Commentary: Punishment and Palmer

uncaned boys. 26 per cent. of the boys studied had been classified as delinquent in police records by a date at which their mean age was 15 years 4 months. Delinquent boys were significantly heavier smokers than non-delinquents, but the difference was not as marked as that between caned and uncaned boys. There was an apparent decline in smoking over a year. This may be due to errors of recall but is more likely to be real; if so it may be the effect of cancer propaganda. There was no significant association between delinquency and being caned for smoking. I wish to thank Prof. A. L. Cochrane for suggesting and encouraging this study, and the Chief Constable, the Local Education Authority, and the Headmaster and staff of the school for their kind co-operation and help. References