A good turn need only be a very small one; if it is only to put a halfpenny into a poor box, or to help an old woman to cross the street, or to make room on a seat for someone, or to give water to a thirsty horse, or to remove a bit of banana skin off the pavement where it is likely to throw people down, it is a good turn. But one must be done every day, and it only counts as a good when you do not accept any reward in return.
[Make each scout tie knot in his necktie to remind him to do a good turn next day.]
A Boy Scout's Necktie.
Saving Life.—You have all heard of the Victoria Cross—the little bronze cross given by Queen Victoria to soldiers who specially distinguish themselves in action under the fire of the enemy.
But there is the companion medal to it, and that is the Albert Medal for those who are not soldiers, and who distinguish themselves in saving life in peace time.
And I think the man who wins this medal, as he does in the sudden appalling accidents which occur in big cities, mines, and factories, in everyday life, is no less a hero than the soldier who rushes into the thick of the fight to rescue a comrade amid all the excitement and glamour of the battle.
My great hope is that many of you scouts will in time to come win for yourselves the high honour of receiving the Albert Medal.
It is certain that very many of you will at one time or another get the chance of it if you are prepared to seize the opportunity. That is, you must be prepared for it; you should know what to do the moment an accident occurs—and do it then and there.
It is not enough to read about it in a book and think that you know how to do it—but you must actually practise, and practise pretty often, the actual things to be done; such as how to cover your mouth and nose with a wet handkerchief to enable you to breath in smoke, how to tear a sheet into strips and make a rope for escaping from fire, how to open a manhole to let air into a gassy sewer, how to lift and carry an insensible person, how to collar, save, and revive apparently drowned people, and so on.