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I can't say yes to that. No. No. My only previous exposure to children had been those in the Washington public schools, and there of course there was no way for me to be aware of whether they were wanted or, you know, deserted or neglected, or not. So I can't say that that awareness came before Riverdale. I think Riverdale had a profound effect on me, because I was never aware that there were that many children who were just turned out, you know, or whose parents had just left them, so to speak. And of course then I began to learn about a whole network of such homes in the city, for neglected children. Just hundreds of children are in these homes or were in these homes at that time.

And of course, too, that was the time when they reformed the concept of what to do with these children, and Riverdale itself was foremost in this. They came to the realization that these children needed not to be in a big institution, but to be in smaller homes and to have foster parents, you know, in the normal family setting. That was of great concern to them at the time, and they were in that process of moving from the institutionalization of these children to the group home concept.

But I'd never been aware before, even of the vast network in this city, for neglected children.

Considering your own happy family background, was the notion that a child could be unwanted almost unthinkable?

Of course, I believe so. Yes, it's just intolerable.

Aside from their inability to read, what other deficiencies