of things and by taking care of themselves, they need not be
seriously troubled by it. Every once in a while as they are growing
up, but before they are old enough to really fall in love and marry
and have children, boys feel a sort of stirring of the sex
organs--sometimes so much so that it makes them quite uneasy and
anxious for relief. The thing to do is to keep as calm as possible
and keep very busy and very healthy. Then the discomfort will not be
too great, and nature will usually bring relief by letting the
accumulated semen pass off during sleep. This is called a seminal
emission, and is perfectly harmless. Sometimes a vivid sexual dream
comes with it, but that too will do no harm, unless a boy lets his
mind dwell on it till the excitement grows unnatural. This emission
may happen every two weeks or so, but it is not a regular thing. Boys
are sometimes alarmed and fear their sex machinery is out of order,
but it is a perfectly natural thing, and only means that the organs
are relieving themselves of the extra secretions that are not needed
till the time comes for the real sex relation.

Boys and girls sometimes get the habit of handling their sex organs
so as to get them excited. This is called masturbation or self-abuse.
It is also called auto-erotism. Such handling can be made to result
in a climax something like that of the natural sex act. For
generations this habit has been considered wrong and dangerous, but
recently many of the best scientists have concluded that the chief
harm has come from the worry caused by doing it, when one believed it
to be wrong. This worry has often been so great that real illness,
both of the mind and body has resulted. There is no occasion for
worry unless the habit is carried to excess. But remember that until
you are mature, the sex secretions are specially needed within your
body, and if you use them wastefully before you are grown, you are
depriving your body of what it needs. So do not stimulate your sex
organs into action _intentionally_. And do not yield to the impulse
to handle the sex organs in order to relieve the pressure which may
occasionally feel overwhelming, unless you find that nature does not
bring you relief during sleep.

Remember always that your whole sex machinery is more easily put out
of order than any other part of your body, and it must be treated
with great care and respect all along. It is not fair to ourselves or
to each other to do a single thin