But the teacher and trainer of the infant child may accept the theory that the latter, if taken in time, can be bent and modified many ways in his character formation; that such plasticity is, however, always subject to the relative strength or weakness of the many inherited aptitudes and activities latent within the individual. There is no good reason, therefore, why the parent should not begin early to build up the character of his child in accordance with a preconceived plan; provided such plan do no violence to any of nature's stubborn and inexorable laws. The parent may also accept this task as a long and tedious undertaking, and expect to get results in proportion as he works intelligently for them. The farmer does not even think of producing good crop results from his land without hard work and much thought; then, why should he expect so delicate a plant as the human young to reach satisfactory maturity without much care and consideration? By far the greatest sin against the child is neglect of his training. CONSULT EXPERT ADVICE We must not be unmindful of the necessity of a balanced schedule of activities for the child. The vegetable plant must have air, sunlight, moisture, nitrogen, and so on, to support its growth. If one of these essential elements be lacking, the result is fatal to the fruitage. So with the child. If the best character results are to be expected, certain essential elements must be put into use. We have named them as play, work, recreation, and social experience. But as one approaches the individual problem of child training it does not prove so simple and easy as these terms imply. When and how to give each of these necessary exercises, how much of each to furnish, the means thereof, and the like--these and many other such questions begin to arise. When the parent reaches the point of perplexity in dealing with his child, it is a fairly good indication that his interest is aroused, at least. But what is to be done? Simply the same thing he would do at the point of perplexity in the wheat propagation, _consult an expert_. If one of the work mules becomes lame or reveals a bad disposition, should the owner take it to an electrician for advice? If the family cow becomes locoed or shows an unusual result in her milk product, should one consult a piano tuner? Yet, strange to say, parents are often known to do similarly in dealing with the perplexing problems of child-rearing. Consult the popular magazines and the book shelves any day and you will find many lengthy dissertations on the boy and the girl, written not infrequently by persons who have spent a lifetime studying _something else_. But they are very fond of children and they mistake this fondness for knowledge of an expert kind; and worst of all, they offer it as such.