The rise of probation during the Progressive era of the turn of the century accommodated the shift from the classical to the positivist view of crime and punishment; punishment should fit the criminal rather than the crime. However, the changes have been more ceremonial than substantial. Court efficiency and individualization, though contradictory goals, can both be improved by substituting the prosecutor for the probation officer, except in ceremonial functions which can perpetuate the myth of individualization. 6 notes, 4 tables.