SCOUTING SHORTS
⚜ Troop Announcements
Scoutmasters who are also photographers, or who have photographers on the Troop Committee or among their obliging friends, have an easy way of turning out interest-catching cards announcing Troop meetings, hikes, and other events.
Use a snapshot of a recent hike or camp. Print the photo in one corner of a piece of photographic paper, cut to post card size, (or a regular postcard photo stock sold in many shops). Write the announcement in the white space surrounding the picture, stick on a one cent stamp, and leave the rest to Uncle Sam. The sample above shows the type of card sent out by Scoutmaster S. L. Lenington, of Troop 207, Denison, Texas. He says it works nicely.
Stop That Hacking
When the Meshingomesia Council Camp Staff, of Marion, Indiana, began to take stock of the trees in camp, their observations rocked them right to the ground. Not that Scouts were intentionally destructive—but careless hacking, needless bark stripping, and the typical American habit of carving initials on anything and everything in sight—all had been combined to completely ruin some trees, partly destroy others, and at the very least, deface the natural beauty of the woods.
Several schemes were suggested to stop these careless habits, and one proved most successful. Whenever a batch of campers arrived, they were lined up with their axes and knives in front of them. Each Scout gave the Scout Sign and repeated “On my honor I do promise to protect all plants and animals in our Scout Camp, being particularly careful with my knife and axe, not cutting any tree or shrub without permission.”
Bugs and Flowers
Scoutmasters who are embarrassed when eager beavers run up and ask “What kind of a bug is this?” or “What flower is that?” will welcome two new books, both published by Doubleday and Company, Garden City, New York.
The Insect Guide by Dr. Ralph B. Swain, a former Scout, is a very-easy-to-use book. Instead of describing the individual species, Dr. Swain tells how to recognize the larger, more easily remembered insect families and orders. Four hundred and fifty illustrations—330 in full color, make the job of question-answering that much easier. Equally interesting is the material on how to find, capture, observe and preserve different insects. As a hike or camp activity, insect observation can be good program material, if you know how to do it. This pocket guide supplies the answers.
Also recommended for the Troop library is Wild Flower Guide, by Dr. Edgar T. Wherry. Actual use with Scouts has proved this to be an easy-to-follow guide. For example: if you find a flower and wonder what it is, refer to the appendix, where flowers are classified according to color. Run down the list and eliminate those which you know the flower isn’t. Then look for possibilities of what it might be. The illustrations, many in color, make the job easier. The description of each flower is complete.
GIVE DADS A CHANCE
Photo by Carl W. Eysenbach
Lakewood, Ohio
When Mr. West called his Committee at ten o’clock on a Saturday night to pose for a picture at noon on Sunday, he found that six men were out of town. The other nineteen are shown here. That’s a good example of the Committee cooperation Mr. West describes in this article.
By Gerry West
Scoutmaster, Troop 78
Lakewood, Ohio
⚜ We start getting a dad’s interest when his boy joins the Troop. The boy is invited to a meeting by a Scout. We make him welcome, tell him to look us over and we’ll look him over too. After he’s been to a meeting or two we talk to him about passing Tenderfoot tests, and tell him when he’s ready to come to our home. We ask him to bring dad along to meet us.
So, the evening we’ve both agreed upon arrives. So does the Scout-to-be and his dad. We set them at ease and start to pass the boy on his tests. He’s ready all right and does a good job, and we make it a point to let him know it. Then we tell of the 2nd Class requirements, how simple they are to pass, and how with a little bit of help from dad there is no reason why he shouldn’t be Eagle in a couple of years.
Dad, pleased that his son is on the first step of Scouting, is in a receptive mood, so we go on to explain the fun in Scouting for man and boy, how winter camps are the highlight of our Troop activities and how other dads go along on these camps.
Our Troop registers about thirty-six Scouts every year and this year we registered twenty-four dads. They are Scouters and take an active interest in problems confronting the Committee. On the average, we have no less than fifteen dads at every monthly Committee meeting. Not everyone can make every meeting, but all can and do pitch in whenever we have a special project to work on.
For instance, we needed money to buy camping equipment a year or so ago. One dad took over as chairman of the project which turned out to be a waste paper and magazine drive. He rallied twenty-eight Scouts and twenty dads and their cars. We put $250 into the Troop treasury and had a swell time doing it.
Four of the dads on the Troop Committee act as a Board of Review for the Troop. Then at the subsequent Court of Honor this same group along with other members of the Committee sit on the Court and make the awards. At these Courts of Honor we make it a point to invite and expect every mother and dad to attend—even though their son may not be up for an award. We know he will be at a future Court, and know his mother and dad would want the same cooperation and interest shown by other parents.
As I’ve said, we like to go camping, to spend long week-ends in the woods, and when one of these week-ends comes along another dad steps into the picture. He’s our Transportation Chairman and it’s his job to see that the Scouts get to and from camp.
Because our dads come from every walk of life and all kinds of businesses, we look into their daily jobs or hobbies for special talents that might be employed at a Troop meeting. One of our dads is Lieutenant Commander in the Coast Guard, so some weekend this fall the Troop will take a trip and visit the local Coast Guard Station and see how it is operated, and incidentally look over and into the workings of a submarine stationed there.
No you won’t get them all. You’ll run across the dad who just can’t do much because of his job, and you’ll run across the dad just not interested—even the fellow who is most willing to have you take the boys to camp, his boy included, and not even be able to lend a hand with transportation. Don’t let these few discourage you however, nor cause you to slacken your efforts to ask the next dad who comes along. Don’t be afraid to go out and ask for help. Give your dads a chance and you’ll have more fun in Scouting, you’ll have a better Troop and you’ll have an easier job.