THE BACKGROUND PORTION OF THE STUDY CONTRASTS THE HISTORY AND TRADITIONS OF THE UNITED STATES AND ARGENTINA, THEN POINTS OUT THE SIMILARITIES BETWEEN NEW YORK AND BUENOS AIRES. BOTH ARE LARGE, MODERN CITIES WITH LARGE NUMBERS OF EUROPEAN IMMIGRANTS, SLUM AREAS, AND CRIME PROBLEMS. THE HANDLING OF JUVENILE DELINQUENTS AND JUVENILE STATUS OFFENDERS IS THEN EXAMINED FOR EACH CITY, WITH EMPHASIS ON YOUNG PERSONS CONVICTED OF MINOR CRIMES AND STATUS OFFENDERS. ARGENTINA HAS A CATEGORY OF 'MALA CONDUCTA' CHILDREN COMPARABLE TO NEW YORK'S 'PERSONS IN NEED OF SUPERVISION.' DETAILED ANALYSIS IS GIVEN OF SUCH CASES IN BOTH COURTS. IN EACH COUNTRY THESE CHILDREN ARE GENERALLY POOR, FROM DISORGANIZED FAMILIES, AND SUFFERING FROM SEVERE EMOTIONAL PROBLEMS. IN BOTH CITIES THERE ARE INSUFFICIENT SOCIAL WORKERS AND AGENCIES TO HANDLE THE FLOOD OF SUCH CHILDREN. IN NEW YORK THE COURT MORE FREQUENTLY REMOVED THE CHILD FROM THE HOME; IN BUENOS AIRES THERE WERE FEWER PLACES THE CHILD COULD BE SENT. IT IS CONCLUDED THAT MODERN NATIONS ARE GOING TO BE FACED WITH THE PROBLEM OF CHILDREN IN URBAN AREAS NEEDING SUPERVISION AND THAT TREATMENT AND ADEQUATE FACILITIES MUST BE PROVIDED. TABLES PRESENTING STUDY DATA ARE QUITE DETAILED. THE STUDY QUESTIONNAIRES AND A BIBLIOGRAPHY ARE APPENDED. (GLR)