ife of those who are still quite
young. It is impossible to approve of the suggestion that a girl of
twelve or a boy of fourteen should receive instruction in school as to
the dangers of masturbation. Enlightenment of this sort must be given in
a purely individual manner, and for this reason the school is here out
of the question. It may be objected to this that we now and again
encounter a schoolmaster who is able to establish between himself and
his pupils a relationship of complete personal confidence, and that such
a man is just as well able as the father to instruct his boys about
these matters; _mutatis mutandis_, the same considerations apply to the
exceptional schoolmistress as compared with the mother. But although it
must be admitted that such cases really exist, they are--and this is no
fault of master or mistress--such rare exceptions, that it is out of the
question to base upon their existence a general rule that enlightenment
upon these particular points should be given in the school.
Enlightenment regarding the earliest manifestations of the sexual life,
whether about the feelings or about the peripheral processes, demands
such a degree of individualisation, that a schoolmaster or a
schoolmistress, who has to teach from thirty to fifty pupils at once, or
even a larger number than this, is quite unable to undertake anything of
the kind. Such enlightenment can be properly effected only by an
individual confidant, and by one who makes the fullest possible
allowance for the child's own individuality. Such a confidant is most
suitable, if only for the reason that enlightenment on these questions
can best be effected, above all in the case of little children, as far
as possible in response to spontaneous inquiries, or at least when an
opportunity is afforded by some chance occurrence. The express
manufacture of an opportunity, such as would be necessary in the school,
might entail very unfortunate consequences; and even if, in response to
a wide demand of our day, instruction in hygiene is given in school,
either by a schoolmaster or a medical man, the anticipation of such
topics might have undesirable results. In the German Medical Congress of
the year 1908, it was evident that even the advocates of hygienic
instruction in the school were not all prepared to answer with an
unqualified affirmative the question whether the school was the best
place for effecting sexual enlightenment; and a resolution proposed by