He must take his chances.

Ah, but they were hard chances! Children mature fast under the stimulus of street-training.

Andy had a large brain and an active, nervous organization.

Life in the open air gave vigor and hardness to his body.

As the months went by he learned self-reliance, caution, self-protection, and took a good many lessons in the art of aggression.
A rapidly-growing child needs a large amount of nutritious food to supply waste and furnish material for the daily-increasing bodily structure.