAPTER II

CHILD LABOR AND THE CHILD[1]

I. The Body and Work

"Oh, he's well grown, the work won't hurt him any," is an attitude very commonly taken by people who are interested in the continuance of the child labor system. But what does "well grown" mean? If it means "partly grown," the statement is correct. Children of fourteen are rapidly changing in body and mind. What shall be their environment and inspiration during this expanding period? enthusiasm, play, and life, or grind, monotony, and degeneration.

The bodies of children who go to work between the ages of fourteen and sixteen are still growing. Some measurements recently made of a number of Chicago children who applied for work certificates show that "The

  1. Republished by permission of Education.