TTTE SUNDAY OltEGONIAN, PORTLAND,
VIGOROUS NATURE-
9
v BEING WOiMWSLh
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New organization takes boys into fields
tmd' mountains, giyesrthemlheafthy'minds
ifridrbodies,,and broadens:outlook by-wide
range,, ofactiyities--Broad code-of etfiics
is embodied Tfi "scouts'" system.
BT LOCISE BRTANT.
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UST twtuM th day of romance of
the old sort, of pirate, and the
lure of hidden treasure and un
known countries haa passed away and
a new aire of romance, of Invention, of
Iron and steel, baa come In Ita atead
we began to feel that the last vestige
' of the primitive waa fast being- crushed
out with each new achievement. Then
all over the land came the cry of "back
to the soil." It waa a natural reaction.
The line between the Indoors man
' and the out-of-doors Is very varus for
there la no Indoor man who doea not
Ions; to be out of doors at least part of
the time. Certainly our civilisation
would be in a bad way If it were not
: for a great many men who work In Uia
open air.
Among them are the fanner, the
miner, the engineer, mlsslonarlea and
our old friend the cowboy. They are
all men accustomed to live on their
own resources and are chivalrous and
helpful to each other. They could well
be called "peace scouts. Invariably
they are apt to be pretty decent chaps.
No occupation Indoors shows as high
a per cent of personal booesty.
The reasonable answer seema to be
that a man has rot to be considerable
. of a man or he will not stay In the
out-doors business very long.
A successful education ahould fit one
not for making- books or muscles an
' end but rather a means. Surely the
only education which makea ua of use
to our fellow men makes ua realise
that our fellow-men are all mankind.
This la a reaaonble theory of education
and has Ions; been known to thought
ful men. There really need be no shut
ting ourselves Indoors and no crying;
for primitive conditions and out-of-,
doors for there Is a better medium.
Supposing the whole nation got into
the way of living; out-of-doors at least
one month In the year. Aa far back
as Moses this custom waa considered
essential to the national well being;.
When the general publlo la convinced
of an Idea their impulse Is to com
mence Immediate proceedings In that
direction and they don't always go at
the matter In a thoughtful way. For
example take thla true story of a well
meaning rich man who was much Im
pressed with the out-of-doors, back-to-tbe-soll
Idea, so he chartered a steamer
and took about two hundred slum boys
, up to the Catskllls for a day in the
woods.
Upon landing; they were told to go
and "have the time of their lives."
They were like fish out of water. What
did they know about sunshine and
fresh air and the raysterle of the
woods? They sought out the only
things they knew that constituted a
; gnod time. They sulked around and
. then disappeared. When the well
meaning; rich man looked them up some
time later he found them smoking cl-
garettea. playing cards and shooting
craps. This benevolent old man learned
that we cannot merely rest at taking
boys out of doors we must teach them
to enjoy lt
The Boy Scout method seems to come
very near solving the problem, for It
teaches them how to enjoy nature and
it works toward healthy minds and
healthy bodies. Military life appeals to
some boys, engineering to others but
scouting gathers them all In by com
V blnlng inside and outside occupations
in a sane and admirable way.
Origin of Scoot Movement.
The Boy Scouts were started In Eng
land by General Sir Robert Baden
Powell, about three years ago. Ha waa
Impressed with the fact that about
per cent of the boys of England were
growing op without any knowledge of
useful occupation. He wanted to do
something that would help the boy to
become a good citizen. His' Intention
was not the making of soldiers. In
bis work he has touched boy life In all
Its Interests and broadened a boy's out
look by the widest sort of activities.
In two and a half years 400.000 Boy
Scouts were enrolled and 20.000 of
these were on parade in London at one
time.
All over the United States the Boy
Scout Idea has sprung up spontane
ously. It was begun In this country by
Earnest Seton-Tborapson. Towns and
cities are being carried away by It. In
Canada Boy Scouts number thousands.
Everywhere we see gangs of boys try
ing their beet to do a good turn to
some one every day. and they are getting-
fun out of It. We have In Port
land about four hundred scouts with
many more clamoring to get Into the
ranks. Prominent business men and
leading educators are behind the move
ment and It la steadily becoming a
leading factor In the recreation educa
tion of tha boyhood of America.
One of the biggest secrets of Ita
strong appeal and still greater hold on
boys la that It give them responsi
bility. It Is like the key a successful
teacher holds to teach bis pupils by
getting them to learn for themselves.
The American boy and the British
boy are. generally speaking, rather i
rtous little persons and very anxious to
know all about things. fo we attend
their bowr and "whys"? Not aa
rule, we usually aay they ask too
many questions. By not giving the boy
any responsibility, by not showing full
confidence we are not encouraging
manliness and good citizenship. These
are some of the things scouting must
do for the boy.
How Troop la Organised.
A meeting la held of prominent men
and they may be business men. pro
fessional men. teachers, representatives
of military organizations. Juvenile
courts. I. M. C A. or any reliable or
ganization of men who organize to eu
pervlse the Scout movement. They get
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together seven or more boys, explain
to them the alms of boy scouting, have
them elect a leader and eorporal from
their own number and'tuke the Scout
Oath as "Tenderfetl," Then they be
gin work with their gcout Master.
In Portland there are three troops
of Boy Scouts under three scout mas
ters Dr. D. Diamond Corby, of the
L'ulversallst Church: William Lindsey
and J. C Clark, of the T. U. C A.
There Is a central committee at the .
M. C A. composed of C A. Shepard.
chairman; Walter A. Goes, vice-chair
man; C A. Phlppa and J. J- -iar.
scout commissioner.
After the Scouts have been organised
they must apply to the Scout head
quarters in New Tork for a charter.
The first troop to receive Ita charter
was the troop under Scoutmaster Corby.
The troop haa a well-equipped clubroom
In the basement of the church and a
baseball field not far distant.
The 8co tils under Scoutmaster Llnd
sey recently gave a clever vaudeville
show in order to raise money to' buy
uniforms. They have built a temporary
clubhouse on a lot between Twenty
third and Twenty-fourth atreeta on
Johnson street.
The Boy Scouts nnder Scoutmaster
Clark run Into the hundreds. He ez
pecta to have about 300 In his troop to
go on "hikes" this Summer. Last Sum
mer aome of his boys "hiked" from here
to Seattle and back. They are prepar
ing to take some more Interesting trips
this Spring.
Members must have a knowledge of
religion. A Boy Scout may be Cath
olic, a Protestant, a Jew or even a
Hindoo If he wishes. When religion
Is taught through tha natural every
day way It la taught through nature
study, by observing the habits of ani
mals and the wonders of plants and
Insect II V- There Is no dismal "all
tears and texts" about thla Boy Scout
religion, for It is sunshiny and biff and
wholesome. It brings all classes more
and mora In touch with each other.
Before he becomes a Scout a boy
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must take the Scouts' tow thus: "On
my honor I promise that I will try to
do my best to do my duty to Ood and
my country, to help other people at all
times, and to obey the Scout law."
A Scout's honor Is to be trusted.
If a Scout were to break "nls honor
by telling a lie. or by not carrying out
an order exactly when trusted on his
honor to do so, he may be directed to
hand over his Scout badge and never
I wear It again.
A Scout la loyal to country, umcora.
parenta and employers. He must stick
to them through thick and thin against
anyone who Is their enemy.
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 In
jured persona And he must try his
best to do a good turn to somebody
every day.
A Scout la a friend to all and a
brother to every other Scout, no mat
ter to what social class the other be
longs. A Scout must never be a snob. A
nob la one who looks down upon an
other because he Is poorer, or who Is
poorer and resents another because he
Is rich. A Scout accepts the other man
as he finds him and makea the best of
him.
A Scout Is courteous. He la polite
to all, especially to women and chil
dren. He must not take any reward for
being helpful and courteous.
A Scout Is a friend to animals. He
ahould save them as far is possible
from pain, and ahould not kill any
animal unnecessarily. Killing an ani
mal for food Is allowable.
A Scout obeys order of his parents,
patrol leader or scoutmaster without
question.
A Scout smiles tinder all circum
stances of stress. When he gets an
order he should obey It cheerfully and
readily, not in a slow, hang-dog- sort
of way. Scouts never grumble at hard
ships, nor whine at each other nor
swear when put out. The punishment
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for swearing Is. for each offense, a
m us- of cold water to d poureu. uuwu
the offender's sleeve by the other
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DCOUIS.
A Scout is thrifty; that is, ne saves
every penny ne can and puts it In the
bank so he may have money to keep
himself when be Is out Of work.
There are three classes of scouts, ten
derfoot, second-class scout and first-class
scout.
A boy on Joining the Boy Scouts must
pass a test in the following; polnta before
taking the oath:
Knowledge of the scouts' laws and
slims and salutes.
Knowledge of the composition of the
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t National flair and the right way to fly it.
now 10 tie iour oi ic iuuwwb
I Reef. sheet bend,
clove hitch, bowline.
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middleman's, fisherman s, sheepsnanK.
He then takes the scouts' oath, and is
enrolled as a tenderfoot, and Is entitled
to wear the buttonhole badge.
Before being allowed to wear the second-class
scouts badge a "tenderfoot"
must pass the. following tests:
Have at least one month's service as a
tenderfoot.
Elementary first aid and bandaging.
Signaling, elementary knowledge of
semaphore or Morse alphabet.
Track half a mile in 25 minutes: pr If
In a town, describe satisfactorily tha con
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tents of one store -window out of four,
observed for one minute each:''
Go a mila in 12 minutes at "scouts'
pace."
Lay and light a Are, usingnot more
than two matches.
Cook a quarter of a pound of meat and
two potatoes without cooking utensils
other than the regulation "billy."
Have at least 25 cents in a savings
bank.
Know the 16 principal points of the
compass.
To become a first-class Scout a boy
must parn, tie following tests:
Swim 50 yards. (Unless doctor certi
fies that bathing- is dangerous.)
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Must have SO cents in the savings
bank.
Signalling Send a message and re
ceive one in either semaphore or Morse;
16 letters per minute.
Go on foot, or row a boat alone to
a point seven miles distant and return
again and write a short report of It.
Describe or show the proper means
for saving life in case of two of the
following accidents: Fire, drowning,
runaway carriage, sewer gas. ice break
ing, bandage for injured person or re
suscitation of apparently drowned per-
Bon. , ., .
Cook two dishes satisfactorily, such
as porridge and bacon, pluck and cook
a bird, etc. "
Read a map correctly and draw an
intelligent rough sketch map.
Point out a compass direction with
out the help of a compass.
Use an ax for felling light timber;
produce an article of carpentry.
Judge distance, size, numbers and
height.
Bring in a "tenderfoot" trained by
himself In the points required of a
"tenderfoot."
In general this sums up what the
Boy Scouts idea embodies. There is
nothing In it to blunt a boy's keenness.
There are a great many camping trips
being planned by the boys all over
the country" for this Summer. I won
der how many of us know the real Joy
they will get out of them. They will
find a wonderful paradise but a few
miles from the hot, crowded cities. The
soft warm air of the woods will put
new vitality Into them while they pitch
their tents and prepare their suppers
after the day's tramp. When the twi
light creeps upon them and then the
black night, they will light the big
campfire and all sit round amid gen
eral good fellowship to talk over the
day's adventures. Presently the big
yellow moon will climb up, the crickets
will sing, the night birds call and
they wlllbe absorbed by an irresistible
peace.
One by one they will slip out of the
group by the fire to crawl into their
sleeping bags and sleep as they were
meant to sleep in a sweet repose.
After all there is nothing more ador
able than youth, nothing more wonder
ful than nature and the Boy Scouts
have discovered a very eood way to
enjoy them both.-
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