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The Boy Scouts of America

Boy scouting for kids and tenagers get a great appreciation of the wild and appreciate nature.

Headquarters—Purpose—Scout law—How to form a patrol of scouts—Organization of a troop—Practical activities for scouts—A scout camp—Model programme of a Sir R.S.S. Baden-Powell scout camp

The Boy Scout movement that has recently been introduced both in England and America with such wonderful success is so closely related to nearly all branches of outdoor recreation and to the things that boys are interested in that this book would be incomplete without mention of the object and purposes of this organization. It is a splendid movement for the making of better citizens, and it cannot be too highly recommended.

The Boy Scouts of America is a permanent organization, and it has its headquarters at 200 Fifth Avenue, New York City. From the central office, patrols and troops are being formed all over the United States. Any information with reference to the movement may be obtained by applying to this office.

Through the courtesy of the managing secretary, Mr. John L. Alexander, certain facts are presented concerning the organization, which are obtained from their published literature, for which due credit is hereby given.

The Boy Scouts is an organization the purpose of which is character-building for boys between the ages of twelve and eighteen. It is an effort to get boys to appreciate the things about them and to train them in self-reliance, manhood, and good citizenship. It is "peace-scouting" these boys engage in, living as much as possible out of doors; camping, hiking and learning the secrets of the woods and fields. The movement is not essentially military, but the military virtues of discipline, obedience, neatness and order are scout virtues. Endurance, self-reliance, self-control and an effort to help some one else are scout objectives. Every activity that lends itself to these aims is good scoutcraft.

The Boy Scouts were started in England by Gen. Sir Robert Baden-Powell. He was impressed with the fact that 46 per cent. of the boys of England were growing up without any knowledge of useful occupations, and wanted to do something that would help the boy to become a useful citizen. He emphatically stated that his intention was not the making of soldiers. In his work. General Baden-Powell has touched the boy's life in all its interests and broadened a boy's outlook by the widest sort of activities. In two and a half years over half a million Boy Scouts have been enrolled, and twenty thousand of these have been in parade at one time in London.

The scout idea has sprung up spontaneously all over America. In Canadian cities the Boy Scouts number thousands. In the United States, towns and cities are being swept by the idea. Gangs of boys are to be seen on every hand, doing their best at scoutcraft, "doing a good turn every day to some one," and getting fun out of it. Prominent business men and educators are behind the movement.

The aim of the Boy Scouts is to supplement the various existing educational agencies, and to promote the ability in boys to do things for themselves and others. The method is summed up in the term "scoutcraft" and is a combination of observation, deduction and handiness—or the ability to do. Scoutcraft consists of "First Aid," Life Saving, Tracking, Signalling, Cycling, Nature Study, Seamanship and other instruction. This is accomplished in games and team play and in pleasure, not work, for the boy. The only equipment it needs is the out-of-doors, a group of boys and a leader.

Before he becomes a scout, a boy must take the scouts' oath thus:

"On my honour, I promise that I will do my best, 1. To do my duty to God and my country. 2. To help other people at all times. 3. To obey the scout law."

When taking this oath the scout will stand holding his right hand raised level with his shoulder, palm to the front, thumb resting on the nail of the little finger, and the other three fingers upright pointing upward. This the scouts' salute and secret sign.

When the hand is raised shoulder high it is called "the half salute."

When raised to the forehead it is called "the full salute."

The three fingers held up (like the three points on the scouts' badge) remind him of his three promises in the scouts' oath.

There are three classes of scouts. A boy on joining the Boy Scouts must pass a test in the following points before taking the oath:

Know the scouts' laws and signs and the salute.

Know the composition of the national flag and the right way to fly it.

Tie four of the following knots: Reef, sheet bend, clove hitch, bowline, middleman's, fisherman's, sheep-shank.

He then takes the scouts' oath and is enrolled as a tenderfoot and is entitled to wear the buttonhole badge.

A SECOND-CLASS SCOUT

Before being awarded a second-class scout's badge, a boy must pass the following tests:

1. Have at least one month's service as a tenderfoot.

2. Elementary first aid bandaging.

3. Signalling. Elementary knowledge of semaphore or Morse alphabet.

4. Track half a mile in twenty-five minutes, or if in a town describe satisfactorily the contents of one store window out of four, observed for one minute each.

5. Go a mile in twelve minutes at "scouts' pace."

6. Lay and light a fire using not more than two matches.

7. Cook a quarter of a pound of meat and two potatoes without cooking utensils other than the regulation billy.

8. Have at least twenty-five cents in the savings bank.

9. Know the sixteen principal points of the compass.

FIRST-CLASS SCOUT

Before being awarded a first-class scout's badge, a scout must pass the following test in addition to the tests laid down for a second-class scout:

1. Swim fifty yards. (This may be omitted where the doctor certifies that bathing is dangerous to the boy's health).

2. Must have at least fifty cents in the savings bank.

3. Signalling. Send and receive a message either in semaphore or Morse, sixteen letters per minute.

4. Go on foot or row a boat alone to a point seven miles away and return again, or if conveyed by any vehicle or animal go a distance of fifteen miles and back and write a short report on it. It is preferable that he should take two days over it.

5. Describe or show the proper means for saving life in case of two of the following accidents: Fire, drowning, runaway carriage, sewer gas, ice breaking, or bandage an injured patient or revive an apparently drowned person.

6. Cook satisfactorily two of the following dishes as may be directed: Porridge, bacon, hunter's stew; or skin and cook a rabbit or pluck and cook a bird. Also "make a damper" of half a pound of flour or a "twist" baked on a thick stick.

7. Read a map correctly and draw an intelligent rough sketch map. Point out a compass direction without the help of a compass.

8. Use an axe for felling or trimming light timber: or as an alternative produce an article of carpentry or joinery or metal work, made by himself satisfactorily.

9. Judge distance, size, numbers and height within 25 per cent. error.

10. Bring a tenderfoot trained by himself in the points required of a tenderfoot.

THE SCOUTS' LAW

1. A scout's honour is to be trusted. If a scout were to break his honour by telling a lie, or by not carrying out an order exactly, when trusted on his honour to do so, he may be directed to hand over his scouts' badge and never to wear it again. He may also be directed to cease to be a scout.

2. A scout is loyal to his country, his officers, his parents and his employers. He must stick to them through thick and thin against any one who is their enemy or who even talks badly about them.

3. A scout's duty is to be useful and to help others. He must be prepared at any time to save life or to help injured persons, and he must try his best to do a good turn to somebody every day.

4. A scout is a friend to all and a brother to every other scout, no matter to what social class the other belongs.

5. A scout is courteous, especially to women, children, old people, invalids, and cripples. And he must never take a reward for being courteous.

6. A scout is a friend to animals. Killing an animal for food is allowable.

7. A scout obeys orders of his parents, patrol leader, or scout master without question.

8. A scout smiles and whistles under all circumstances.

9. A scout is thrifty and saves every penny he can and puts it into the bank.

The scout master is the adult leader of a troop. A troop consists of three or more patrols. The scout master may begin with one patrol. He must have a deep interest in boys, be genuine in his own life, have the ability to lead and command the boys' respect and obedience, and possess some knowledge of a boy's ways. He need not be an expert on scoutcraft. The good scout master will discover experts for the various activities.

To organize a patrol, get together seven or more boys, explain to them the aims of the Boy Scouts, have them elect a leader and corporal from their own number and take the scout oath as tenderfeet. To organize a local committee, call together the leading men of a town or city, teachers, business men, professional men, and all who are interested in the proper training of boys, for a committee to superintend the development of the scout movement.

There are a number of divisions to scouting depending upon the place where the boys live and upon their opportunities. For instance, to obtain:

An Ambulance Badge: A scout must know: The fireman's lift. How to drag an insensible man with ropes. How to improvise a stretcher. How to fling a life-line. The position of main arteries. How to stop bleeding from vein or artery, internal or external. How to improvise splints and to diagnose and bind fractured limb. The Schafer method of artificial respiration. How to deal with choking, burning, poison, grit in eye, sprains and bruises, as the examiners may require. Generally the laws of health and sanitation as given in "Scouting for Boys," including dangers of smoking, in continence, want of ventilation, and lack of cleanliness.

Aviator: A scout must have a knowledge of the theory of roplanes, ball balloons and dirigibles, and must have made a working model of an roplane or dirigible that will fly at least twenty-five yards. He must also have a knowledge of the engines used for roplanes and dirigibles.

Bee-farmer: A scout must have a practical knowledge of swarming, hiving, hives, and general apiculture, including a knowledge of the use of artificial combs, etc.

Blacksmith: A scout must be able to upset and weld a one-inch iron rod, make a horseshoe, know how to tire a wheel, use a sledge hammer and forge, shoe a horse correctly, and rough-shod a horse.

Bugler: A scout must be able to sound properly on the bugle the Scouts' Rally and the following army calls: Alarm, charge, orderlies (ord. corpls.), orders, warning for parade, quarter bugle, fall in, dismiss, rations, first and second dinner calls (men's), reveille, last post, lights out.

Carpenter: A scout must be able to shoot and glue a four-foot straight joint, make a housing, tenon and mortise, and halved joint, grind and set a chisel and plane iron, make a 3 ft. by 1 ft. 6 in., by 1 ft. by 6 ft. dovetailed locked box, or a table or chair.

Clerk: A scout must have the following qualifications: Good handwriting and hand printing. Ability to use typewriting machine. Ability to write a letter from memory on the subject given verbally five minutes previously. Knowledge of simple bookkeeping. Or, as alternative to typewriting, write in shorthand from dictation at twenty words a minute as minimum.

Cook: A scout must be able to light a fire and make a cook-place with a few bricks or logs; cook the following dishes: Irish stew, vegetables, omelet, rice pudding, or any dishes which the examiner may consider equivalent; make tea, coffee, or cocoa; mix dough and bake bread in oven; or a "damper" or "twist" (round steak) at a camp fire; carve properly, and hand plates and dishes correctly to people at table.

Cyclist: A scout must sign a certificate that he owns a bicycle in good working order, which he is willing to use in the scouts' service if called upon at any time in case of emergency. He must be able to ride his bicycle satisfactorily, and repair punctures, etc. He must be able to read a map, and repeat correctly a verbal message. On ceasing to own a bicycle the scout must be required to hand back his badge.

Dairyman: A scout must understand: Management of dairy cattle; be able to milk, make butter and cheese; understand sterilization of milk, safe use of preservatives, care of dairy utensils and appliances.

Electrician: A scout must have a knowledge of method of rescue and resuscitation of persons insensible from shock. Be able to make a simple electro-magnet, have elementary knowledge of action of simple battery cells, and the working of electric bells and telephone. Understand and be able to remedy fused wire, and to repair broken electric connections.

Engineer: A scout must have a general idea of the working of motor cars and steam locomotives, marines, internal combustion and electric engines. He must also know the names of the principal parts and their functions; how to start, drive, feed, stop, and lubricate any one of them chosen by the candidate.

Farmer: A scout must have a practical knowledge of ploughing, cultivating, drilling, hedging and draining. He must also have a working knowledge of farm machinery, hay-making, reaping, heading and stacking, and a general acquaintance with the routine seasonal work on a farm, including the care of cattle, horses, sheep and pigs.

Fireman: A scout must know how to give the alarm to inhabitants, police, etc. How to enter burning buildings. How to prevent spread of fire. Use of hose, unrolling, joining up, hydrants, use of nozzle, etc. The use of escape, ladders, and shutes; improvising ropes, jumping sheets, etc. The fireman's lift, how to drag patient, how to work in fumes, etc. The use of fire extinguishers. How to rescue animals. How to salve property, climb and pass buckets. "Scrum" to keep back crowd.

First Aid to Animals: A scout must have a general knowledge of the anatomy of domestic and farm animals, and be able to describe treatment and symptoms of the following: Wounds, fractures and sprains, exhaustion, choking, lameness. He must understand shoeing and shoes, and must be able to give a drench for colic.

Gardener: A scout must dig a piece of ground not less than twelve feet square, know the names of a dozen plants pointed out in an ordinary garden, understand what is meant by pruning, grafting and manuring, plant and grow successfully six kinds of vegetables or flowers from seeds or cuttings, cut and make a walking stick, or cut grass with scythe under supervision.

Handyman: A scout must be able to paint a door or bath, whitewash a ceiling, repair gas fittings, tap washers, sash lines, window and door fastenings, replace gas mantles and electric light bulbs, hang pictures and curtains, repair blinds, fix curtain and portiere rods, blind fixtures, lay carpets, mend clothing and upholstery, do small furniture and china repairs, and sharpen knives.

Horseman: A scout must know how to ride at all paces, and to jump an ordinary fence on horseback. How to saddle and bridle a horse correctly. How to harness a horse correctly in single or double harness, and to drive. How to water and feed, and to what amount. How to groom his horse properly. The evil of bearing and hame reins and ill-fitting saddlery. Principal causes and remedies of lameness.

Interpreter: A scout must be able to carry on a simple conversation, write a simple letter on subject given by examiner, read and translate a passage from a book or newspaper, in either Esperanto or any language that is not that of his own country.

Leather Worker: A scout must have a knowledge of tanning and curing, and either (a) be able to sole and heel a pair of boots, sewn or nailed, and generally repair boots and shoes: or (b) be able to dress a saddle, repair traces, stirrup leathers, etc., and know the various parts of harness.

Marksman: A scout must pass the following tests for miniature rifle shooting from any position: N.R.A. Standard Target to be used. Twenty rounds to be fired at 15 or 25 yards. Highest possible, 100 points. A scout gaining 60 points or over to be classified as marksman. Scoring: Bull's-eye, 5 points; inner, 4 points; magpie, 3 points; outer 2 points. Also: Judge distance on unknown ground: Five distances under 300 yards, 5 between 300 and 600 yards, with not more than an error of 25 per cent. on the average.

Master-at-arms: A scout must attain proficiency in two out of the following subjects: Single-stick, quarter-staff, fencing, boxing, jiu-jitsu and wrestling.

Missioner: The qualifications are: A general elementary knowledge of sick-nursing; invalid cookery, sick-room attendance, bed-making, and ventilation. Ability to help aged and infirm.

Musician: A scout must be able to play a musical instrument correctly other than triangle, and to read simple music. Or to play properly any kind of musical toy, such as a penny whistle, mouth-organ, etc., and sing a song.

Pathfinder: It is necessary to know every lane, by-path, and short cut for a distance of at least two miles in every direction around the local scouts' headquarters in the country, or for one mile if in a town, and to have a general knowledge of the district within a five-mile radius of his local headquarters, so as to be able to guide people at any time, by day or night. To know the general direction of the principal neighbouring towns for a distance of twenty-five miles, and to be able to give strangers clear directions how to get to them. To know, in the country, in the two-mile radius, generally, how many hayricks, strawricks, wagons, horses, cattle, sheep and pigs there are on the different neighbouring farms; or, in a town, to know in a half-mile radius what livery stabling, corn chandlers, forage merchants, bakers, butchers, there are. In town or country to know where are the police stations, hospitals, doctors, telegraph, telephone offices, fire engines, turncocks, blacksmiths and job-masters or factories, where over a dozen horses are kept. To know something of the history of the place, or of any old buildings, such as the church, or other edifice. As much as possible of the above information is to be entered on a large scale map.

Photographer: A scout must have a knowledge of the theory and use of lenses, and the construction of cameras, action of developers. He must take, develop and print twelve separate subjects, three interiors, three portraits, three landscapes and three instantaneous photographs.

Pioneer: A scout must have extra efficiency in pioneering in the following tests, or suitable equivalents: Fell a nine-inch tree or scaffolding pole neatly and quickly. Tie eight kinds of knots quickly in the dark or blindfolded. Lash spars properly together for scaffolding. Build model bridge or derrick. Make a camp kitchen. Build a hut of one kind or another suitable for three occupants.

Piper: A scout must be able to play a march and a reel on the pipes, to dance the sword-dance, and must wear kilt and Highland dress.

Plumber: A scout must be able to make wiped and brazed joints, to cut and fix a window pane, repair a burst pipe, mend a ball or faucet tap, and understand the ordinary hot and cold water system of a house.

Poultry Farmer: A scout must have a good knowledge of incubators, brooders, sanitary fowl-houses and coops and runs; also of rearing, feeding, killing, and dressing birds for market; also he must be able to pack birds and eggs for market.

Printer: A scout must know the names of different types and paper sizes. Be able to compose by hand or machine, understand the use of hand or power printing machines. He must also print a handbill set up by himself.

Seaman: A scout must be able to tie eight knots rapidly in the dark or blindfolded. Splice ropes, fling a rope coil. Row and punt a boat single-handed, and punt with pole, or scull it over the stern. Steer a boat rowed by others. Bring the boat properly alongside and make it fast. Box the compass. Read a chart. State direction by the stars and sun. Swim fifty yards with trousers, socks, and shirt on. Climb a rope or pole of fifteen feet, or, as alternative, dance the hornpipe correctly. Sew and darn a shirt and trousers. Understand the general working of steam and hydraulic winches, and have a knowledge of weather wisdom and knowledge of tides.

Signaller: A scout must pass tests in both sending and receiving in semaphore and Morse signalling by flag, not fewer than twenty-four letters per minute. He must be able to give and read signals by sound. To make correct smoke and flame signals with fires. To show the proper method of signalling with the staff.

Stalker: A scout must take a series of twenty photographs of wild animals or birds from life, and develop and print them. Or, alternately, he must make a collection of sixty species of wild flowers, ferns, or grasses, dried and mounted in a book and correctly named. Or, alternately, he must make coloured drawings of twenty flowers, ferns or grasses, or twelve sketches from life of animals and birds. Original sketches, as well as the finished pictures, to be submitted. Or, alternately he must be able to name sixty different kinds of animals, insects, reptiles, or birds in a museum or zoological garden, or from unnamed coloured plates, and give particulars of the lives, habits, appearance and markings of twenty of them.

Starman: A scout must have a general knowledge of the nature and movements of the stars. He must be able to point out and name six principal constellations. Find the north by means of other stars than the Pole Star in case of that star being obscured by clouds, etc., and tell the hour of the night by the stars or moon. He must have a general knowledge of the positions and movements of the earth, sun and moon, and of tides, eclipses, meteors, comets, sun spots, planets.

Surveyor: A scout must map correctly, from the country itself, the main features of a half a mile of road, with 440 yards each side, to a scale of two feet to the mile, and afterward re-draw same map from memory. Measure the heights of a tree, telegraph pole and church steeple, describing method adopted. Measure width of a river, and distance apart of two objects a known distance away and unapproachable. Be able to measure a gradient, contours, conventional signs of ordnance survey and scales.

Swimming and Life Saving: A scout must be able to dive and swim fifty yards with clothes on (shirt, trousers, socks as minimum). Able to fling and use life-line or life-buoy. Able to demonstrate two ways of rescue of drowning person, and revival of apparently drowned.

THE PATROL

The simplest way to form a patrol of scouts is to call together a small group of boys over twelve years of age. A simple recital of the things that scouts do, with perhaps an opportunity to look over the Manual, will be enough to launch the organization. The selection of a patrol leader will then follow, and the scouting can begin. It is well not to attempt too much at the start. Get the boys to start work to pass the requirements for the tenderfoot.

The Patrol Leader: Each patrol should have a patrol leader—preferably a boy. The choice of this leader has much to do with the success of the patrol. He should be a recognized leader among the boys in the group. Do not hesitate to entrust him with details. Let him feel that he is your right-hand man. Ask his opinion on matters pertaining to the patrol. Make him feel that the success of the organization depends largely upon him, being careful, of course, not to overdo it. You will find that this attitude will enlist the hearty cooperation of the boy and you will find him an untiring worker, with the ability to bind the boys closer together than you could ever hope to do alone.

POINTS OF INTEREST

1. Scouting does not consist in wearing a khaki suit or a lot of decorations. It is in doing the things that are required for the tenderfoot, second-class and first-class scout badges and the badges of merit.

2. Scouts do not wish any one to buy things for them. They buy their own equipment and pay their own way.

3. Scouts do their best to keep the scout oath and law.

4. The glory of scouting is "to do a good turn to some one every day without reward."

5. Scouts regard the rights of others, and do not trespass on the property or feelings of others.

6. Scouting means obedience and discipline. The boy who can't obey will never command.

7. Scouts are always busy and getting fun out of it—at work, at school, at home, at play. Be a good scout.

HOW TO ORGANIZE A TROOP

First: Write to Headquarters, which is at 200 Fifth Avenue, New York City, for a scout master's certificate.

Second: Either combine three or more patrols or having one patrol, appoint several patrol leaders and enlist boys for the new patrols.

Third: The minimum number of patrols in a troop is three, and the maximum the number a scout master can rightly handle. Care should be taken not to organize for the sake of a big showing.

Hints on starting: In actually starting a troop, it has been found better to start in a small way. Begin by one or two leader-men making a careful study of "Scouting for Boys" and as soon as the main ideas have been grasped, get together a small number of boys, and go through with them the initial stages step by step, until the boys bubble over with scouting ideals, and until the notion of a fancy uniform and games in the country have given place to a definite desire to qualify for manhood and citizenship. These boys will make the nucleus round which to form a troop, and should pass on their training and enthusiasm to the boys who are enlisting under them. It has been found better to obtain distinctly older fellows for patrol leaders: the scout masters should invariably be men who feel the great responsibility of having boys under their charge, and the possibility of leading the boys from the moment when they enlist in the scouts to the time they pass out again to be fully fledged men.

Finances: The finances necessary to run a troop of scouts should be met by the scouts themselves. It is a main principle of scouting to teach the boys to be self-reliant, and anything which will militate against the constant sending round of the hat will be a national good.

The Scout Master: The scout master is the adult leader of a troop. The scout master may begin with one patrol. He must have a deep interest in boys, be genuine in his own life, have the ability to lead and command the boys' respect and obedience and possess some knowledge of a boy's ways. He need not be an expert on scoutcraft. The good scout master will discover experts for the various activities. Applications for scout masters' certificates may be made at the Headquarters, 200 Fifth Avenue, New York City.

From the outset, the scout master must have the interest of each boy at heart. He must not play favourites with any of the boys in his patrol or troop. While there are sure to be boys in the group who will develop more rapidly than others, and whose keenness will be sure to call forth the admiration of the scout master, he should not permit himself to be "carried away" by the achievements of these "star boys" to such an extent that he will neglect the less aggressive boy. The latter boy is the one who needs your attention most, and your interest in him must be genuine. Every effort he makes, no matter how poor it may be, should be commended just as heartily as the better accomplishments of the more handy boy.

PRACTICAL ACTIVITIES FOR SCOUTS

1. Scoutcraft: Boy Scouts' organization, scout laws, discipline, scouts' secret signs, badges, etc.

2. Campaigning: Camp life and resourcefulness. Hut and mat making. Knots. Fire lighting. Cooking. Boat management. Judging distances, heights and numbers. Swimming. Cycling. Finding the way.

SIGN POSTS

1. Do not have in the same patrol boys of great disparity in ages. For instance, the boy of twelve should not be in the same group with the sixteen-year-old boy, if it can possibly be avoided. You must remember that in most cases the things that appeal to the younger boy will have no attraction for the older boy.

2. Do not enroll boys under twelve. If you do you are certain to lose your older boy. The movement is distinctly for boys of the adolescent period and is designed to help them to rightly catch the spirit of helpfulness.

3. Do not try to do everything yourself. Try to remember that the boys are always willing and anxious to take hold. Let the boys understand that the whole proposition is theirs. It is what they make it. Your contract with them should be largely of a big brother nature.

4. Do not burden nor weary the boys with excessive military drills and tactics. The movement is not a military one. The military virtues of obedience, neatness, order, endurance and erect, alert bearing, however, are scout virtues. Use everything that develops boys. This is good scoutcraft.

5. Do not confine the activities of the patrols to things of one character. Touch every activity as far as possible. Do not omit anything. Get the proper agencies to cooperate with you for these ends—a military man for signalling; a naturalist for woodcraft; a physician for first aid, etc.

6. Do not permit the boys to fail in the proper keeping of the scout oath and law.

7. Never fail to keep an engagement with your patrol or troop. If something should delay your coming or should you find yourself unable to keep an appointment with them, be sure to notify the patrol leaders beforehand. It might be well to require the same of the boys.

8. A real danger point is the failure of a scout master to visit the boys in their homes. Knowing the boys' parents means much, and their cooperation will be much heartier when they know the man to whose care they entrust their boy, after he has discussed with them the real purpose of the scout movement.

9. Do not hesitate to give a boy a hard task, but not an impossible one. A boy likes to do hard things.

10. Do not attempt right at the start to give the boy every bit of detail regarding the activities of the troop. Work out the plans with the boys from time to time, always reserving some things of interest for the next meeting. Your attempt to give them everything at one time will cause the whole proposition to assume the nature of a task instead of pleasurable education, as was originally intended.

11. Hold frequent tests for advancement to the classes of scouthood. Get your fellows to really win their badges.

12. As a scout master use good judgment. If there are other scout masters in your town, or a scout council or local committee, cooperate with these. To be a scout master, you must have the spirit of '76, but be sure to work with others. The boys will benefit by the lesson.

THE SCOUTS' CAMP

To go camping should mean more than merely living under canvas away from the piles of brick and stone that make up our cities. To be in the open air, to breathe pure oxygen, to sleep upon "a bed of boughs beside the trail," to look at the camp fire and the stars, and to hear the whisper of the trees—all of this is good. But the camp offers a better opportunity than this. It offers the finest method for a boy's education. Between twelve and eighteen years the interests of a boy are general ones, and reach from the catching of tadpoles and minnows to finding God in the stars. His interests are the general mass interests that are so abundant in nature, the activities that give the country boy such an advantage for the real enjoyment of life over the city lad. Two weeks or two months in camp, they are too valuable to be wasted in loafing, cigarette smoking, card playing or shooting craps. To make a camp a profitable thing there must needs be instruction; not formal but informal instruction. Scouting, nature study, scout law, camp cooking, signalling, pioneering, path finding, sign reading, stalking for camera purposes, knowledge of animals and plants, first aid, life saving, manual work (making things), hygiene, sex instruction, star gazing, discipline, knowing the rocks and trees, and the ability to do for one's self, in order that a boy may grow strong, self-reliant, and helpful. This is a partial list of the subject in the camp curricula.

A model scout camp programme is given here. It takes eight days to carry it out, but there is material enough to run ten times the number of days specified.

A SIR R.S.S. BADEN-POWELL SCOUT CAMP MODEL PROGRAMME

First Day: Preliminary work: settling into camp, formation of patrols, distribution of duties, orders, etc.

Second Day: Campaigning: camp resourcefulness, hut and mat making, knots, fire lighting, cooking, health and sanitation, endurance, finding way in strange country, and boat management.

Third Day: Observation: noticing and memorizing details far and near, landmarks, tracking, deducing meaning from tracks and signs, and training the eyesight.

Fourth Day: Woodcraft: study of animals, birds, plants and stars; stalking animals, noticing people, reading their character and condition, and thereby gaining their sympathy.

Fifth Day: Chivalry: honour, code of knights, unselfishness, courage, charity and thrift; loyalty to God, country, parents and employers, or officers; practical chivalry to women; the obligation to do a "good turn" daily, and how to do it.

Sixth Day: Saving life: from fire, drowning, sewer gas, runaway horses, panic, street accidents, improvised apparatus, and first aid.

Seventh Day: Patriotism: national geography, the history and deeds that won our world power, the navy and army, flags, medals, duties of a citizen, marksmanship, helping the police.

Eighth Day: A summary of the whole course: sports comprising games and competitive practices in all subjects of the course.

CAMP ROUTINES

6.30	a.m.	Turn out, bathe, etc.
7.00	"	Breakfast
8.00	"	Air bedding in sun if possible
9.00	"	Scouting games and practice
11.00	"	Swimming
12.00	m.	Dinner
1.000	p.m.	Talk by leader
2.00	"	Water games, etc.
6.00	"	Supper
7.30	"	Evening council around camp fire
		Order of business:
		Opening council
		Roll-call
		Record of last council
		Report of scouts
		Left-over business
		Complaints
		Honours
		New scouts
		New business
		Challenges
		Social doings, songs, dances, stories
		Closing council (devotional services when desired)
10.00	p.m.	Lights out.

The father of scouting for boys in America, and in fact the inspiration for the movement in England under Lieut-Gen. Sir Robert S.S. Baden-Powell, K.C.B., is Mr. Ernest Thompson Seton, the distinguished naturalist and nature student.

The official handbook of the organization may be obtained from Doubleday, Page and Company, Garden City, N.Y., the publishers of this book, or from the national headquarters of The Boy Scouts of America.

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