So much in earnest was Reginald in pleading his case that the other boys were soon won to his way of thinking, and he was allowed to continue in the game. For the next few days Reginald’s modification of Mr. Tilden’s rule was the law of the playground. Then came another issue. Carl Story lost his balance slightly just as he raised his bat to strike, the result being that the ball glanced sidewise, striking the brick wall of the school building. It was now Carl’s turn to present a plea for leniency in the application of the law. “Aw, ’tain’t fair to throw that out! It don’t do no more harm to hit the brick than it does ter hit the stone. That brick’s a part of the foundation. Didn’t you fellers say the other day that we could hit the foundation? It’s _all_ foundation up to the top of brick.” Now Carl happened to be playing in the same nine as Reginald, and Reginald naturally espoused his cause. “That’s right, kids,” he joined in, “Carl didn’t hit the building; he only hit the brick foundation. Let him play on! We don’t want to lose this game. Go on, Carl”—and Carl finished the game notwithstanding the protests of the opposing nine. Thus the modifications of the rules went on from day to day, always in favor of the larger and stronger and more aggressive boys and always to the disadvantage of the younger and smaller ones of the opposite side. CONSTRUCTIVE TREATMENT Be on the ground when a new game is launched. Study the possibilities for unfair playing (silently, of course), and make every effort to establish rules that will be just to all. Do not stop at this point, however. Play with the children frequently enough to learn at first hand whether strict rules of honor are being observed or whether the leaders are taking unfair advantage wherever opportunity offers. Say to Reginald and Carl, “If one of the boys on the other side had made that play would you have wished to count it?” If the boys can not be converted to a desire for strictly honest play, then see to it that the ringleader gets no advantage from his trickiness. Say, “We’ll have to throw out this whole game because it wasn’t played quite fairly. Tomorrow we’ll have another game to take the place of this one.” COMMENTS Boys are not unlike adults in that they are quick to make rulings favorable to themselves or their party and unfavorable to others. The surest way to make men honest is to make dishonesty unprofitable. A state inspector of weights and measures, remarking recently upon the fact that a certain town in Michigan had “fewer cases of short weights and measures than any other town visited,” accounted for the fact by saying, “It is an inland town with a settled population. The grocers depend year after year upon the same group of persons for customers. Under such conditions any habitual shortage would certainly be discovered and in the end would work harm to the business. Hence all the grocers are honest there. It doesn’t pay to be dishonest.”