The Johns Hopkins Hospital
Winford H. Smith, M.D., DirectorWarfield T. Longcope, M.D.
Physician-in-chiefJohn M. T. Finney, M.D.
Acting Surgeon-in-chiefJ. Whitridge Williams, M.D.
Obstetrician-in-chiefJohn Howland, M.D.
Pediatrician-in-chiefAdolph Meyer, M.D.
Psyciatrist-in-chiefWilliam G. MacCallum, M.D.
PathologistMay 3, 1923.
Dr. Abby H. Turner,
Department of Physiology,
Mt. Holyoke College,
South Hadley, Mass.My dear Doctor Turner:
I received your note of inquiry this morning, and should be glad to see Miss Martin and talk with her.
The habit of autoeroticism is, of course, extremely common, especially among boys, and I can easily see how this little boy could have acquired the trick and finds it difficult to break off. The English public schools are hotbeds of this thing. Probably the principal of the school from which he was dismissed merely caught him and did not catch many other boys who were as bad as he.
In handling the situation in children, one attempts to find healthy channels for energy output, such as absorbing the child's time with athletics, and a daily routine which keeps him up to the standards of which he is capable. Punishment has never proved successful.
I go up to Bryn Mawr on Sunday for my first mental hygiene lecture and am staying with Anna Yates Rapport. Will let you know how they come out.
Affectionately,
Esther L. Richards