ABSTRACT
Between 1900 and 1920, reformers revolutionized social policy toward the delinquent and created a new mechanism, the juvenile court, that would dominate both the administration of justice and all right-minded thinking on the subject for at least the first half of this century. It is not surprising that such aggressiveness should have involved procedures for juveniles, for Progressive programs were to a remarkable degree child-oriented. In part, the child-centeredness of Progressives reflected their response to the hordes of immigrants who were crowding into American cities. Each of the Progressive child welfare measures looked to this goal. The kindergartens and settlement clubs would inculcate the right attitudes in children, thereby promoting their chances for success and, perforce, their love of country. The design for the juvenile court set out to realize precepts. The court was to represent a wholly new and Progressive way of responding to the delinquent.
