INFANT (ante), in law, is a person held to be too young to assume the full respon sibilities of a man or a woman. By some systems of law the age of maturity is fixed at 25 years, but by the English common law the limit is 21 years for both sexes. The marriage of a boy of 14 years to a girl of 12 is held to be legal, and wills of personal property may be made at the same age. A promise to marry is not binding upon the promiser unless he or she is of full age. It has long been a rule of law that a minor becomes of age on the day next preceding the 21st anniversary of his birth. In some American states women reach the period of legal maturity at 18 years of age. An infant's contract will not be enforced by law; he may fulfill it or not as he pleases; but if it is renewed after maturity it is binding. The renewal may even be inferred from his acts, where no specific promise is shown. At his majority he may repudiate it at will: but if he be in possession of the property of the other contractor, he will be compelled to give it up. He will not be allowed to plead f• infancy" as an excuse for retaining property not his own, There is, however, one exception to the voidable nature of an infant's contracts; lie may bind himself for "necessaries," such as food, clothing, shel ter, medical attendance, and the means of education. The limit of his obligation in this respect will be a question for a court and jury to decide in view of his wealth, social position. or other circumstances. If he voluntarily do anything which the law could compel him to do, the act will be valid and sufficient. In some states of the union can become an executor at 17 years of age, in others not until 21. He is responsible
for wrongs of an actionable nature done to others; but the practical application of this principle involves some very uice discriminations for the court. ,It .has been held, for example, in some cases, that an infant who fraudulently represents himself to be of full age, and thereby obtains property. is estoppel from pleading infancy as a bar to an action for its recovery; but the soundness of this position has been questioned. An infant, if sufficiently intelligent, is held responsible for any crime that lie may commit. It is a rule of the criminal law that this responsibility can never arise before he is 7 years of age; after that period, until he is 14. the law presumes nothing for or against him; his capacity to understand the nature and consequences of his act is a matter for investigation. After he is 14 he is presumed to be capable, and the burden of proving his incapacity rests upon himself. Courts generally incline to sentence juvenile crim inals to reformatory institutions, with a view to the correction or mitigation of their evil propensities. Courts of equity guard the rights of infants with a jealous care, sometimes, for adequate reasons, taking a child from the custody of the parent and placing it in the care of one better qualified to train and educate it. An infant who is a property-holder is amenable to the law of taxation, and his land is liable to be taken from him under the law of eminent domain as if he were of age.