When the meeting was opened in the customary way, it was a most impressive sight as seen from the stage. And the first speaker, in telling a few reasons why this magnificent movement had been started by public spirited men, called attention to this fact. Anything that could create such widespread interest as the scout movement, and was for the upbuilding of boys in the best sense, should have the unqualified backing of every thinking man and woman in the whole United States, he declared. Such cheering following this statement, that the speaker had to wait a full minute before he could proceed.
The next to address that fine audience was a leading citizen whose heart and soul had always been with the rising generation, so that he had taken part in many movements that were calculated to benefit the coming men of the country.
He assured those who were eagerly listening to all he said that never yet had anything been started that gave one-tenth the promise of glorious success this Boy Scout organization did. Then he went on fully to explain the duties of those who belonged, what they vowed to do when they took the oath, and what splendid results had already been recorded.
“I hope that the time is near at hand,” he continued, “when every boy in all these United States may, upon arriving at the proper age, be given the chance to enlist in a Boy Scout patrol. Through means of its privileges he will be trained to know, to discover, and to live in a new and glorious realm of Nature, a life of well-directed freedom.”
There was a flutter throughout the big hall when the next speaker arose, for every boy knew that the Judge had been selected for the principal event of the occasion. He began by telling of the healthful competition that had been arranged between the four patrols by the prize offer of the beautiful banner which the audience could see in plain sight upon the stage.
This had been contributed by a generous citizen who wished his name to remain unknown. It bore an inscription in letters of gold, with a blank space to be filled in later with the name of the successful patrol. Then he told just how the committee had wrestled with the matter and finally arranged a schedule to show what points were to be awarded for each of scores of things successfully accomplished to the satisfaction of the governing board.
The field competition had already been carried to a splendid finish, and those who had watched the busy scouts had been ten times repaid for their attendance. After announcing the results that had been awarded the several patrols on the strength of their showing, he expected to take up the many claims settled by the committee. These would be shown in “points” upon the large blackboard by his assistant, as he called them off, and in some cases he would enter into explanations that might be found more or less interesting.
Every scout drew a long breath. He knew that at last the final score was about to be settled. Even Alec had a serious look on his face as he sat there at the head of the Otters. Boasting was all very well, but since no one might wholly know what the rival patrols had been doing during these weeks of endeavor in order to gain merit points, it was impossible to predict successfully the result until the last name had been called.
As it happened, the speaker took up the Fox patrol first of all. They had not succeeded in doing a great deal, though there were several ripples of applause over certain accounts that showed how the boys had occasionally awakened to their opportunities, and had a brief spell of working like beavers. They had relapsed frequently, however, Don Miller not being fully qualified to keep the enthusiasm at boiling pitch.
Next came the Hawks, who made a little better showing, though truth to tell it was pretty much the labor of the leader, Walter Osborne, that counted; and then the speaker called attention to the fact that they were being pleasantly entertained between speeches with camp songs by a member of this patrol, Blake Merton.