Applying the rule that in order to be normal a child must enter the first grade at the age of either six or seven years and progress with enough regularity to enable him to attend the eighth grade at the age of either thirteen or fourteen, it is found that of the 177 newsboys ten to thirteen years of age inclusive, 118 are backward, 57 are normal and 2 are beyond their grades. This is shown in the following table:-- ============================================== AGES |BACKWARD | NORMAL | AHEAD | TOTAL -----------+---------+--------+-------+------- 10 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 12 11 | 22 | 11 | 1 | 34 12 | 42 | 16 | 1 | 59 13 | 48 | 24 | 0 | 72 +---------+--------+-------+------- Totals | 118 | 57 | 2 | 177 Percentages| 67% | 32% | 1% | 100% =============================================== This table shows that of the 177 newsboys ten to thirteen years of age, 67 per cent are backward and 32 per cent are normal, while only 1 per cent are ahead of their grades. Boys of these ages are subject to the restrictions prescribed by the state law as to hours, and it is probable that the percentage of retardation would have been even greater if work at night had not been to some extent prevented. A report of New York City conditions made in 1907, before the newsboy law was enforced, says: "The shrewd, bright-eyed, sharp-witted lad is stupid and sleepy in the schoolroom; 295 newsboys compared with non-working boys in the same class were found to fall below the average in proficiency. They were also usually older than their classmates, that is, backward in their grades."[107]