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80
keep men out of employment. This though, is extremely doubtful.
Newspaper delivery is not an occupation which would appeal to
men, and it is probable that the newspapers would have to be fetched
It is almost certain that a milk roundsman would not engage a man
to accompany and assist him in his rounds in the morning and on
Saturdays.
In former reports I have given certain figures which tend to
show that the employment is not hurtful to the physical condition
of the boys. The money which was earned served to supply extra
household commodities, such as food, which more than compensated
for any ill effects which may have resulted from the conditions
of employment.
There are certain exceptional circumstances in which the
employment would be detrimental to the boy. One of these exceptional
cases arises when for some reason the boy does not get
sufficient sleep. An instance of this kind came under my notice
in the past year. The boy was engaged to' deliver newspapers
morning and evening, and the place of his employer's premises was
not very convenient to his home, but the deciding factor in this
boy's case was the fact that he had school home work or preparation
which took him about an hour and a half every evening. On
questioning him it was found that he could not start his school
home work until nearly 9 p.m. As he had to get up soon after 6
in the morning, it was obvious that the boy was not getting sufficient
sleep.
Usually, these boys who are employed in the morning get
more sleep than those who are not. When enquiries are made as
to the hours of sleep, it is found that the boys in employment get
more sleep than the average non-employed boy of the same age.