Ward of the State

Tom Packard has been repeatedly abandoned: first by his father; then when his mother is murdered; then when his grandfather denies him his birthright; then when his aunt, who took him in, dies; and again when his grandfather denies him his birthright a second time; and finally by the state orphanage. The child welfare service takes charge of Tom and places him in the state reform school. When Tom protests, he is told, "When you are a ward of the state, the state makes decisions for you." Now Tom has to develop special attitudes to survive this situation.