But to be the right sort of comrade to her husband and her children a girl must have known work herself. She must have gone through the struggle against failure and have enjoyed the triumph of success to be able fully to sympathize with her partner in his troubles and to be of use in helping him through them. A house mother is a money spender not a money getter, and her work is really much harder than his. A wise educator has said: “I will undertake to guarantee the stability of our American democratic institutions if you will see to it that American wives are taught how best to spend the money their husbands earn. Somewhere in that last ten per cent of a man’s income are hidden away his present happiness and future prospects,” and those of his children.
The women of America must see to it that as far as lies in their power the vast resources of this great country are carefully conserved and wisely expended.
To be a valuable citizen the first qualification is an understanding of the organization and administration of one’s government. With more knowledge of the principles for which our government really stands there will come to the thinking American girl a desire to help definitely in the administration of those principles. Real social service will develop every Citizen Scout, give her a broader vision of life, awaken her sympathy and clear her intellect so that when she casts her vote she will do it with intelligence and with civic pride.
Qualifications for Citizen Scouts
To become a Citizen Scout a girl must be 17 years old, or over, and she must declare her belief in the civic ideals of:
1. Good health—by trying to attain the Girl Scout standard of physical health.
2. Vocational Skill—by being willing to perfect herself in some work by which she can earn her living.
3. Public Service—by pledging herself to some public service, either individually or in her troop.
Any Girl Scout over seventeen shall be eligible for promotion to “Citizen Scout.” When there are enough Citizen Scouts in any troop they may form a Citizen Scout patrol under their own patrol leader, in the same troop where they were formerly Scouts, or separate troops of Citizen Scouts may be formed if desired, either by ex-Scouts or by young women who have not been Scouts before. The number of members for Citizen Scout patrol or troop is not limited. One member will be elected Troop leader, and other officers may be elected as found desirable. A Troop may, if it likes, choose a member of the Local Committee or any woman in the community in whose sympathy and judgment they have confidence to act as “counsellor and friend.” Or they may refer to the local director or to the chairman of Girl Scout Captain Association when any difficulty arises, or they may be quite independent of any control outside of their own troop, except the Council and Local Committee.
A Citizen Scout troop may adopt any crest of the list authorized by Headquarters but a crest is not obligatory.