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Of the 127 inmates admitted, 92 came from the North Island and 35 from "the South Island,. Maoris.—Thirty-five of the inmates admitted were Maoris or of part Maori blood. A good many of these came from either the extreme North or the east coast of the North Island, but an increasing number are coming from the larger cities and towns of the North Island. The Maoris present no special problem as inmates, either from the point of view of discipline or l of their ability and willingness to associate with other inmates. They are usually friendly, easy to handle, and good workers. Behaviour of Inmates.—The standard of behaviour of the inmates during the year has been good. There was no serious misconduct or any concerted misbehaviour on the part of the inmates. One of the reassuring aspects of the work has been the cheerful and co-operative spirit of the boys under our •care. The morale of the institution has been maintained at a high order, in -spite of a number of changes of staff, long hours of work, and the usual rapidly changing constitution of our muster. There were nine escapes during the year involving 12 inmates. This is .•slightly higher than the average for the past few years. There seems to be no special reason for this increase, other than the peculiar temperament of the individuals under care at the time. Escapes have a disturbing effect on the community and on the life of the institution itself, and therefore every -effort is made by diligence on the part of the staff, appeals to the loyalty of the inmates, and, the maintenance of a high morale to circumvent them where■ever possible. Nevertheless, as long as our programme is based on a system •of trust, as it must needs be, there will continue to be a certain number of ■escapes. One interesting factor is that in some cases the experience of -escaping seems to have therapeutic value for the individual. The returned •escapee is often more settled in his behaviour, and happier in his outlook, .apparently having worked something out of his system. Causes of Delinquency.—The factors that lead to the committal of lads to the Borstal institution are almost as varied as the inmates committed. There is, perhaps, room, however, for some general comment concerning the -causes of delinquency as revealed in our contact with Borstal lads. The great majority of Borstal inmates come out of poor or broken homes. Most lads admitted to Borstal have had a poor work history, changing from job to job, and have been poor, ineffective workers. * High wages and easy money also appear to have contributed to the delinquency of some lads. Intelligence •does not seem to be as important a factor as might be expected, although at least one-third of our inmates are of subnormal mentality and therefore easily led. Most of them have had insufficient recreational outlets or interests, and the great majority of them appear to be the orphans of society in so far as .any group or organization taking an interest in their welfare is concerned. There are without doubt psychological factors underlying every case of ■delinquency, such as emotional insecurity, unhealthy striving of the personality, marked inferiority, and overcompensation for loss of one kind or another. Fear, conflict, hatred, jealousy, and the neuroses all take their toll of youth. Yet, when each individual case is considered it is seen that greed, self-will, and a deliberate choosing of evil rather than good also play their part. Treatment. —Delinquent adolescents as a rule are not innocent lads who aire only waiting to be shown a better way of life in order to embrace it. Many of them, especially at first, have no desire or will to make good. The will to strive for good ends and a better way of life has to be cultivated and ■developed by the provision of a protective environment, encouragement, understanding, a steady routine and discipline; sport, group activity,

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