Moral Defectives

in consequence of a defect of their minds. In other words they are persons whose misconduct is not due to what is generally known as " badness," but to what, in the broad sense, may be comprehended within the term "madness." It is obvious that such a condition is one of extreme importance, and experience has shewn that it is also attended with very great difficulties. Indeed it is not too much to say that moral defectives present diagnostic, administrative and social problems of far greater magnitude than do any other class coming within the purview of the worker in Mental Deficiency. This being the case it is hoped that the following account may be of service, although it is impossible in the compass of a short article to give more than a brief outline of the subject.* Moral Defectives are persons in whom there is a defect of moral sense. But a defect of moral sense need' not, of necessity, give rise to misconduct. For this to happen there must be a defect of something else as well, and in order to make this clear it is necessary to allude to the chief mental factors which are