Of the many attempts that have been made to bring about
a better distribution of the population of the Empire, few have met
with such Aide approval or such uniform success as juvenile migration.
The movement has come to be recognized as one of great value both to
the mother-country and to the Dominions. In the one, besides reducing
the surplus of young workers at ages when unemployment is most
demoralizing, it offers to boys and girls of every class opportunities
for healthy employment and useful service to the Empire. In the
other, it fulfills a persistent demand for young agricultural workers
and supplies a type of settler who, on account of hie youth
and adaptability, is readily absorbed into the community. The selection,
training and transfer of young oversea settlers, the supervision
required for their welfare and the assistance necessary
to establish them in their new life form the subject of this study.
Part I shows how the movement originated, .how it outgrew its early
penal, reformatory and rescue stages and developed into an important
factor in Empire Settlement. Part 2 deals with. recent developments
and describe the systems of juvenile migration operating
at the present time in various parts of the Empire; while, Part
3 discusses from the points of view of both Great Britain and the
Dominions the economic, medical and educational aspects of the.
problems
The information that follows was collected in 1928 and 1929,
during the course of a visit to Great Britain and a journey back
to Australia by way of Canada and Nev Zealand. Wherever possible
the facts are documented, but since many particulars have been
gathered orally and from a diversity of sources, it is often possible
to make only general acknowledgements. Both in Great Britain
and in the Dominions it, was the willing cooperation of Government
Departments and voluntary organizations which made the carrying
out of the investigation possible. I must here express my indebtedness
to the many migration workers who, in the midst of their
exacting duties, either found time to supply information personally
or allowed inspection of their records
