,department ,digital ,library           
,,young ,,knights ,,of ,,the ,,empire   
,,their ,,code ,,and ,,further ,,scout  
,,yarns  ,,by  ,,sir ,,robert           
,,baden-,,powell ,k4,c4,b41             
,k4,c4,v4,o41 ,,ll4,d4  ,,author ,,of   
,,scouting ,,for ,,boys1 ,,yarns ,,for  
,,boy ,,scouts1 ,,scouting ,,games1 ,,my
 ,,adventures ,,as ,a ,,spy1 ,,etc4     
#aiag    ,,foreword   ,,to              
,,boy-,,men1--  ,in offering this       
collection of yarns1 ,i do not suggest  
that these are anything more than       
further illustrations of the steps      
already schemed in ,scouting for ,boys  
for self-education in character and good
 citizenship4  ,but illustrations by    
themselves are of comparatively little  
value unless the theories and ideas     
conveyed by them are also put into      
actual and habitual practice4  ,it is in
 this that the boy needs your           
encouragement4                          
,,robert ,,baden-,,powell     ,,young   
,,knights ,,of ,,the ,,empire     ,,the 

,,scout ,,law  ,perhaps you wonder what 
is a ,young ,knight of the ,empire4     
,well1 you know what a knight is--or    
rather1 used to be in the old days--a   
gallant fellow who was always ready to  
defend weaker people when they were     
being bullied2 he was brave and         
honourable1 and ready to risk his life  
in doing his duty according to the code 
or law of ,chivalry4  ,well1 nowadays   
there are thousands of boys all over the
 ,british ,empire carrying out the same 
idea1 and making themselves into fine1  
reliable men1 ready to take the place of
 those who have gone away to fight and  
who have fallen at the ,front4 ,these   
are the ,boy ,scouts4 ,their code is the
 ,scout ,law--that is1 a set of ten     
rules which they carry out in their     
daily life4  ,i will explain these      
,laws1 and will give you some other     
yarns of camp life and adventure such as
 the ,scouts go in for4  ,,honour  ,law 
#a4 ,a ,,scout',s ,,honour ,,is ,,to    
,,be ,,trusted4  ,if a ,scout says ,on  

my honour it is so1 that means it is so1
 just as if he had taken a most solemn  
oath4  ,similarly if a ,scout officer   
says to a ,scout1 ,i trust you on your  
honour to do this1 the ,scout is bound  
to carry out the order to the very best 
of his ability1 and to let nothing      
interfere with his doing so4  ,if a     
,scout were to break his honour by      
telling a lie1 or by not carrying out an
 order exactly when trusted on his      
honour to do so1 he may be directed to  
hand over his ,scout badge and never    
wear it again4 ,he may also be directed 
to cease to be a ,scout4  ,people of a  
civilised country1 just like boys in a  
school1 are bound to conduct themselves 
in a proper manner1 because of the law  
which causes them to be punished if they
 misbehave4 ,there is a code of laws    
drawn up for this purpose4  ,but there  
is another kind of law which binds      
people just as much as their written    
laws1 though this one is neither written
 nor published4  ,this unwritten law is 

,honour4  ,a boy who has clambered over 
the school wall to go out of bounds and 
smoke secretly has committed an offence 
against the published law of the school4
 ,if next day the master asks in school1
 ,who has broken out of bounds8 the boy 
is not bound by the law to confess that 
he did2 he can remain silent and thus   
escape punishment2 but he is a          
poor-spirited creature if he does so1   
and has no sense of honour4 ,if he is   
honourable he will manfully and honestly
 tell the master that he broke out and  
will stand whatever punishment comes of 
it4 ,by so doing he will have proved to 
the master and to the other boys that he
 is manly and not afraid to tell the    
truth1 and is to be relied upon because 
he puts his honour before all4  ,so the 
first training that the ,boy ,scout gets
 is to understand that ,honour is his   
own private law which is guided by his  
conscience1 and that once he is a ,scout
 he must be guided in all his doings by 
his sense of ,honour4   ,,loyalty  ,law 

#b4 ,a ,,scout ,,is ,,loyal to the      
,king1 and to his officers1 and to his  
parents1 his ,country1 his employers1   
and to those under his orders4 ,he must 
stick to them through thick and thin    
against anyone who is their enemy or who
 even talks badly of them4  ,there was a
 ,scoutmaster in the ,east ,end of      
,london who when the war broke out felt 
it his duty to give up the splendid work
 he was doing amongst the poor boys of  
the ,east ,end in order to take up      
service for his ,country4  ,scoutmaster 
,lukis--for that is his name--felt      
bound1 by his sense of loyalty to his   
,king and his ,country1 to give up the  
life he was then living and face the    
dangers of soldiering on active service4
  ,but the example which he set in      
loyalty was promptly followed by some   
eighty young fellows who were his       
,scouts or ,old ,scouts4  ,their loyalty
 to him made them wish to follow their  
leader wherever his duty led him4 ,so   
they became soldiers like himself and   

all went together to the ,front4  ,a day
 came when the trenches which they were 
holding were heavily shelled4 ,the      
danger was great and the losses were    
heavy1 and finally a piece of shrapnel  
struck ,captain ,lukis in the leg and   
shattered his thigh4 ,two of his ,east  
,london ,boy ,scout's sprang to his     
assistance and tended him with devoted  
care4 ,they waited for a lull in the    
firing and finally between them they    
carried him1 although exposed to a      
deadly fire1 to a place of safety4      
,while so doing one of them was hit and 
severely wounded4  ,but the spirit of   
the lads was splendid4 ,they cared      
nothing for their own safety so that    
they got their beloved ,scoutmaster out 
of danger4 ,that was loyalty4  ,loyalty 
means faithfulness4 ,your dog is        
faithful to you and sticks to you even  
though you may beat him4 ,he overlooks  
your faults and your unkindness and     
remains loyal to you4  ,loyalty begins  
at home4  ,some boys are always thinking

 that their parents are wrong or unfair 
to them4 ,if you think that your parents
 have any faults1 don't look at those   
faults4 ,be loyal to your parents2      
remember only that it is thanks to them 
that you are alive and able to be a     
,scout4  ,obey your parents1 believe in 
them1 and respect them2 if you can at   
any time help them1 do so4 ,by doing    
these things you are being loyal to     
them4 ,by being loyal to them you are   
carrying out that commandment of the    
,bible which says3 ,honour thy father   
and thy mother4 ,be loyal1 also1 in the 
same way-by obeying and thinking no evil
 and by backing them up-to your         
,patrol-leader1 your ,scoutmaster1 and  
your schoolmaster4 ,if you are a working
 boy carry out the same idea towards    
your foreman1 your manager1 and your    
employer4  ,on taking up your work1 you 
have agreed to do a certain amount for a
 certain wage1 and it is loyalty on your
 part then to stick to that agreement   
and to give good work in return for your

 pay4  ,if1 on the other hand1 you are a
 well-to-do boy and come to have a      
servant or a man working under you as   
you grow older1 you should equally be   
loyal to him4 ,remember that in taking  
him on you expect a certain amount of   
work from him for the money you give    
him2 if you find that he gives you more 
work than you agreed for1 you will be   
acting loyally to him if you then       
increase his wage3 but never go back on 
your agreement1 and do not try to make  
more money out of him than you meant to 
do when first making the contract4 ,so1 
too1 if you are a ,patrol or other      
leader1 and if those under you get into 
trouble through carrying out your ideas1
 be loyal to them2 own up that it was   
through your fault that they did wrong4 
,whatever line of life you may be in1 be
 loyal to ,god1 to your ,king1 and to   
your ,country4         99       99      
99       99       99  ,,antarctic       
,,scouting4  ,all ,boy ,scouts know of  
,sir ,ernest ,shackleton1 a brother     

peace-scout of the ,empire--and a       
first-class one1 too4  ,on one of his   
voyages of exploration to the ,south    
,pole he was very nearly successful in  
getting to that point1 he was within    
ninety-seven miles of it1 in fact1 when 
his food supplies gave out1 and he and  
those with him were in great danger of  
starving1 and had1 most unwillingly1 to 
turn back to regain their ship4  ,they  
had left the ship when they had got her 
as far south as was possible through the
 ice2 they then went on foot over land  
and sea1 all hard frozen and covered    
with snow1 and they took their food with
 them1 and stored depots1 or what       
,scouts would call caches1 to use on    
their return journey4 ,for weeks they   
struggled along over difficult ground4  
,one day in ,january1 although they had 
cut down their rations and ate as little
 as possible 7so little indeed that they
 were getting weak71 they found that    
they were coming to the end of their    
food1 and they must either turn back or 

go on and die1 in which case the record 
of their work would have been lost4 ,so 
they planted a flagstaff with the ,union
 ,jack on it1 and left a box containing 
a notice that they had annexed the land 
for ,great ,britain and ,king ,edward   
,,vii4  ,they took a long look with     
their field-glasses in the direction of 
the ,south ,pole to see if any mountains
 were to be seen1 but there were none4  
,and then they started on their         
desperate tramp to the ship4  ,they made
 a number of interesting and useful     
discoveries4 ,they came upon mountains  
and glaciers of ice1 and mineral rocks  
of coal and limestone4  ,and they found 
tiny insects which are able to live in  
the ice1 and when they boiled them1 they
 did not kill them6  ,they found that   
the penguins1 the great wingless birds  
which sit up and look just like people1 
enjoyed listening to a gramophone1 which
 they set going for their benefit4  ,but
 their journey back was a very anxious  
and trying experience for them4  ,in    

order to guide them they had planted    
flags here and there along their path1  
but storms came and blew them down1 and 
it was1 therefore1 most difficult to    
find their way from one food depot to   
another4 ,they did it largely by        
spooring their old tracks4  ,this is how
 ,sir ,ernest ,shackleton describes     
their doings on one particular day3  ,we
 were thirty miles from our depot4      
,although we could see it in the        
distance1 it was practically            
unattainable1 for soft snow covered     
treacherous crevasses1 and as we        
stumbled along in our search for food we
 seemed to get no nearer to our         
longed-for goal4 ,the situation was     
desperate4  ,two of our party1 utterly  
worn out and exhausted1 fell in harness1
 but with the greatest pluck again      
pushed on as soon as they had           
temporarily recovered4 ,it was with a   
feeling of devout thankfulness that we  
crossed the last crevasse and secured   
some food4 ,beyond a little tea we had  

had nothing for thirty-four hours1 and  
previously to that our last meal        
consisted merely of one pannikin of     
half-cooked pony maize-not much         
foundation for work under such          
conditions1 and with an extremely low   
temperature4 ,under these conditions we 
marched sixteen miles in twenty-two     
hours4  ,on another occasion during that
 same journey we were all struck down   
with dysentery1 and this at a distance  
of ninety miles from our depot4 ,though 
the weather was fine1 we were all too   
weak to move1 but here1 as on other     
occasions1 ,providence came to our      
rescue1 and strong southerly blizzards  
helped us along4  ,from ,december #dth1 
#aijh1 to ,february #bcrd1 #aiji1 we    
lived in a state of constant anxiety1   
intensified by more acute knowledge     
gained from narrow escapes and close    
contact with death4 ,over and over again
 there were times when no mortal        
leadership could have availed us4  ,it  
was during these periods that we learnt 

that some ,power beyond our own guided  
our footsteps4 ,if we acknowledged      
this--as we did--down among the ice1 it 
is only fitting that we should remember 
it now when the same ,power has brought 
us safely home through all these        
troubles and dangers4 ,no one who has   
seen and experienced what we have done  
there can take credit to himself for our
 escape from what appeared to be        
overwhelming difficulties4  ,sir ,ernest
 ,shackleton also praises the conduct of
 his officers and men as helping largely
 to their success4 ,he says3  ,we were  
all the best of comrades4 ,every man    
denied himself1 and was eager to do his 
level best4  ,true ,scouts1 all of them4
         99       99       99       99  
99  ,,some ,,famous ,,victories         
,,through ,,loyalty ,,to ,,leaders4     
,trafalgar4  ,the month of ,october is  
full of glorious national memories for  
,scouts4  ,on ,october #bast1 #ahje1 was
 fought the battle of ,trafalgar1 when  
the ,british ,fleet1 under ,admiral     

,lord ,nelson1 attacked and defeated the
 combined forces of ,french and ,spanish
 men-of-war4  ,it looked almost hopeless
 for a small fleet to attack so large a 
one2 but ,nelson made that grand signal 
which called on every man that day to do
 his duty1 and every man1 like a true   
,scout1 did his duty1 even though in    
many a case it cost him his life4       
,nelson himself showed the example1 for 
he drove his ship in between two of the 
enemy's ships and fought them1 one      
against two4 ,he never attempted to take
 cover1 but exposed himself to danger as
 much as anyone1 and was killed at the  
moment of victory4 ,the sailors of      
to-day still wear a black silk          
neckerchief round their necks as a sign 
of mourning for the great admiral4      
99       99       99       99       99  
,,balaclava4  ,then on ,october #beth1  
#ahed1 in the ,crimea1 in ,south        
,russia1 took place two grand charges by
 the ,british cavalry-against the       
,russian cavalry4  ,one of these1 the   

charge of the ,light ,brigade1 every boy
 knows about1 but somehow the charge of 
the ,heavy ,brigade is not so much      
talked about1 although it was equally   
fine in its way4  ,i have been lucky1   
because ,i have served in two cavalry   
regiments1 and both of them were in     
these charges one1 the #acth ,hussars1  
was in the ,light ,brigade1 and the     
other1 the #eth ,dragoon ,guards1 was in
 the ,heavy ,brigade4  ,i don't mean    
that ,i was in the charges1 too-no2 ,i  
wasn't born then6 ,but ,i am very proud 
to belong to two regiments that were    
there4  ,hussar regiments are called    
light cavalry1 because they used to have
 small1 light-weight men who could ride 
far and fast to scout the enemy4        
,dragoons were heavy troopers on big1   
strong horses1 who by their weight and  
long swords could deliver an            
overwhelming charge upon an enemy4  ,a  
,brigade consists of three regiments4   
,two ,brigades make up a ,division4 ,so 
the ,cavalry ,division in the ,crimea   

was made up of a ,light ,brigade and a  
,heavy ,brigade4  ,on ,october #beth the
 ,light ,cavalry ,brigade got the order 
to charge the ,russian artillery1 which 
was supported by the infantry and       
cavalry4  ,it was a hopeless task4 ,the 
order had really been given by mistake4 
,but that did not matter to men who were
 accustomed to obey4 ,they charged1 and1
 though it cost them a great number of  
gallant lives1 they carried out their   
duty with such bravery and dash as to   
command the highest praise even from    
their enemies1 and they won for ,british
 soldiers the name of being ready to    
sacrifice their lives to carry out their
 orders1 even though the job looked     
hopeless4 ,that is why ,scouts to-day   
have as their motto the single word1    
,,balaclava  to remind them that if they
 get an order which it is a bore or even
 a danger to perform1 their duty is to  
do as their brave fathers did at        
,balaclava1 and carry it out cheerily   
and well4  ,now ,i will tell you about  

the charge of the ,heavy ,brigade1      
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,thin ,,red ,,line4  ,you have   
often heard the ,british ,army talked of
 as the thin red line4 ,well1 it got    
that title at ,balaclava4 ,four hundred 
men of the #icrd ,highlanders and a     
battalion of ,turks were posted to guard
 the road leading to the harbour of     
,balaclava1 when the ,russians1 some    
twenty thousand strong1 proceeded to    
attack them4 ,the ,turks didn't like the
 look of things1 so they turned tail and
 bolted but the brave ,sir ,cohn        
,campbell1 who was in command of the    
,highlanders1 said to them3  ,my lads1  
remember there is no retreat from here4 
,you must die where you stand4  ,and the
 gallant fellows meant to do it if they 
had to die--but they were not the sort  
to say die before they were dead ,they  
formed a line--a thin red line1 as it   
was afterwards described--on a small    
rising ground1 and received the first   
charge of the ,russian cavalry with so  

well-aimed and deadly a fire1 at close  
range1 that it put the others off       
charging for a while4  ,the ,british    
,commander-in-,chief1 seeing their      
danger1 sent a message to the ,heavy    
,brigade of cavalry1 who were camped in 
the neighbourhood1 to go to their       
assistance4  ,the ,heavies were already 
parading just outside their camp1 when  
suddenly there appeared over the rising 
ground1 within half a mile of them1 the 
head of a big force of ,russian cavalry 
quietly advancing towards them4 ,rather 
a startling apparition when the         
squadrons were all moving out of camp to
 form up on parade4  ,but the           
,general--,general ,scarlett--did not   
lose his head or hesitate for a moment4 
,the enemy were on the left flank of the
 squadrons as they were moving out4 ,he 
ordered them to wheel into line to the  
left1 and1 without the usual first      
orders to ,trot and then to ,gallop1 he 
directed his trumpeter to sound ,charge6
 and he at once turned his horse towards

 the enemy1 and started1 with his staff 
officer and orderly1 at a gallop to lead
 the attack4  ,,do ,,or ,,die4  ,the    
,brigade saw what was wanted4 ,they did 
not wait to form into one line--that    
operation would have taken time--but    
each squadron wheeled up1 and1 closing  
in towards its neighbour1 galloped      
forward to back up the ,general in the  
charge4  ,the ,scots ,greys1 in red     
tunics and bearskins1 mounted on their  
grey horses1 were in the front line with
 some of the ,irish ,inniskilling       
,dragoons1 and close behind them came   
the #eth ,dragoon ,guards and the #ast  
,royal ,dragoons1 with their red tunics 
and shining helmets4  ,there were not   
more than three hundred of them         
altogether1 while the ,russian column   
amounted to some twelve thousand4 ',it  
looked as if the ,british must be       
smashed up by such overwhelming odds4   
,illustration3 ,this sketch map stows   
the positions of the ,british and       
,russian ,forces in the charge of the   

,heavy ,brigade at ,balaclava4  ,but the
 ,general knew that he must do his best 
to save the thin red line from being    
overridden1 and the men knew that they  
had got the order to charge1 and it was 
their business to carry out the order1  
and not to look at the danger in doing  
it4 ,so they charged4  ,the ,russians   
were not less astonished than the       
,british had been2 instead of surprising
 the ,british1 they were themselves     
surprised4  ,for a minute or two they   
hesitated4 ,no officer gave any command1
 no one knew quite what to do1 and in   
another minute the bolt burst upon them4
  ,general ,scarlett and his staff      
came--bang1 smash6--right through their 
front ranks1 followed immediately by the
 crashing weight of the ,greys and the  
wildly cheering ,inniskillings4  ,the   
shock of this charge rolled the foremost
 ranks of the ,russians down underfoot  
as it ploughed its way into the centre  
of the column1 and gave a sort of       
backward surge to the whole mass-for the

 ,russian force was simply a big1 square
 mass of men and horses4  ,our charge1  
being made by a very small body1 only   
broke into the central part of the      
,russian front1 so the two flanks of    
their line wheeled forward like two arms
 to enfold it4 ,but just as they were in
 the act of doing so they were caught by
 our second line of ,royal ,dragoons1   
#eth ,dragoon ,guards and               
,inniskillings2 and were rolled up and  
ridden over in an awful confusion4      
,these heavy blows seemed to send the   
great ,russian mass staggering          
backwards1 when at this critical moment 
two more squadrons of ,heavies1         
belonging to the #dth ,dragoon ,guards1 
suddenly plunged into the right flank of
 the ,russian column1 and completed its 
break-up4  ,it reeled again1 and in a   
few minutes more was gradually melting  
and spreading over the hills behind in  
hurried flight from the battlefield4    
,and the thin red line was saved4  ,the 
whole fight had lasted only eight       

minutes1 the ,british loss was fifty    
killed and wounded1 while the ,russians 
lost about four hundred4  ,this battle1 
like ,trafalgar and like many other     
,british victories1 showed that1 with   
good1 plucky leaders1 backed up by men  
who can be trusted to obey their orders1
 we could attack overwhelming forces    
against us and come out victorious every
 time4  ,without discipline it could    
never have been done4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,loyalty ,,of ,,jack ,,tars4  ,sir     
,christopher ,myngs was one of the tough
 sea-dogs of the ,british ,navy in the  
old days4  ,he was killed in action at  
sea in #afff4 ,he had been wounded by a 
bullet in the throat1 but he held the   
wound together with his fingers and went
 on fighting till a second shot struck  
him1 and he shortly afterwards died of  
his wounds4 ,he was a splendid leader1  
brave and strict1 and beloved by his    
men4  ,his body was brought ashore to be
 buried in ,london1 and at the funeral a

 party of sailors came up to the        
carriage in which ,sir ,w4 ,coventry    
sat1 and the leader of them1 with tears 
in his eyes1 asked him to beg of the    
,king to give them an old ship which    
they might use as a fire-ship1 and with 
which they might sail into the middle of
 the enemy's fleet and set fire to it4  
,they would1 of course1 all lose their  
lives in doing this1 but they did not   
mind so long as they could avenge the   
death of their beloved leader4  ,it was 
a fine spirit of loyalty to their chief 
which led these simple seamen to do     
this1 and their loyalty--not the spirit 
of revenge--is an example to all to be  
loyal to their chief in whatever line   
they may be4 ,don't look out for faults 
in him2 note his good points1 and stick 
to him through thick and thin1 for the  
good of what you and he are doing       
together whether it is defending your   
,country or running a big business4     
,,usefulness  ,law #c4 ,a ,,scout',s    
,,duty ,,is ,,to ,,be ,,useful ,,and    

,,to ,,help ,,others4  ,and he is to do 
his duty before anything else1 even     
though he gives up his own pleasure or  
comfort or safety to do it4 ,when in    
difficulty to know which of two things  
to do1 he must ask himself1 ,which is my
 duty8 that is1 ,which is best for other
 people8--and do that one4  ,he must ,be
 ,prepared at any time to save life or  
to help injured persons4  ,and must try 
his best to do a good turn to somebody  
every day4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,,do ,,it ,,now4  ,once    
when driving in my car ,i passed a man  
on a sunny1 dusty road1 and ,i thought  
after ,i had passed him whether ,i might
 not have offered to give him a lift4   
,then ,i thought probably he would be   
only going a short distance to some     
house a little farther along the road4  
,as ,i sped farther and farther upon my 
way1 ,i saw no house and no turning1 and
 therefore ,i argued that the poor man  
would have to be walking all this dusty 
way when ,i might have given him a lift4

  ,but while ,i sat all this time       
thinking1 my car was rushing me miles   
away from the spot4 ,eventually ,i made 
up my mind that ,i ought to go back and 
do my good turn to the man4 ,but ,i had 
gone so far that when ,i got back again 
to where ,i expected to find him1 he was
 not to be seen4 ,he had evidently taken
 some short cut across the fields1 and  
,i never saw him again4  ,but the memory
 of it lingered in my mind for a long   
time1 and ever since that1 when driving 
along1 ,i have been quick to make up my 
mind and use the opportunity when it has
 presented itself1 of giving a lift to  
any weary wayfarer4  ,i don't want to   
make out myself as being so very good   
for doing this kind of good turn1 for   
that is easy enough with a motor-car2   
but what ,i do want to point out is that
 you should never let your chance go by1
 else you may regret it1 as it might not
 occur again4 ,your motto should be--,do
 it now4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,,good ,,turns4  ,always   

remember that in going through this     
world we only pass this way once1 and if
 we miss our chance it never comes      
again4  ,i believe that our first       
business in life is to be happy4 ,this  
world with all its beauties and its     
sunshine of happiness was meant for us  
to enjoy4 ,when clouds come over with   
grief or pain1 they are only the        
contrasts to show us what true happiness
 is and to make us appreciate it when it
 comes4  ,the shortest and most certain 
way to happiness is to make other people
 happy4 ,even if we cannot make them    
happy1 we can at least be helpful to    
them4 ,but so often we forget to do     
this1 or1 as ,i did in the motor-car1   
leave it till too late1 and let the     
chance slip by4  ,in order to be        
continually happy1 the thing is to be   
continually doing good turns4 ,to get a 
habit you must at first carry out a     
great deal of practice1 and that is why 
it is part of the ,scout ,law to do a   
good turn every day4  ,at first it may  

come a little difficult to remember each
 day that you have this duty to do1 and 
you may have some trouble in finding a  
job that will be helpful to other people
 but if you stick to it1 and force      
yourself to do it day by day1 it very   
soon grows into a habit with you1 and   
you then find how many little things you
 can do which all count as good turns   
although small in themselves4  ,i could 
tell you endless yarns of the different 
kinds of good turns which the ,boy      
,scouts have done1 but one of the most  
pleasing that ,i have heard lately was  
when a ,scout carefully placed a piece  
of orange peel on the pavement1 and when
 asked why he had done this1 said3  ,i  
am doing a good turn to some other      
,scout by giving him the opportunity of 
doing his good turn by removing that    
orange peel so that people will not slip
 on it6         99       99       99    
99       99  ,,an ,,awful ,,accident4   
,a poor fellow was lying pretty badly   
hurt when ,i came upon him one          

afternoon4 ,his left leg was broken1 and
 an artery in his right arm was cut     
through1 while he was evidently badly   
burnt about the chest4  ,how it all     
happened ,i didn't stop to inquire--,i  
merely looked at the steps which had    
already been taken to doctor him4 ,his  
arm was bound up with a handkerchief    
tourniquet1 twisted tight with a stick1 
to stop the blood squirting from the    
artery2 his leg was bound between two   
straight bits of wood2 and his tummy was
 covered with a mixture of wool1 oil1   
and flour1 which suggested that with a  
little more roasting the patient would  
have made a good pie6  ,i need scarcely 
add there was not much the matter with  
him except that he belonged to a patrol 
of ,boy ,scouts who were practising     
first aid4  ,in the same troop another  
patrol were cooking a very savoury      
,irish stew1 mixing dough on a haversack
 7which1 ,i think1 is quite as good as  
my way of doing it inside my coat671 and
 baking bread in an oven made out of an 

old biscuit tin1 and roasting twists    
made on stakes planted near the fire4   
7,for ,tenderfoots1 anxious for details 
as to how these things are done1 ,i     
recommend a study of the chapter on camp
 cooking in ,scouting for ,boys47  ,the 
point about this cooking was that the   
food was being really well cooked1 and  
fit for anyone to eat with enjoyment4   
,in the same troop signallers were at   
work sending and receiving messages4    
,and also one of their horsemen was     
there to act as mounted dispatch rider1 
with a smart pony which he was able to  
saddle and look after as well as to     
ride4 ,nearly every ,scout in this troop
 was a ,first ,class ,scout1 of an      
average age of thirteen4  ,two hundred  
yards from their little camp was another
 troop of younger ,scouts1 of about     
eleven years of age4 ,all were busy     
cooking their teas at numerous little   
camp fires at the time when ,i saw them1
 and made a most picturesque scene4     
,then a third troop had its camp in a   

different spot1 where three patrols of  
boys of about fifteen years of age were 
collected4 ,fine1 strapping1 long-limbed
 types of ,britons4 ,it was a pleasure  
to see them going ,scout pace across the
 grass1 and a still greater pleasure    
when ,i found that they were as good    
,scouts as they looked4 ,nearly all were
 ,first ,class ,scouts4 ,i was invited  
to hand out to them the ,efficiency     
,badges they had been winning4  ,these  
included quite a number of ,first       
,class1 ,cyclists'1 ,firemen's1         
,musicians'1 ,electricians'1 ,cooks'1   
etc4  ,i had just said a few words to   
the troop of my pleasure at seeing them 
so smart and so efficient1 when the     
alarm was given that the school         
buildings were on fire4 ,a few brief    
words of command were given by the      
,scoutmaster1 and each patrol streaked  
off in a different direction at a great 
pace4 ,we hurried to the scene of the   
outbreak1 and had just time to see 7in  
our mind's eye only7 dense clouds of    

smoke with tongues of flame and showers 
of sparks bursting from the doomed      
building1 while the windows were alive  
with terrified women and screaming      
children--that is what we were          
picturing--when out came a knot of      
,scouts running the fire-hose into      
position1 and joining it up from one    
part of the building1 while from another
 there came a second patrol trundling   
along the great giraffe-like            
fire-escape4 ,within four minutes of the
 alarm the leading fireman was up on the
 ladder directing the nozzle of the     
hose-pipe with a strong jet of water on 
the windows of the 7supposed7 burning   
chamber4  ,it was all very smartly1     
quickly1 and quietly carried out1 and   
the patrols thoroughly deserved the     
,firemen's ,badges which they had won4  
,denstone ,college1 where ,i saw all    
this1 is one of the great schools which 
have taken up scouting as a sport and   
training for their boys2 and the        
results1 according to the masters who   

act as ,scoutmasters1 are most          
satisfactory4         99       99       
99       99       99  ,,scouts' ,,good  
,,turns4  ,recently1 all in the one day1
 ,i came across three cases of ,scouts  
doing their duty4  ,one lady told me    
that when travelling in a crowded train 
she and her daughter were put into a    
carriage which was already crammed full 
of boys4  ,she did not like it a bit at 
first1 but she soon found the difference
 between ,scouts and boys4 ,these were  
,scouts1 and they at once helped the    
ladies and their baggage into the       
carriage1 and then made plenty of room  
for them by sitting on each other's     
knees1 and kept order and behaved so    
nicely that she fell in love with all of
 them1 and talked with them and found   
them quite charming and gentlemanly4    
,another lady told me that some ,scouts 
had asked leave to camp in her grounds1 
and as she has allowed boys to do this  
for some years past1 she did not like to
 refuse them3 at the same time she was  

not very glad to have them1 because she 
had found it expensive and troublesome  
every year to have to get the           
camping-ground cleaned up and set right 
after they had gone4  ,the day after the
 ,scouts had finished their camp1 she   
sent as usual some men to work on the   
camp-ground1 when to her astonishment1  
they came back and said there was no    
work to be done there1 the ground was   
all clean1 rubbish and ashes removed1   
and turf replaced4 ,and then she        
remembered that these were ,scouts1 not 
ordinary boys1 who had been camping     
there--and she will be glad to see them 
there again whenever they like to come6 
,the weather this morning was           
beautifully hot and fine1 but in the    
afternoon it suddenly changed to cold1  
windy1 and steady rain4 ,numbers of     
ladies and children had gone out for a  
day on the beach or in the country4 ,in 
one case a woman and her two children   
had to come back part of the way in an  
open boat1 and then in a steam-launch1  

in their summer clothes1 without        
umbrellas or waterproofs4  ,a ,scout who
 was there seemed to have foreseen bad  
weather1 as he had two waterproof coats1
 and he gave up one and offered it to   
cover the children4  ,well6 you would   
say1 that is easy enough1 and he kept   
himself dry and snug in the other4  ,no1
 he didn't1 he put that on the woman1   
and went and did the best he could for  
himself on the lee side of the deck2 he 
put a smile on and pretended that a cold
 trickle down the back is a good thing  
for the complexion2 and that is what any
 other ,scout would have done in the    
circumstances4         99       99      
99       99       99  ,,gallantry ,,of  
,,boy ,,scouts ,,in ,,helping ,,the     
,,police4  ,on different occasions ,i   
have had the pleasure of issuing ,silver
 ,medals to ,scouts for gallantry in    
saving life or assisting the police4    
,scoutmaster ,crowther1 of the          
,huddersfield ,boy ,scouts1 went to the 
assistance of a police constable who was

 being violently assaulted by some      
roughs in a slum4 ,although he was      
knocked about himself in doing so1      
,crowther managed to help the officer1  
and1 by blowing his whistle1 to get more
 police on to the scene4 ,the principal 
offenders were arrested1 and ultimately 
got six months' imprisonment from the   
magistrate1 who at the same time highly 
complimented ,mr4 ,crowther on his      
plucky action4  ,scout ,p4 ,l4 ,g4      
,brown1 of the #gth 7,all ,saints7      
,southampton ,troop1 did much the same  
thing4 ,he saw a police constable       
struggling with four violent roughs1    
and1 although there was a hostile crowd 
round them1 ,brown remembered his duty  
and dashed in to help the officer4      
,although he got a kick on the knee1 he 
was able to get hold of the policeman's 
whistle and to blow it1 and in this way 
brought more police upon the scene1 so  
that the four men were arrested and     
punished4  ,brown himself went away     
without giving his name or making any   

fuss about what he had done1 but he was 
discovered and later on received the    
,silver ,medal4  ,then1 when ,i was     
reviewing the ,gateshead ,scouts1 ,i    
heard of the case of two ,boy ,scouts   
being rewarded by the magistrate for    
their gallantry in assisting the police4
  ,the ,scouts of ,newton ,abbot were at
 hand when a motor-car dashed into a    
cart1 smashing it up and injuring the   
two occupants4 ,the ,scouts detained the
 car2 and although the motorists        
endeavoured to drive off1 they put their
 staves between the spokes of the wheels
 and hung on and prevented the car      
getting away until the police came up   
and took charge4  ,it was splendid how  
these ,scouts showed such pluck and     
readiness in helping the ,king's        
officers4 ,they got knocked about in    
doing so1 but what are a few bruises8   
,they wore off in a few days2 but the   
thing that won't wear off is the        
satisfaction that each one of those     
,scouts will feel for the rest of his   

life--namely1 that he did his duty4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,scout ,,of ,,labrador4  ,dr4    
,wilfred ,grenfell is an ideal type of  
peace ,scout1 and during his labours as 
a missionary in ,labrador he has had    
many adventures4  ,on one occasion he   
had to visit a sick man at a place two  
days' journey from where he lived1 and  
he started off with his sledge and team 
of dogs1 to cross a frozen arm of the   
sea1 which would save him a long journey
 round by land4 ,but it was in the month
 of ,april1 when the sea ice was        
beginning to get treacherous and to     
break up4  ,the distance across the ice 
was about seven miles1 with an island   
about half-way4  ,he reached the island 
all right1 and was pushing on from there
 to the opposite mainland1 when he found
 that the ice was becoming rotten and   
soft--what is called sish--that is1     
pounded ice formed from big slabs which 
have been ground together by the action 
of the sea4  ,as he found himself       

sinking in this1 together with his      
sledge1 he slipped off his heavy        
oilskins and coat1 and quickly got out  
his knife and cut the traces of his     
dog-team1 winding the leader's trace    
round his wrist4  ,in this way he was   
himself pulled along by the dogs        
plunging through the slush4 ,the leading
 dog got on to a solid ice-floe1 and    
,grenfell was gladly hauling himself up 
to him by the trace1 when the dog       
slipped all his harness off1 and his    
master was left1 sinking among the other
 dogs in the sish4  ,then he luckily    
caught the trace of another1 and pulled 
himself along that till he managed to   
get on to the block of ice1 on to which 
he helped the rest of the dogs4  ,but it
 was quite a small block1 which would   
soon break up1 so he saw that the only  
chance was to struggle on through the   
porridge-ice till he could reach a      
bigger floe1 which could serve as a raft
 for him4  ,he did not1 as some people  
might have done1 give up all hope2 he   

wasn't going to say die till he was     
dead4  ,so he took off his gauntlets and
 moccasins and packed them on to the    
dogs' backs1 then he secured their      
harness so that it could not slip off1  
and tied the traces round his wrists so 
that the team would drag him through2   
then he tried to start4  ,but the dogs  
did not like facing the danger1 and he  
had to push them off the block2 even    
then they only struggled to get back1   
till a particularly favourite dog       
understanding him when he threw a bit of
 ice on to another pan or block8        
started1 and so led the others to get to
 it4  ,in this way1 dragging their      
master after them1 the dogs struggled   
from pan to pan1 till at last they      
reached one larger than the rest1 about 
ten feet by twelve in size4  ,it was not
 real solid ice1 but a block of powdered
 ice1 which might fall to bits at any   
time4 ,still1 it was the best they could
 get1 and with the rising wind and      
current it soon floated with them on to 

more open water1 and began to drift away
 from the shore and down the coast4 ,so 
they had no choice but to make the best 
of a very poor substitute for a raft4   
,the cold was intense1 and poor         
,grenfell1 like a clever ,scout1 at once
 thought out a plan for making himself a
 coat4 ,his moccasins were long1 soft   
boots made of sealskin reaching to the  
thigh1 so he slit these up with his     
knife1 and1 by means of a bit of line1  
he made them into a kind of cape to put 
on his back4  ,hours passed1 and they   
kept drifting out from the coast1 and   
night was approaching4  ,then he saw    
that he must have more clothing1 and    
also that he and the dogs must have some
 food the only thing to do was to       
sacrifice one of his beloved team4 ,so  
he made a noose with one of the traces1 
and slipped it over a dog's neck1 and   
tied it to his own foot2 then1 holding  
its head down in this way1 he threw the 
dog on its back1 and stabbed it to the  
heart4  ,two more were killed in the    

same way4 ,then he skinned them and     
stitched their hides together with thin 
strips of leather1 and thus made himself
 a coat1 with the fur inside4  ,all the 
clothes he had had on till then were    
some old football things he had come    
across that morning in his house4 ,a    
pair of football shorts and stockings of
 the ,richmond ,football ,club 7red1    
yellow1 and black71 and a flannel shirt 
and sweater1 so he was practically in   
,boy ,scout's kit rather than what you  
would expect a missionary-doctor to be  
wearing4  ,but then1 you see1 he was    
quite as much a ,scout as he was a      
doctor or missionary2 and we understand 
from this story how1 like a ,scout1 he  
was able to turn his hand to anything   
and invent for himself the different    
means for saving his life although he   
was all alone with his dogs on a small  
lump of rotten ice floating past the    
coast of ,labrador4  ,there was one     
little point in which1 perhaps1 a ,boy  
,scout could have helped him had he been

 there4 ,as darkness came on1 he thought
 he would light up a flare1 which would 
catch the attention of anyone on shore1 
so he frayed out a piece of rope and    
smeared it with the fat of the dead     
dogs1 and was about to light it when he 
found that his matches had got wet1 and 
in that damp air he could not get them  
dry4  ,i wonder whether he thought of   
the ,scout's dodge of drying them in his
 hair for a minute or two8              
,illustration3 ,dr4 ,grenfell as he     
appeared on the ice-floe1 with a cloak  
of dog-skins1 and puttees made of       
flannel taken from a dog's traces4 ,he  
used his shirt for a flag1 and made a   
flagstaff of frozen dogs' legs4  ,in    
order to keep warm he used one of the   
dead dogs as a seat1 with the other dogs
 hugged close round him for warmth4 ,his
 feet being in thin moccasins1 which    
easily got wet through1 were freezing   
with cold till he thought of an idea for
 keeping them warm4  ,he had seen the   
,laplanders put a lot of grass into     

their boots before pulling them on1 and 
then filling up the legs with as much   
more grass as they could cram in4       
,there was not much grass growing on his
 ice-floe1 so ,grenfell had to invent   
something to use in place of it2 he cut 
from the dogs' traces some flannel with 
which they were lined to prevent        
chafing1 and with this he stuffed the   
moccasins1 and so made them warmer1 and 
then bound the remainder round his knees
 as puttees4  ,in this way he got       
sufficient warmth to enable him to      
sleep4 ,towards morning he awoke with   
the idea that he must make something in 
the way of a flag to attract the notice 
of people on shore1 and to show them    
that there was someone in distress on   
the ice4  ,the question was1 how to make
 a flagstaff8 ,i wonder whether a ,boy  
,scout could have seen a way8  ,grenfell
 took the frozen legs of the three dead 
dogs1 and bound them together with      
strips of raw hide1 and thus            
manufactured a staff1 on to which he    

then tied his shirt to act as a flag4   
,it worked very well till the sun rose1 
and then the legs began to melt a       
little1 and the flagstaff became a very 
wobbly one2 and1 as the ,doctor         
describes it1 almost tied itself into   
knots4  ,like a true ,scout1 ,grenfell  
never despaired2 he kept thinking out   
different ways by which he might survive
 the danger4  ,he thought of setting    
light to some unravelled rope by using a
 piece of ice to act as a burning glass4
 ,in this way he hoped to attract the   
attention of the people on shore by a   
smoke signal2 but1 while he was busy    
preparing it1 he saw the distant sparkle
 of what looked like an oar from a boat1
 presently he saw it again1 and soon he 
could see the boat itself4  ,his flag   
had been seen by the fishermen1 and they
 pushed out in their boat through the   
frozen ice till they got him and his    
faithful dogs all safely aboard4  ,one  
man had seen him the night before just  
as it was getting dark1 and had spread  

the news down the coast1 so that all the
 time1 though he did not know it1       
anxious eyes were watching him4  ,the   
only difficulty was to get a boat       
through the mass of broken ice-floes and
 drifting ice1 which covered the heaving
 surface of the sea between him and the 
shore1 but pluck and strong arms did it4
  ,in the end his rescuers brought him  
safely ashore1 where every man1 woman   
and child in the settlement was on the  
beach to welcome him with cheers        
and--many of them--with tears of joy4   
,doctor ,grenfell says that during the  
whole of this terrible experience he did
 not once feel fear4 ,he felt that he   
would probably lie down and sleep his   
last sleep on that ice-floe2 the thought
 did not disturb him very much4  ,at the
 same time1 he did feel something of    
that regret which comes to all people   
when dying1 and that was the remembrance
 of how much time he had wasted 7even   
he67 when he had life and opportunities 
for doing good for other people1 and how

 he had let his opportunities slide by  
without doing so much as he might have  
done4  ,so keep on doing good turns     
every minute whenever you can get a     
chance of doing them1 and then when you 
are face to face with death1 you will be
 able to say3  ,well1 ,i did my best to 
do my duty4 ,i did not waste much time  
on other things4         99       99    
99       99       99  ,a ,,plucky ,,boy 
,,scout4  ,it is not always in the field
 of action that ,scouts can show their  
heroism2 sometimes it is at home or in  
their private life1 where their deeds   
are not so much seen4 ,here is a case3  
,patrol ,leader ,leonard ,sanderson1 of 
the #ast ,jesmond ,troop1 met with a bad
 lift accident1 and smashed his thigh4  
,but even when in awful pain1 and in the
 shock of the sudden accident1 he made  
light of it for fear of worrying his    
parents4 ,then he was for many weeks in 
hospital1 and had to undergo several    
operations1 but he was always cheerful  
and patient4  ,many presents of fruit   

came to him1 but1 like a true ,scout he 
shared them with the other patients4 ,he
 made toys for the sick children1 and   
helped the nurses to roll bandages4 ,he 
never forgot his duty as a ,scout1 and  
proved himself a good example for others
 to follow4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,a ,,scout ,,who    
,,was ,a ,,scamp4  ,the boy who stopped 
the runaway horse would never have done 
it if he had not been a ,scout4 ,he was 
formerly a first-class young scamp and  
always in some mischief4  ,that is what 
the report says of him4  ,but that is   
what happens when a lad becomes a       
,scout2 he is no longer a fool-boy1 who 
goes about yelling aimlessly and making 
himself a nuisance to everybody4        
,instead of that he smartens into a     
manly fellow1 ready at any moment to    
give a helping hand to anybody who wants
 it1 and without taking any reward for  
it1 and without thinking how poor or    
rich1 how old or young the person may   
be4  ,i was talking once to a well-known

 nobleman1 who told me that he broke his
 leg not long ago1 and when it was      
getting right his doctor advised him to 
go and walk a little every day with two 
sticks to support him4  ,he accordingly 
went to ,hampstead ,heath1 and was      
waddling along quite comfortably1 an    
inch at a time1 when a patrol of ,scouts
 came up1 and the ,leader saluted and   
said3  ,may we help you1 sir8 ,we could 
make a stretcher out of our coats and   
staves1 and carry you4  ,the ,duke said 
that when he looked at the boys and     
thought of them trying to carry him--for
 he is not a small man--he nearly       
laughed aloud2 but as it was he thanked 
them very much and told them how he was 
walking purposely to get his leg into   
working order4  ,this kind intention1   
however1 has given the ,scouts a warm   
place in his heart4         99       99 
99       99       99  ,,tracking        
,,exercise4  ,when ,i am walking along a
 road or path1 ,i generally do a little 
tracking every day1 because it is only  

by constant practice that a fellow can  
learn tracking or can keep his eye in   
when he has learnt it4 ,it is quite easy
 and simple to do1 only ,scouts often do
 not think of doing it4  ,here1 for     
instance1 is what ,i did one morning4   
,there is nothing wonderful in it1 but  
,scouts will understand all the better  
that such practice should be an everyday
 matter1 and not merely attempted on    
some great occasion4 ,it is bound to be 
a failure then if it has not been       
regularly gone in for before4  ,my      
practice was on an ordinary country     
road1 dry and hard1 with a slight layer 
of dust in most places1 up and down     
hill2 between high hedges2 no wind      
7wind1 you know1 soon flattens out      
tracks in dust and makes them look much 
older than they really are74  ,at about 
eight o'clock in the morning1 as ,i     
passed from one field to another1 ,i    
crossed the main road at the point where
 it reached the top of a hill4  ,i read 
some news on the ground1 and this is    

what it said  ,mrs4 ,sharp is ill this  
morning2 and ,johnny ,milne has been to 
the railway station to fetch some       
newspapers4  ,this was how ,i got at it4
  ,there were only two fresh tracks4    
,one was of a boy walking and the other 
of a bicycle4  ,the boy's footmarks     
showed a nailed boot1 not big enough for
 a man1 walking along the road which led
 to the school and to the railway       
station4 ,it was ,saturday1 a whole     
holiday1 so he could not be going to    
school2 he would therefore be going to  
the station4  ,why to the station8      
,because at #g4cc the train came with   
the newspapers1 and there were his      
tracks going back again1 7,they         
occasionally overtrod the outgoing      
footprints47  ,one boy in the village1  
,johnny ,milne1 was employed by the shop
 to fetch the papers from the train4    
,so if the train were punctual he would 
have passed this spot on his way back   
about twenty minutes later2 that was at 
seven minutes to eight4  ,illustration3 

,mrs4 ,sharp is ill1 and ,johnny ,milne 
has brought the newspapers from the     
station4  ,now1 the bicycle track showed
 that the machine was ridden up the hill
 7the track zig-zagged along the road1  
whereas if it had been running downhill 
it would have gone pretty straight71 the
 rider getting very tired 7more zig-zag7
 near the top4 ,there the bicycle had   
stopped 7sharp turn and slither of the  
wheels in the sand71 and the rider had  
got off to rest4 ,it was a woman 7small 
foot1 no nail marks1 small1 sharp heel74
  ,she had stood a short time 7footmarks
 on top of each other71 and had then    
remounted and ridden on4 ,she had passed
 this spot between #g4ae and ten minutes
 to eight4 7,the bicycle tracks had     
passed over ,johnny ,milne's outgoing   
track of #g3ae1 but his returning       
footmarks of ten minutes to eight       
overtrod the cycle tracks1 so they had  
been made since it passed47  ,what lady 
would be cycling along this road at that
 hour of the morning8 7,a rather stout  

lady1 too1 judging from the breadth of  
her foot and the fact that she had to   
rest on arriving at the top of the      
hill47  ,the road led to a cottage where
 lived ,mrs4 ,sharp1 who was not very   
well4  ,the lady must surely be ,mrs4   
,clarke1 the matronly district nurse on 
her bicycle going to see ,mrs4 ,sharp   
and she was still there 7as there were  
no return wheel marks74  ,that is how a 
,scout can read news from the ground1   
and1 though this morning's news was not 
important1 it is always worth while to  
practise reading1 because some day you  
will probably want to pick up some      
important information1 and it is only   
everyday practice that will enable you  
to do it4   ,,friendliness  ,law #d4 ,a 
,,scout ,,is ,a ,,friend ,,to ,,all and 
a ,brother to every other ,scout1 no    
matter to what social class the other   
belongs4  ,if a ,scout meets another    
,scout1 even though a stranger to him1  
he must speak to him and help him in any
 way that he can1 either to carry out   

the duty he is then doing1 or by giving 
him food1 or1 so far as possible1       
anything that he may be in want of4  ,a 
,scout must never be a snob4  ,a snob is
 one who looks down upon another because
 he's poorer1 or who is poor and resents
 another because he is rich4 ,a ,scout  
accepts the other man as he finds him   
and makes the best of him--  ,kim1 the  
boy scout1 was called by the ,indians   
,little friend of all the world1 and    
that is the name which every ,scout     
should earn for himself4  ,the ,arabs of
 the desert are some of the finest      
,scouts in the world1 not only because  
they are brave and manly fellows who can
 shift for themselves1 but also because 
they are gentlemen at heart1 kind to    
strangers1 and men of honour4  ,when you
 come to an ,arab encampment1 he does   
not ask whether you are rich or lowly   
born4 ,once you are within the          
neighbourhood of his tent1 he expects   
you to be his guest1 and while you are  
with him he will do everything that he  

can to protect you from your enemies4   
,these kindly people1 who always live in
 tents1 have a habit of using very long 
tent ropes for the support of their     
tents1 and these stretch out some       
distance on to the plain around their   
encampment4  ,this is done in order that
 any stranger passing near will find    
himself within the ,arab's tent         
ropes--which means that he must come and
 be his guest4 ,he expects you to stay  
with him for about five days1 during    
which time he feeds you1 houses you1 and
 protects you1 and he expects no kind of
 payment when you depart4  ,one of his  
first acts when you come into his camp  
is to offer you water4 ,this is partly  
in order that you may refresh yourself1 
but it is also a secret sign meaning    
that he will not betray you4  ,it is    
considered bad form to decline          
hospitality offered in this way1 and    
even if you are in a hurry you must     
suppress your own desire to get forward 
in order to be courteous to the man who 

wishes to be your host4  ,the ,arabs    
have a saying1 ,none but the base and   
ungrateful refuse generosity2 but this  
does not mean that he will take a reward
 for being kind to you4 ,to offer a tip 
is to insult him1 and ,i hope that ,boy 
,scouts will take it in the same light4 
,if you pitch your tent near that of an 
,arab1 and become good friends with him1
 he will alter his tent-pegs so that    
they come within the line of your own   
and the tent ropes cross each other4    
,this again is a secret sign which means
 that he and those who live in his tent 
are for ever friends of you and any who 
are living with you4  ,arabs are        
honourable fellows1 and may be trusted  
to stick to such understanding4  ,one   
point in which an ,arab shows himself   
more of a gentleman than1 say1 the      
,germans in ,south-west ,africa1 is that
 he will never poison wells1 even though
 he knows his enemy may use them4  ,true
 comradeship does not take any account  
of what the other fellow's position in  

life may be4  ,i remember that when ,i  
took a troop of ,boy ,scouts to ,canada1
 they all worked in pairs during the    
whole of the trip1 and one of these     
pairs consisted of two boys who were    
respectively the son of an ,earl and the
 son of a sergeant in an infantry       
regiment4 ,yet1 although they had been  
brought up on totally different lines1  
they were boys1 they were ,scouts1 they 
were not snobs1 and they were the best  
of pals4  ,and we see very much the same
 thing at the ,front to-day1 where1 in  
the ranks of every battalion1 are to be 
found men of every class and standing-- 
,cook's son1 duke's son1 son of a belted
 earl6  ,and so1 too1 between officers  
and men there is a splendid feeling of  
comradeship1 each working for the other 
so far as he possibly can4 ,and that is 
a result that the ,germans cannot       
possibly arrive at1 for the one reason  
that they are not gentlemen4  ,i hope to
 see this spirit kept up and            
strengthened by the ,scouts1 and        

especially that rule which makes a      
,scout a friend to every other ,scout1  
no matter what his class1 creed1 or     
country may be4 ,i am certain that if   
this rule is carried out in full it will
 be a very great help after the war     
towards bringing real peace between the 
different nations1 since the ,boy       
,scouts in each will be true friends and
 comrades to those in the others4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,,doctoring ,,the ,,natives4  ,a ,scout 
ought to know a little about most       
injuries and diseases1 and to be able to
 treat them4 ,in uncivilised countries  
the natives all look on a white man as a
 born doctor1 and they bring you cases  
of every kind to deal with4  ,when ,i   
was in ,kashmir1 a lad was brought to me
 who had just fallen down a steep bank4 
,he was in great pain1 and his friends  
and relatives were already considering  
him as good as dead4 ,on examination1 ,i
 found no bones broken1 but his right   
shoulder out of joint at the socket4 ,so

 ,i told them to lay him flat on his    
back1 and ,i began to take off my right 
shoe1 or rather the grass sandal that ,i
 was wearing4  ,some of the bystanders1 
seeing me do this1 said3 ,oh6 he is     
going to pray1 and immediately began    
unfastening my other sandal for me4     
,you see1 these people take off their   
shoes when they go into church or to    
pray1 just as we take off our hats4 ,but
 ,i wasn't going to pray1 and only took 
my right sandal off4  ,then ,i sat down 
alongside the patient1 facing towards   
his head1 my right leg against his right
 side1 so that my heel came into the    
armpit of the injured shoulder1 ,i got  
one of his friends to sit on the other  
side of him to hold him down2 then      
catching tight hold of his wrist with   
both hands1 ,i gave a long1 steady1     
strong pull at his arm1 using my heel as
 a lever1 till the shoulder suddenly    
clicked into its place again4 ,such a   
nice feeling to me1 just as if ,i had   
hooked a salmon6  ,then he fainted4     

,his mother howled8 and said ,i had made
 a nice mess of the job1 and had killed 
him4 ,but ,i grinned and put on my      
sandal1 and told her that was all part  
of the show1 and that ,i would now bring
 him to life quite sound and well1 which
 ,i proceeded to do by sprinkling a     
little water over his face4 ,he         
gradually came to his senses1 and then  
found that his arm was practically all  
right4  ,his own astonishment and theirs
 was very great1 and within half an hour
 my tent was full of fruit and chickens 
and eggs as thank-offerings4  ,but      
during the next three days all the sick1
 the maimed1 and the blind were brought 
in from the country round for me to     
cure4 ,you never saw such a lot4 ,men1  
women1 and children with every          
conceivable ailment1 including bad eyes1
 which ,i treated by bathing with warm  
weak tea4 ,one poor chap had had half   
his face bitten off by a bear1 losing   
his eye and the whole of his cheek1 so  
that all his teeth were showing in a    

horrible grin--the more horrible because
 the wound had never been properly      
dressed4  ,then one enormously fat man  
asked me to do something for him4 ,now1 
what would you have done in such a case8
 ,i only had some lead lotion1 some     
disinfectant1 and a few mustard poultice
 leaves4 ,so ,i gave him one of these   
mustard leaves1 and told him if that    
wouldn't cure him ,i didn't know what   
would1 and in saying that ,i was        
speaking the exact truth4 ,i told him to
 wet it and put it on his chest when he 
went to bed4  ,next day he came with    
tears of gratitude and said ,i had done 
more for him in one night than all the  
doctors had done for him in years4 ,he  
felt that he was already growing        
thinner4  ,i moved my camp twenty miles 
off that day1 as ,i thought it better to
 get away while ,i had such a good      
reputation1 and1 besides1 they were     
beginning to bring in patients from all 
over the district1 and ,i had nothing to
 cure them with4  ,but that is the kind 

of thing you may expect when you are    
travelling1 and you should learn while  
you can how to deal with the usual      
ailments1 so that you can be of some    
help to the poor creatures when you come
 across them4         99       99       
99       99       99  ,,the ,,swastika4 
,all the nations of the world have      
customs of their own1 which bear a      
curious resemblance to each other4 ,for 
instance1 when a ,zulu has to undertake 
the dangerous job of crawling up to a   
lion1 he likes to dress himself in his  
war-paint before beginning4  ,that same 
sort of idea is to be found in other    
parts of the world4 ,even in our own    
country1 not one hundred years ago1 our 
sailors1 before going into action with  
an enemy1 always liked to wash and shave
 themselves1 tie their pigtails nattily1
 and put on their best neckerchiefs4    
,and even now in ,canada the ,cree      
,indians1 when they are hunting a bear1 
put on their best clothes and decorate  
themselves before tackling the danger4  

,illustration3 ,,the ,,swastika4  ,so   
you see we are all alike in some ways in
 different parts of the world4 ,if you  
sneeze in ,scotland people say3 ,god    
bless you4 ,if you sneeze in ,masailand 
7,british ,east-,africa7 a native will  
say3 ,good health to you6  ,there are   
hundreds of these little customs which  
are used by people in different corners 
of the earth who have never had anything
 to do with each other4  ,but perhaps   
the most wonderful of all is the sign of
 the ,swastika1 which we ,scouts use as 
our ,badge of ,brotherhood4  ,nobody    
knows the exact history of where it came
 from1 or what it means2 but it is found
 in almost every part of the world1 and 
is very1 very old4  ,rudyard ,kipling   
believes it was made by a man in ancient
 days1 who put two twigs crossed on the 
ground and trod them down into the mud  
so as to leave a mark to act as a guide 
to others1 like a ,scout's ground-mark4 
,but another story is this3  ,where the 
,atlantic ,ocean now is1 people in old  

days believed that there was a great    
land called ,atlantis1 which has since  
sunk under the sea4  ,this land was     
watered by four great rivers1 which ran 
across the whole in different           
directions--north1 south1 east1 and     
west4 ,this cross is meant for the four 
rivers1 and is the crest of the         
,continent of ,atlantis4  ,but whatever 
the meaning of it was1 the ,swastika    
,cross is found in all parts of the     
world as an ancient mark4  ,thus1 in    
,norway it appears on the sword-scabbard
 of the ancient ,norsemen as a sign to  
bring good luck2 also in ,iceland1      
,germany1 and ,france on old pottery4   
,in the south it is found in ,west      
,africa1 in ,greece1 and ,egypt4  ,in   
the west it is found in ,america1 in    
,arizona1 and ,mexico1 and ,south       
,america4  ,and in the east in ,india1  
,tibet1 ,japan1 ,china1 and ,persia4    
,thus1 it stands for ,europe1 ,asia1    
,africa1 and ,america--all the world2   
and it is1 in each of them1 considered  

to be a sign of friendliness and good   
wishes4  ,that is how we come to use it 
in the ,scouts1 whose business is to do 
good turns and to help other people     
wherever we may be4  ,when1 therefore1  
we want to show particular goodwill to  
anyone1 especially those who have done  
us a good turn1 we give to them a       
,swastika1 or ,badge of ,brotherhood1 to
 wear4 ,this makes them members of the  
brotherhood of ,scouts1 although they   
are not actual ,scouts themselves2 and  
when they show their badge to a ,scout  
he will do all he can to help them in   
whatever part of the world they may be4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,,our ,,buttonhole ,,badge4  ,i expect  
most ,scouts have found1 like ,i have   
done1 that wherever you go in the       
streets1 or in a strange town1 or far   
out in the country1 you come across a   
boy wearing a buttonhole badge4 ,as you 
get nearer you see that it is the       
well-known three-pointed badge of the   
,scouts4  ,you make the salute sign1    

shake hands with left hands1 and there  
you are1 in company with a friend and   
brother1 who a minute before was a total
 stranger to you4         99       99   
99       99       99  ,,chilian         
,,scouts4  ,our ,world-roving           
,commissioner--for we have one who      
travels about to all countries now--was 
once in ,chile1 which1 as you know1 is a
 long1 narrow strip of country in ,south
 ,america1 three thousand miles long1   
and not one hundred miles wide1 packed  
in between the ,andes ,mountains and the
 ,pacific ,ocean4  ,the ,boy ,scouts of 
,chile are among the best in the world4 
,they have done a lot of tramping-camps 
and other expeditions4 ,finally1 their  
,government arranged a cruise for them  
on board a man-of-war1 and they lived   
for over a week on the ship1 about two  
hundred of them1 learning swimming1     
boating1 navigation1 engine-room work2  
in fact1 all the duties of ,sea ,scouts4
  ,these boys all had to pay their      
messing and other expenses1 so it was   

only the richer ones that were able to  
go2 but since then they have arranged to
 go another cruise1 and each of the     
richer ones is going to take a poorer   
,scout with him as his guest1 and will  
pay his expenses for him4  ,that's what 
,i like to see1 and it tells me more    
than any other reports that the ,chilian
 ,scouts have got the right spirit in   
them4  ,a lad from ,brixham1 in         
,devonshire1 went out to take up some   
work in ,chile4 ,he was a ,boy ,scout1  
and continued while away to wear his    
buttonhole badge4 ,one day1 when he was 
out in the back parts of that           
out-of-the-way country1 a ,chilian boy  
came up to him1 gave the ,scout salute1 
and pointing to his badge1 said3  ,you  
,boy ,scout8 ,me ,scout too6 and he took
 him home to tea1 and looked after him1 
and thus they became good friends4  ,so 
you see the use of being a ,scout and of
 wearing your badge4  ,even in everyday 
life at home it is also a good thing to 
do1 because you may often have a chance 

of doing a good turn to a stranger ,boy 
,scout if he could only recognise that  
you were a scout4  ,i suppose there is  
not a day passes without my coming      
across a ,scout1 in plain clothes1      
wearing his buttonhole badge and so ,i  
am able to spot him and to have a chat  
with him4 ,whereas1 if he had not had   
his badge on1 ,i should probably never  
have noticed him4  ,also1 it is a sign  
to outsiders4 ,people have got to know  
now how useful the ,scouts are1 and they
 are often anxious to get hold of one to
 help them in some difficulty4 ,well1 if
 they see a boy coming along with the   
badge on1 they know that he is a ,scout1
 though not in uniform1 and they are    
able to ask him to do them the good     
turn4  ,so wear your buttonhole badge   
for the sake of other people4           
,,politeness  ,,law #e4 ,a ,,scout ,,is 
,,courteous4  ,a ,scout should be polite
 to all--but especially to women and    
children1 old people and invalids1      
cripples1 etc4 ,and he must not take any

 reward for being helpful or courteous4 
,courteousness is much the same sort of 
thing as ,chivalry1 which is closely    
allied to ,honour4 ,both were practised 
in the old days by the ,knight's1 who   
went about risking their lives in order 
to defend and help the weaker people1   
women and children1 against bullies and 
marauders4  ,why did they do this8  ,it 
did not bring them money1 for it would  
be a disgrace to a ,knight to accept any
 reward for doing a good turn4 ,it only 
brought them danger of wounds or death4 
,it was an adventure4 ,they were good   
sportsmen and manly fellows4 ,their     
conscience told them that it was right  
for the strong and plucky man to protect
 those who were weaker than himself4    
,they were not obliged to do it by the  
law of the land1 but there was a        
stronger law which appealed to them--and
 that was their own sense of ,honour    
which led them to be chivalrous men4    
,honour was the spirit that moved them2 
,chivalry was the putting into practice 

what their ,honour bade them do4  ,the  
ordinary boy has no chivalry--at least1 
he has got it all right under the       
surface1 only he is in the silly-ass    
stage1 and he forgets it4 ,if he sees a 
poor hunchback or a cripple he will     
often laugh or stare at him4 ,he forgets
 that the other is an unfortunate1 and  
has had the bad luck to be born that    
way4  ,a healthy boy on seeing a        
deformed person ought to thank ,god that
 he is himself sound in body and able to
 enjoy life1 and he should do what he   
can to make things pleasant for his less
 fortunate brother4  ,that1 is what a   
,scout would do1 because he is          
chivalrous4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,,knight',s ,,oath  
,,on ,,investiture  ,a4,d4 #ejf4  ,sir1 
you that desire to receive the ,order of
 ,knighthood1 swear1 before ,god1 and by
 this ,holy ,book1 that you shall not   
fight against the ,king1 who now        
bestoweth the ,order of ,knighthood upon
 you2 you shall also swear with all your

 force and power to maintain and defend 
all ladies1 gentlewomen1 widows1        
orphans1 and distressed women2 and you  
shall shun no adventure of your person  
in any way or war wherein you shall     
happen to be4  ,fourteen hundred years  
ago the old ,knights of ,britain used to
 be sworn to do their duty in these     
words4  ,their oath was much the same as
 the promise which the young ,knights of
 the present time make when they become 
,boy ,scouts1 for they promise to serve 
,god and the ,king1 and to help others1 
especially women and children1 and not  
to think of their own trouble or risk so
 long as they do a good turn to others  
needing help4  ,the ,knights1 being     
mounted men1 were called the ,chivalry1 
the old word for ,cavalry--from the     
,latin cavallus and the ,french cheval1 
meaning a horse4  ,then any noble act   
done by the ,knights was said to be     
,chivahous or ,knight-like4  ,so the    
word chivalry now means doing things    
which the ,knights of old did4  ,it is  

chivalry to do one's duty to ,god and   
the ,king1 to help women and children1  
and all people in distress2 and to be   
plucky and brave in carrying out one's  
duty4  ,that is why ,boy ,scouts are    
frequently being described in the papers
 as chivalrous4 ,i hope they will go on 
and continue to deserve the title4  ,one
 great step in ,courteousness is to be  
grateful when anybody does you a good   
turn1 and to tell them you are grateful 
by saying ,thank you4 ,it is a little   
thing to do1 but it is a great thing to 
the person who has done the kindness to 
feel that it was not thrown away4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,a ,,dirty ,,gentleman4  ,a bus drove by
 under my window4 ,it was crowded with  
people1 inside and out4 ,on the outside 
every seat was filled1 so much so that  
one woman had to stand4 ,i saw men look 
round at her1 one apparently annoyed    
because she accidentally jostled his    
newspaper1 but none offered to give her 
his seat4  ,they were most of them      

well-to-do men1 such as go by the name  
of gentlemen so far as their dress and  
appearance went but when it came to the 
true test of a gentleman1 that is1 the  
feeling of chivalry and politeness to   
women1 the only gentleman among them was
 a working boy1 a lad of about fifteen1 
in dirty clothes1 with dirty hands and  
face4  ,when he saw a woman standing he 
at once left his seat and beckoned her  
into it4 ,i hope that some of his       
so-called betters had the good sense to 
feel ashamed at being taught manners by 
a working boy4 ,perhaps he was a ,scout4
 ,at any rate1 he acted as a ,scout     
would in the same circumstances4        
99       99       99       99       99  
,,what ,,is ,a ,,gentleman8  ,many      
people are inclined to think that the   
word gentleman means a man who was born 
rich1 and that a boy brought up at      
expensive schools and colleges must     
therefore be a gentleman when he has    
grown up4 ,but this does not always     
follow4  ,a fellow who is lucky enough  

to have been brought up in that way has 
certainly better chances of being a     
gentleman than many a poor boy has2 but 
at the same time a poor boy can be just 
as good a gentleman as a rich one4  ,a  
gentleman is what the word says2 he is a
 man1 but a gentle man1 not a rough1    
bullying1 coarse customer1 but a fellow 
who1 though big and strong1 can be kind 
and chivalrous and helpful to other     
people4  ,as good a sample as any of a  
gentleman is the ,london policeman4 ,he 
is at all times courteous and helpful to
 others1 even to the extent of being    
ready to risk his life at any moment to 
save people in cases of accidents1 or to
 protect them against rough handling1   
and he treats rich and poor1 old and    
young1 with equal attention and         
patience1 and good humour4         99   
99       99       99       99  ,,scouts 
,,of ,,the ,,desert4  ,several years ago
 ,i spent1 some time with ,arabs in     
,north ,africa1 in ,tunisia and         
,algeria1 and ,i found them first-rate  

fellows1 ,they were very fond of any    
kind of adventurous sport1 and were     
hospitable and courteous4  ,numbers of  
them used to come out with their dogs to
 help me to find game1 and after a long 
day's beating in the thorn bush and high
 grass1 when we finished hunting1 they  
used to shake hands and go off home1    
quite happy if ,i had had a good day1   
and not expecting or seeking for a tip  
or a reward as is so generally the case1
 ,i am sorry to say1 in ,england4 ,men  
here seem to think that they ought to be
 paid for every blessed thing they do4  
,the ,arab chiefs1 too1 were kindly     
hosts1 they gave me the best of food1   
generally a sort of ,irish stew of      
chickens and rice1 and made me          
comfortable in their own tents at night 
under their blankets4  ,they are very   
clean people1 very brave1 very courteous
 and very honourable4 ,so they are true 
,scouts of the ,desert4 ,they have a    
number of little camp customs which     
,scouts ought to know--and many of them 

are like those practised by scouts4     
,arabs are always very strict in        
saluting each other4  ,the custom of    
saluting came1 as you know1 from the old
 times1 when everybody carried weapons1 
and the act of raising the right hand on
 meeting another man was meant to show  
that you had not got a weapon in that   
hand1 and were therefore a friend4  ,it 
is exactly the same to this day with the
 ,zulus and other ,south ,african       
tribes1 who carry clubs and assegais2 on
 meeting each other they pass their     
weapons into the left hand1 and raise   
their right to show that it is empty1   
and that therefore they don't mean to   
fight you4  ,so it is1 too1 with the    
,arabs4  ,if a horseman meets a man on  
foot1 the horseman salutes first1       
because he is in the more powerful      
position1 and it is only fair that the  
man on foot should therefore have his   
weapon ready till he knows that the     
mounted man is friendly4  ,in the same  
way1 if a man is sitting down and       

another walks up to him1 the man who is 
walking is in the better position for   
attacking1 so he salutes first to show  
that he is friendly4  ,it is very bad   
form to pitch your tent close to the    
water supply of the camp1 because it    
looks as if you were taking possession  
of the spring1 and that anyone else     
wanting to use it would have to get your
 permission or be liable to be attacked 
by you when getting his water4 ,so an   
,arab always pitches his tent at some   
little distance away from the spring or 
well1 in order to show that it is free  
to all4  ,when an ,arab comes to a      
strange camp he rides up to the largest 
tent and dismounts41 and walks straight 
to the fire around which the inhabitants
 are sitting4 ,he then says in a loud   
voice3  ,peace be with you4  ,all those 
sitting round the fire get up and reply3
  ,and with you1 peace4   ,,kindness    
,,to ,,animals  ,law #f4 ,a ,,scout ,,is
 ,a ,,friend ,,to ,,animals4  ,he should
 save them1 so far as possible1 from    

pain1 and should not kill any animal    
unnecessarily1 even if it is only a fly1
 for it is one of ,god's creatures4     
,killing an animal for food1 or an      
animal which is harmful1 is allowable4  
,it is a curious thing that animals and 
children both seem to recognise a good  
man when they meet him1 and are at once 
friendly with him2 and ,i have always   
found that the bravest men are in their 
turn kind to them4  ,you must have      
noticed how our soldiers at the ,front  
and our sailors in the ,fleet all seem  
to have their pet animals and mascots1  
and when ,i was in ,france ,i noticed on
 many occasions our men playing with the
 little ,french children among their    
ruined homes close up to the firing     
line4  ,they were all the best of       
friends3 although they knew scarcely a  
word of each other's language4  ,in the 
same way as a ,knight or a ,boy ,scout  
is chivalrous to weaker folk1 so he is  
chivalrous also to animals4  ,animals   
are weaker folk than ourselves in the   

matter of mind and understanding1 but   
they can be very affectionate and       
faithful where they have learnt that the
 human being1 though strong enough to   
hurt1 them1 is kind and gentle4 ,they   
are quick to show that they appreciate  
such kindness4 ,you know how your own   
dog half-curls himself round ,wagging   
his tail and grinning with pleasure when
 he sees you2 and also how your horse   
nuzzles you all over to find the sugar  
that he knows you are going to give him4
  ,so give animals all the kindness you 
can1 and make their lives happy4  ,many 
boys are inclined to be cruel simply    
because they don't think--they are not  
yet manly enough--they are1 as ,i said  
before1 in the silly-ass stage4  ,but a 
,scout who is manly and chivalrous      
towards people will at all times be the 
same towards animals4 ,it is wonderful  
what pleasure you can get out of it in  
return1 whether you train your dog to   
obey your slightest sign1 or whether you
 tame a robin to be your friend4  ,the  

other day ,i came across a proprietor of
 a garage who showed himself to be a    
good and kindly man because he had      
supplied the ,scout troop of the town   
with a loft to use as a club-room4 ,but 
he proved to me that he was a good man  
by taking me into his sitting-room and  
showing me his tame canary1 which did   
every kind of trick at his command1 and 
sang to him1 answered his whistle1 and  
came at his call and kissed him4  ,apart
 from the interest of training an animal
 in confinement1 there is all the fun   
and adventure to be got out of stalking 
and watching animals and birds in the   
wild and learning their ways and        
customs4 ,the more you do this1 and the 
more you understand about how they are  
made and how they do their various      
works1 the better you will understand   
the wonders of ,nature and of the       
,creator4         99       99       99  
99       99  ,,the ,,right ,,way ,,to   
,,go ,,birds'-,,nesting4  ,a man who    
studies birds is called an              

ornithologist4 ,mark ,twain1 the amusing
 yet kind-hearted ,american writer1     
says3  ,there are fellows who write     
books about birds and love them so much 
that they'll go hungry and tired to find
 a new kind of bird--and kill it4  ,they
 are called 'ornithologers4'  ,i could  
have been an 'ornithologer' myself1     
because ,i always loved birds and       
creatures4 ,and ,i started out to learn 
how to be one4 ,i saw a bird sitting on 
a dead limb of a high tree1 singing away
 with his head tilted back and his mouth
 open--and1 before ,i thought1 ,i fired 
my gun at him2 his song stopped all     
suddenly1 and he fell from the branch1  
limp like a rag1 and ,i ran and picked  
him up--and he was dead4 ,his body was  
warm in my hand1 and his head rolled    
about this way and that1 like as if his 
neck was broke1 and there was a white   
skin over his eyes1 and one drop of red 
blood sparkled on the side of his       
head-and-laws6 ,i couldn't see nothing  
for the tears4  ,i haven't ever murdered

 no creature since then that warn't     
doing me no harm--and ,i ain't agoing to
 neither4  ,a good ,scout is generally a
 good ornithologer1 as ,mark ,twain     
calls him4 ,that is to say1 he likes    
stalking birds and watching all that    
they do4 ,he discovers1 by watching     
them1 where and how they build their    
nests4  ,he does not1 like the ordinary 
boy1 want to go and rob them of their   
eggs1 but he likes to watch how they    
hatch out their young and teach them to 
feed themselves and to fly4 ,he gets to 
know every species of bird by its call  
and by its way of flying2 and he knows  
which birds remain all the year round   
and which only come at certain seasons2 
and what kind of food they like best1   
and how they change their plumage1 what 
sort of nests they build1 where they    
build them1 and what the eggs are like4 
,a good many birds are almost dying out 
in ,great ,britain1 because so many boys
 bag all their eggs when they find their
 nests4  ,birds'-nesting is very like   

big-game shooting--you look out in      
places that1 as a hunter1 you know are  
likely haunts of the birds you want2 you
 watch the birds fly in and out and you 
find the nest4 ,but you do not then go  
and destroy the nest and take all the   
eggs4 ,if you are actually a collector1 
take one egg and leave the rest1 and1   
above all1 don't pull the nest about1   
otherwise the parent birds will desert  
it1 and all those eggs1 which might have
 developed into jolly young birds will  
be wasted4  ,far better than taking the 
eggs is to take a photograph1 or to make
 a sketch of the hen sitting on her     
nest1 or to make a collection of        
pictures of the different kinds of nests
 built by the different kinds of birds4 
,aberdeen1 in ,scotland1 is supposed to 
be specially well off for skylarks for  
the following reason3  ,a few years ago 
there came a very severe gale and       
snow-storm late in ,march1 and all the  
high ground inland was so buried under  
snow and ice that the birds were all    

driven to the ,lower land near the      
coast4 ,the fields by the seashore were 
covered with them4  ,numbers of people  
went out to catch them with birdlime1   
nets1 snares1 and guns4 ,large numbers  
were taken alive to be 'sent to market' 
in ,london and other towns4  ,one       
gentleman found a man selling a big cage
 full of them4 ,they were crowded up to 
a fearful extent1 and all fluttering    
with terror at their imprisonment1      
struggling over each other in their     
frantic desire to escape4 ,he felt so   
sorry for them that he bought the whole 
lot1 and took them to his warehouse1    
where he was able to give them plenty of
 room and food and water4  ,then he     
offered to buy all the larks that were  
being captured for the market at market 
prices4 ,in this way he received over a 
thousand2 and these he put in a big     
room1 where they had comparative freedom
 and plenty of food4 ,it is said that   
the noise of their singing in the       
morning was almost deafening1 and crowds

 of birds used to gather over the house 
to hear them4  ,at last the bad weather 
passed off1 the sun shone out again1 and
 the fields became green and bright1 and
 then the kind man who had housed the   
birds opened the windows of the room and
 all the birds flew out in a happy      
crowd1 chirping and singing as they     
mounted into the bright1 warm air1 or   
fluttered off to the adjoining fields   
and woods4 ,and there they built their  
nests and hatched out their young1 so   
that to-day the song of the lark is to  
be heard everywhere round ,aberdeen4    
99       99       99       99       99  
,,birds' ,,nests4  ,one ,january ,i went
 bird's-nesting with a party of         
,scout-masters4 ,it seems an odd time of
 year to do that2 but we really went to 
see how they manage to persuade birds to
 come and make their nests in the ,bird 
,sanctuary1 near ,brentford1 just       
outside ,london4  ,we went into the big 
wood there1 and soon found ourselves in 
the presence of birds1 for everywhere   

one could hear the piping1 trilling1 and
 whistling of unseen warblers1 and every
 now and then one of them would flit    
across our path4  ,then1 on the side of 
almost every tree1 we noticed a small   
box1 entirely closed up except for a    
small hole in the front4 ,these were the
 nesting-boxes1 and every spring the    
birds come and make their nests in these
 boxes1 and bring up their families4    
,the consequence is that the place is   
now alive with singing birds4  ,the son 
of ,mr4 ,mark ,webb1 the manager of the 
,sanctuary1 is in his teens1 but he     
knows everything about the birds that   
come there and their ways1 and he also  
knows all the different kinds of plants 
and trees that grow in the wood4 ,he is 
a very complete stalker-,scout1 and     
evidently gets a lot of fun and         
satisfaction out of watching the birds  
and their doings4  ,well1 almost any    
,scout can do the same1 and my advice to
 you is to make a nesting-box or two as 
soon as you can1 and put them up on     

trees4 ,then1 at the proper time1 you   
may have the satisfaction of seeing some
 rare kind of bird coming to your box   
and raising a family there4  ,the box   
should be eight to ten inches high1 by  
six wide and deep1 and the top          
preferably sloping to run any rain off4 
,illustration3 ,a ,,nesting-,,box ,,for 
,,birds4  ,the door is a small round or 
pear-shaped hole near the top of the    
box1 so that there is plenty of room for
 the nest below it4  ,a little ledge for
 the birds1 and especially the young    
ones1 to rest upon1 is a good thing to  
have on the front of the box4 ,if       
possible1 paint your box roughly with   
dabs of green and brown to make it match
 the tree stem and leaves1 and put on it
 the name of your patrol and troop if   
you like4  ,then fix it to a tree trunk 
about six feet above the ground1 where  
it is safe from rats or snakes1 and on  
the side of the tree farthest from the  
path1 if there be one near1 so that the 
birds will not be frightened  by        

passers-by4 ,if it is on the sunny side1
 so much the better4  ,birds will build 
in almost anything which offers them    
safety and shelter2 an old kettle1 for  
instance1 or an old tin pot is a        
favourite site for a nest4 ,if you      
scatter a few crumbs or grains of corn  
about your box every day at first1 the  
birds will become accustomed to it1 and 
will soon adopt it as their home4  ,any 
,scout who has not a tree of his own to 
hang his box on can probably get leave  
to put it up1 if he asks nicely1 in some
 neighbour's wood or garden1 or in a    
park1 and can then visit it from time to
 time to see how it is getting on4      
,most nesting-boxes have their roof1 or 
front1 on hinges1 or made so that it can
 slide off2 but it does not do to       
examine the nest when once it is made1  
or the old birds will desert it4        
99       99       99       99       99  
,,bird ,,migration4  ,the movements of  
birds as they change their quarters     
still puzzle the naturalists4  ,it is   

marvellous how they seem to like        
travelling1 and no one can understand   
why they take certain paths through the 
air when they are doing it4  ,for       
instance1 the black pool warbler1 in    
,america1 spends its summer in ,alaska1 
and goes down to ,south ,america for the
 winter4 ,it takes the straightest      
course it can from ,alaska to ,brazil1  
flying over land and sea--and a wide    
sea1 too1 is the ,gulf of ,mexico4 ,but 
the cliff swallow1 which also spends the
 winter in ,brazil and the summer in    
,north ,canada1 takes quite a different 
route1 and goes an extra #bjjj miles in 
order to avoid going over the sea1 and  
follows the land all round by ,panama1  
,nicaragua1 ,honduras1 ,guatemala1      
,mexico1 and so through the ,united     
,states4  ,the distances which birds    
cover when migrating are enormous4 ,some
 ,american plovers are known to travel  
for #hjjj miles1 one part of the journey
 being #bejj miles without resting as   
they pass over the sea4  ,the arctic    

tern goes even farther1 it nests near   
the ,north ,pole1 and then makes its way
 down to near the ,south ,pole1 a       
journey of #aa1jjj miles4  ,perhaps you 
wonder how we know that the birds travel
 these long distances4 ,well1 a good    
many naturalists and stalkers catch     
birds when young or tired and mark them 
by putting a small ring round their leg 
with a number on it4 ,then other        
naturalists keep a look out in other    
parts of the world1 and when they kill  
or find a bird with such a number on it 
they report it4  ,aberdeen ,university  
marked a large number of birds in this  
way--with a tiny aluminium ring round   
the bird's leg1 with the words ,aberdeen
 ,university and a number on it4  ,a    
wild duck which they had marked in      
,scotland was caught in a net the same  
year in ,holland4  ,of five lapwings    
marked in ,aberdeenshire1 four were shot
 in ,ireland the same year1 and one in  
,portugal1 #abej miles away4 ,a         
song-thrush was also shot in ,portugal1 

which had been marked in ,scotland the  
same year4  ,a young guillemot was taken
 from its nest in ,aberdeenshire and    
marked1 and less than five months       
afterwards it was shot in ,sweden4  ,so1
 you see1 it is interesting to watch in 
this way what the birds do in the       
travelling line4  ,scouts can help in   
keeping a look out1 and if ever they    
capture or hear of a bird marked with a 
ring1 they should report it to          
,professor ,a4 ,thomson1 ,the           
,university1 ,aberdeen4 ,they should    
state the number on the ring1 the kind  
of bird1 where found1 and the date on   
which it was found4         99       99 
99       99       99  ,,studying        
,,animals4  ,the boar is certainly the  
bravest of all animals3 he is the real  
,king of the ,jungle1 and the other     
animals all know it4 ,if you watch a    
drinking-pool in the jungle at night1   
you will see the animals that come to it
 all creeping down nervously1 looking   
out in every direction for hidden       

enemies4 ,but when the boar comes he    
simply swaggers down1 with his great    
head and shiny tusks swinging from side 
to side2 he cares for nobody1 but       
everybody cares for him2 even a tiger   
drinking at the pool will give a snarl  
and sneak quickly out of sight4  ,i have
 often lain out on moonlight nights to  
watch the animals1 especially wild      
boars1 in the jungle1 and it is just as 
good fun as merely going after them to  
kill them4  ,and ,i have caught and kept
 a young wild boar and a young panther1 
and found them most amusing and         
interesting little beggars4 ,the boar   
used to live in my garden1 and he never 
became really tame1 though ,i got him as
 a baby4  ,he would come to me when ,i  
called him--but very warily2 he would   
never come to a stranger1 and a native  
he would go for1 and try to cut him with
 his little tusks4  ,he used to practise
 the use of his tusks while turning at  
full speed round an old tree stump in   
the garden1 and he would gallop at this 

and round it in a figure of eight       
continuously for over five minutes at a 
time1 and then fling himself down on his
 side1 panting with his exertions4  ,my 
panther was also a beautiful and        
delightfully playful beast1 and used to 
go about with me like a dog2 but he was 
very uncertain in his dealings with     
strangers4  ,i think one gets to know   
more about animals and to understand    
them better by keeping them as pets     
first1 and then going and watching them 
in their wild1 natural life4  ,but      
before going to study big game in the   
jungles1 everybody must study all       
animals1 wild and tame1 at home4 ,it    
would be a very good thing if every     
,scout kept some kind of animal1 such as
 a pony or a dog1 birds or rabbits1 or  
even live butterflies4  ,every ,boy     
,scout ought to know all about the tame 
animals which he sees every day4 ,you   
ought to know all about grooming        
feeding1 and watering a horse1 about    
putting him into harness or taking him  

out of harness1 and putting him in the  
stable1 and know when he is going lame  
and should not therefore be worked4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,,chivalry ,,to ,a ,,sheep  ,a lady was 
walking on the ,sussex ,downs with her  
old father1 who was an invalid4         
,suddenly1 she saw below her a number of
 sheep penned in1 as they often are1 for
 the night4 ,two large dogs had got     
among them1 and the bodies of two dead  
sheep told of the mischief already done1
 while the other frightened sheep were  
huddled together1 waiting for their turn
 to be attacked4  ,the lady did not know
 what to do2 she did not like to leave  
her invalid father alone while she went 
down1 and it was far too steep a descent
 for the latter to attempt4  ,just then1
 round the corner came five ,scouts1    
quite small1 the eldest being only      
thirteen years old4 ,they soon took in  
the situation and advanced to the fray4 
,when the dogs saw them1 they left the  
sheep and rushed1 barking1 at them1 and 

the ,scouts fled4 ,but only for a       
minute6  ,a council of war was held1 and
 again they advanced1 poles in hand1 and
 this time succeeded in driving off the 
dogs4 ,the last the lady saw was the    
plucky little patrol kneeling1 with     
their coats off1 round a poor sheep on  
the ground4 ,after that1 she left1      
feeling the sheep was in good hands4    
,in a few moments the sheep revived1 its
 temples were laved with water1 some of 
which it also drank and enjoyed4 ,still1
 it was beyond standing alone1 and what 
was to be done next8  ,a stretcher was  
made with the poles and coats1 and then 
came the difficulty of getting the heavy
 body on to the stretcher4 ,at last this
 difficulty was overcome1 and the       
procession started over the rough field 
to the farm1 two miles off4  ,at last   
the farm was reached1 and the ,scouts1  
after helping the farmer render further1
 and perhaps more useful1 first-aid1    
started on their journey homeward4      
,this is an absolutely true story4 ,what

 would have happened twenty years ago   
had five town boys seen those dogs at   
work destroying sheep8  ,they might     
perhaps have run away1 possibly to seek 
help1 but ,i am none too sure that they 
would not have looked on and rather     
enjoyed it1 merely thinking what a good 
story they would have to tell their     
comrades on their return home4          
,scouting has not only taught boys what 
to do in an emergency1 but it has       
taught1 and is teaching1 our small boys 
the meaning of love and kindness to     
other human beings and also to animals4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,,lord ,,nelson ,,at ,a ,,bull ,,fight4 
,the following is what ,lord ,nelson    
wrote about a bull fight which he went  
to see in ,spain3  ,the amphitheatre    
will hold #af1jjj people1 and some      
#ab1jjj were present4 ,ten bulls were   
selected1 and one brought out at a time4
 ,three cavaliers on horseback and foot 
men with flags were the combatants4 ,we 
had what is called a fine 'feast1' for  

five horses were killed and two men very
 much hurt2 had they been killed it     
would have been quite complete4  ,we    
felt for the bulls and the horses1 and  
,i own it would not have displeased me  
to have seen some of the dons           
7,spaniards7 tossed by the enraged      
animals4  ,how women can even sit out1  
much less applaud1 such sights is       
astonishing4 ,it even turned us sick1   
and we could hardly go through it2 the  
dead1 mangled horses and the bulls      
covered with blood were too much4 ,we   
have seen one bull feast1 and agree that
 nothing shall ever tempt us to see     
another-  ,this is what ,nelson1 the    
hero of many a grimly fought battle1 has
 written1 and it shows how even a man   
accustomed to the sight of blood and    
death can be horrified and disgusted at 
it when it is done as a form of sport   
and at the cost of pain to dumb animals4
  ,scouts should always remember this in
 dealing with animals1 and have the same
 feeling which that prince of sea       

scouts1 ,nelson1 had4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,a ,,good
 ,,young ,,scout4  ,i met a young       
,patrol-leader going along in a hurry1  
evidently on duty4 ,so ,i asked him     
where he was off to1 and he replied that
 he was going to call his patrol        
together--there are only three in it at 
present--and to get three more          
,tenderfoots to join it at once1 as they
 had serious work on hand4  ,i then     
found out from his father that the      
serious work was this3 ,the patrol had  
come across a lot of boys torturing some
 frogs by blowing them out with straws4 
,the ,scouts were not strong enough to  
stop them1 but they went to the police  
constable1 and asked if they might take 
the law into their own hands and go for 
these boys4  ,the policeman consented1  
and now they were going to raise their  
patrol to full strength in order to     
tackle the torturers1 and put a stop to 
the cruelty to the frogs4  ,i heard     
afterwards that they were successful4   

,,obedience  ,law #g4 ,a ,,scout ,,obeys
 ,,orders of his parents1               
,patrol-leader1 or ,scoutmaster without 
question4  ,even if he gets an order    
which he does not like1 a ,scout must do
 ,,as soldiers ,,and ,,sailors ,,do1 or 
,,as he would do if he got it ,,from his
 ,,captain in a football match--he must 
carry it out all the same1 because it is
 his duty2 after he has done it he can  
come and state any reasons against it3  
but he must carry out the order at once4
 ,that is discipline4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,,play   
,,the ,,game4  ,suppose you were playing
 outside forward in a football match1   
and you were on the ball with a good    
opening for a run before you1 when you  
suddenly heard your captain shout       
,centre6 ,what would you do8 ,go on with
 the ball1 or pass it to a centre       
player8  ,you would1 of course1 obey the
 captain's order and pass it4  ,why8    
,because you know that if every fellow  
played the game for his own fun and     

glory1 his side would never win--the    
team would be all over the place4  ,to  
prevent this1 each player has got his   
certain allotted place in the field1 and
 the captain1 who is best placed for    
seeing how the game is going on1 is able
 to give directions that will help his  
side to win4  ,of course1 the success   
depends on every player doing his best  
to carry out his captain's orders       
efficiently and well4  ,it is not only  
in football or hockey that this system  
brings success1 but in every game of    
life4  ,we see it just now on a very big
 scale at the ,front--in the great game 
of war--where men obey their captains'  
orders not only when it is inconvenient 
to them to do so1 but often when it     
means danger and death to them4 ,but in 
doing it they well know that1 though    
they are sacrificing themselves1 they   
are helping their side to win2 and that 
is the right1 spirit in which to play   
the game of life4  ,therefore1 even in  
small things1 get yourself into the     

habit1 of obeying orders whether or not 
you like doing it4  ,if you can thus    
make a practice of it in small everyday 
matters like obeying your parents at    
home1 or your ,patrol-leader when       
scouting1 obedience will come quite     
natural to you in the bigger duties of  
life1 and you will then be looked upon  
by both your comrades and your officers 
as a really valuable man--one who can be
 trusted to play in his place and to    
play the game in obedience to the rules 
and to his captain1 not for his own     
glorification but in order that his side
 may win4         99       99       99  
99       99  ,,british ,,discipline4    
,when ,gibraltar was being besieged a   
hundred and thirty years ago by the     
,french and ,spaniards on land and sea1 
the ,british ,troops holding the place  
stuck it out valiantly for three long   
years1 and were in the end relieved by  
the ,fleet from home4 ,but though there 
were many who wanted to give in and were
 dead sick of the whole thing1 ,general 

,elliott1 the commander of the garrison1
 showed such dogged determination1 and  
insisted on such strict discipline1 that
 he held the garrison together4  ,his   
measures for defence were so successful 
that every man realised that the real   
road to safety and success was strict   
obedience to his orders4 ,in fact1 it   
was a case where obedience won the day4 
,and they loved and admired the old     
general1 too1 for his pluck1 his        
humanity1 and his sense of humour4  ,on 
one occasion a man ventured to disobey  
an order that was given to him1 and when
 he was brought before the commander the
 ,general said that if a man could      
disobey an order at such a critical time
 he could not be in his right mind1 he  
must be mad4 ,therefore he ordered that 
the usual treatment accorded to a       
lunatic should be applied to the        
offender4 ,his head was to be shaved1 he
 was to be blistered and bled1 and kept 
in a padded cell on a light diet of     
bread and water--and also be prayed for 

in church4  ,well1 the ,general was     
quite right4 ,if a man cannot obey      
orders when there is danger to all he   
must be mad4 ,but it is difficult for a 
man to be obedient at such a time if he 
has never learnt to be obedient in      
ordinary times1 and that is why         
discipline is so strongly kept up in    
both the ,army and ,navy in peace time4 
,a man is taught to obey even the       
smallest order most carefully and       
without hesitation1 until it becomes    
such a habit with him that when an order
 is given him1 a big or dangerous one1  
he carries it out1 at once without any  
question4 ,and1 when everybody can be   
trusted to obey orders1 it is an easy   
thing for the commander to manoeuvre his
 troops and conduct the battle with some
 chance of success4  ,you remember the  
story which ,i told you in ,scouting for
 ,boys about the ship ,birkenhead1 on   
board of which discipline and obedience 
were so splendidly shown by the         
soldiers4  ,the ship was carrying about 

#fcj soldiers1 with their families1 and 
#acj seamen4 ,near the ,cape of ,good   
,hope one night she ran on to some      
rocks1 and began to break up4 ,the      
soldiers were at once paraded on deck   
half-dressed as they were1 just out of  
their hammocks4  ,some were told off to 
get out the boats and to put the women  
and children into them1 and others were 
told off to get the horses up out of the
 hold1 and to lower them overboard into 
the sea1 in order that they might have a
 chance of swimming ashore4  ,when this 
had all been done1 it was found that    
there were not enough boats to take     
everybody1 and so the men were ordered  
to remain in their ranks on the deck1   
while the women and children1 with a few
 men to row them1 moved off from the    
sinking ship4  ,the boats had not gone  
far when the ship broke into half and   
began to go down4 ,the captain shouted  
to the men to jump overboard and save   
themselves1 but the ,colonel1 ,colonel  
,seaton1 interrupting the captain       

ordered the men to stand where they     
were1 and to keep their ranks1 for he   
saw that if they swam to the boats and  
tried to get in they would probably sink
 them too4  ,so the men kept their      
ranks1 and as the ship rolled over and  
sank1 they gave a cheer and went down   
with her4  ,out of the whole #gfj on    
board only #aib were saved1 but even    
these would probably have been lost had 
it not been for the discipline and      
self-sacrifice of the others in obeying 
the order to keep their ranks and not to
 try to get into the boats4  ,so you see
 the value of discipline in a difficult 
crisis or moment of danger4  ,the great 
,duke of ,wellington1 who was           
,commander-in-,chief of the ,british    
,army1 when describing this heroic act  
on the ,birkenhead1 praised very highly 
the discipline of the men--he did not   
praise their bravery4 ,it was brave of  
them1 but he considered that all        
,britons are naturally brave--he        
expected bravery of them4 ,but          

discipline is another thing2 it has to  
be learnt4  ,in battle or in a big      
danger a brave man may be very useful1  
but if he does pretty much as he pleases
 he is not half so valuable as the man  
who1 besides being brave1 has also      
learnt1 to obey every order at once4    
,watch firemen at work4 ,they are all   
brave enough2 they would all like to be 
at the top of the ladder fighting the   
flames1 but their discipline makes them 
work at their different jobs1 each      
playing in his place1 obeying orders1   
and doing his share in order that the   
fire may be put out1 not that he should 
win special glory or excitement for     
himself4  ,even in the streets there is 
discipline4 ,the policeman regulates the
 traffic so that all vehicles moving in 
one direction keep to one side of the   
road1 and thus allow the traffic in the 
opposite direction to keep moving along 
the other side4 ,but if one 'bus-driver 
did not feel inclined to obey orders1   
but dashed about in his own way1 not    

caring to which side of the road he went
 so long as he went ahead1 there would  
be accidents and delay in no time1 and  
the whole traffic would be upset4 ,if   
you are in business with a large number 
of others1 it is useful for the good of 
the whole that you obey the orders which
 you receive from those who are in      
authority over you4 ,if the seniors can 
be sure that their assistants will carry
 out their orders1 they can carry on the
 business properly4 ,discipline is      
necessary everywhere1 but the thing is  
to learn while you are young to carry it
 out in small things1 so that you would 
be able to do so when it comes to your  
turn to do it in a great difficulty or  
danger4 ,in order to do this you have to
 be able to command yourself in the     
first place4  ,the soldier does not go  
into a battle because he likes it4 ,it  
is a dangerous place1 and he feels      
inclined to run away2 but he commands   
himself1 and says ,i must go whether ,i 
like it or not1 because it is my duty4  

,when he gets his orders from his       
officers to attack the enemy1 he would  
probably be more anxious still to go in 
the opposite direction1 but he commands 
himself and says3 ,i must obey the      
orders of my officers4  ,and the        
officers obey the orders of the general1
 and so the whole force moves everywhere
 to the attack simply from a spirit of  
discipline1 each man making himself do  
his proper share1 so that although he   
may lose his life1 yet his side may win 
the battle4  ,so it will be with you    
every day4 ,you will have your duty to  
do1 when often you would much rather do 
your pleasure1 or play some games2 but  
you have to command yourself and order  
yourself to do your duty in the first   
place1 and amuse yourself afterwards4   
,when you succeed in doing this1 and in 
always obeying the orders of your       
officer readily and cheerily1 in small  
things as well as in great things1 you  
will soon find that it becomes a habit  
with you and not a trouble1 so that when

 the time comes for you to carry out    
some difficult and dangerous order you  
will be able to do it at once1 without  
any hesitation and with complete success
 for the good of your side--that is1 for
 the good of your business1 your        
employer1 or of your ,country1 without  
thinking of the difficulty or danger to 
yourself4  ,with a ,scout1 your ,duty is
 to do a good turn to somebody every    
day4 ,your ,discipline makes you command
 yourself to carry this out1 even though
 it may be irksome or dangerous1 and    
though nobody is there to see you do it4
 ,you do it because it is your duty and 
you are trusted1 on your honour1 to do  
it4        99       99       99       99
       99  ,a ,,disobedient ,,scout4  ,i
 once had a brave scout in my force in  
the ,south ,african ,war4 ,he was a     
brave man and an active scout1 but he   
was not good at obeying orders1 and in  
the end this cost him his life and did  
harm to our plans4  ,we had news of a   
force of the enemy which did not know of

 our presence in that part of the       
country4 ,so we hid ourselves1 meaning  
to surprise and capture them when they  
came along4  ,the orders were that not a
 sound was to be made and not a man was 
to show himself1 and these orders were  
faithfully carried out--except by this  
one scout4 ,he thought he knew better   
than others1 and he slipped away unseen 
to go and look out for the enemy's      
approach4  ,presently he spied a hostile
 scout and fired at him2 the enemy's    
scout returned his fire1 and after a    
short duel both of them fell mortally   
wounded4  ,but the noise of their       
shooting gave the alarm to the enemy's  
force2 more came upon the spot1 and1    
finding a ,british scout there1 they    
naturally guessed that there must be    
more in the neighbourhood1 so they took 
all precautions1 sent out scouts in all 
directions1 and then1 coming on our     
tracks1 at last discovered our          
hiding-place1 and gave warning to their 
own side1 who were then able to make    

their escape4  ,if my scout had only    
learnt1 when a boy1 how to obey orders1 
it might have made a great difference   
that day to him1 to us--and to the      
enemy4         99       99       99     
99       99  ,,scout ,,text4  ,here is a
 text which will help ,scouts to        
discipline themselves3  ,,chew ,,gum    
,,if ,,your ,,jaws ,,want ,,exercise4   
,that was the advice given by a         
self-made merchant to his son4 ,he      
meant1 don't exercise your jaws by      
talking if you have nothing important to
 say don't talk for the mere sake of    
talking2 and1 above all1 don't argue    
when you get an order4  ,boys1 you know1
 are rather fond of asking endless silly
 questions4 ,before speaking you should 
think first whether what you are going  
to say is really necessary or not1 and  
then don't waste words or other people's
 attention if it is not4 ,if you must   
keep your jaw wagging1 our ,american    
friend says chew gum4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,,the    

,,silent ,,king ,,of ,,ashanti4  ,in the
 expedition to ,ashanti1 on the ,gold   
,coast1 ,west ,africa1 when we captured 
the ,king1 ,prempeh1 he was carrying in 
his mouth a kind of nut which looked    
like big1 fat cigar4 ,we found that he  
did this to prevent himself talking too 
much4  ,if he felt inclined to make some
 meaningless remark1 or in the heat of  
an argument to let out a hasty opinion1 
he could not do so without first having 
to take this impediment out of his      
mouth1 and that gave him time to think  
twice about what he was going to say4   
,i often think it would be a good thing 
if every nasty-tempered fellow had to   
carry such a nut in his mouth1 so that  
when he wanted suddenly to let out a    
volley of abuse it would give him time  
to think and stop it4         99        
99       99       99       99           
,,shouting ,,scouts ,,at ,,wimbledon4   
,i heard of a lady who1 when riding on  
,wimbledon ,common1 came across a party 
of ,boy ,scouts4 ,she discovered their  

whereabouts by the immense amount of    
jabbering that was going on2 so1 being  
the wife of an officer1 and knowing a   
good deal about scouting1 she rode up to
 the ,scouts1 and told them just what ,i
 should have told them1 that unless you 
practise keeping quiet at all times1 you
 will forget to do so on some important 
occasion1 and so will give yourselves   
away4  ,scouts should always talk low   
and quietly1 and also should always move
 quietly and lightly4  ,remember on a   
still day or in the night a heavy1      
thumping footfall can be heard a long   
way off1 even in open country1 and very 
much more so in a street or in a house4 
,so practise always treading lightly and
 silently1 and you will soon gain the   
,scouts' habit of moving unheard4  ,i   
have heard from an officer at the       
,front1 who regrets that two old ,scouts
 whom he had with him have been killed  
or wounded4 ,he found that ordinary     
soldiers would not move quietly at      
night1 and so were useless to him4 ,he  

has now got an ex-burglar as the next   
best thing to an ex-,boy ,scout6        
,,cheerfulness  ,law #h4 ,a ,,scout     
,,smiles ,,and ,,whistles ,,under ,,all 
,,difficulties4  ,when he gets an order1
 he should obey it cheerily and readily1
 not in a slow1 hang-dog sort of way4   
,scouts never grouse at hardships nor   
whine at each other1 nor swear when put 
out1 but go on whistling and smiling4   
,when you just miss a train1 or someone 
treads on your favourite corn--not that 
,scouts should have such things as      
corns--or in any annoying circumstances1
 you should force yourself to smile at  
once1 and then whistle a tune1 and you  
will be all right4  ,the punishment for 
swearing or using bad language is for   
each offence1 a mug of cold water to be 
poured down the offender's sleeve by the
 other ,scouts4 ,it was the punishment  
invented by the old ,british scout1     
,captain ,john ,smith1 three hundred    
years ago4  ,when ,i was encamped with  
my troop of ,scouts at ,humshaugh1      

,northumberland1 a gentleman living in  
the neighbourhood invited us to come and
 visit the castle in which he lived4 ,it
 was a beautiful old tower left much in 
the state in which it was when it formed
 one of the ,border defences against    
,scotland4 ,on the top was the fighting 
platform from which the archers fired   
their bolts and arrows1 and the gunners 
fired their culverins4 ,on the storey   
below were the rooms in which the family
 lived1 and below these again were the  
guardrooms of the men-at-arms4 ,on the  
ground-floor was the cattle stable into 
which the herds were driven for security
 when the enemy were around4 ,the       
portcullis which closed the gateway was 
still in existence1 hauled up and down  
by means of ropes over pulleys of which 
the levers were worked on the floor     
above4  ,in later and more peaceful     
times1 that is in the reign of ,james   
,i1 a house was built on to the tower to
 give more room to the inhabitants4  ,in
 the hall of this house was a noble     

fireplace above which there was an      
elaborate overmantel of carved oak      
illustrating the seven ,christian       
virtues4 ,there were little statues     
representing ,fortitude1 ,benevolence1  
,faith1 etc41 etc41 all the qualities   
which a good ,christian should possess  
and carry into practice4 ,but ,i felt1  
after looking at them all1 that there   
was still one virtue missing1 and ,i    
suggested to the boys that you might    
carry out all these seven good qualities
 of a ,christian without doing it to the
 best effect4 ,you might carry it out as
 an order to be kind1 to be helpful1 to 
be chivalrous1 and so on1 but if you    
only did it because it was an order1 and
 therefore did it grumpily1 half its    
value was lost4  ,the important point is
 that when you know what is the right   
thing to do1 you should jump to it and  
do it cheerily with a smile4 ,therefore 
,i thought that we ,scouts might add one
 more to these seven ,christian         
virtues--namely ,cheerfulness4  ,then   

there is another good reason for being  
cheerful4  ,have you ever noticed as you
 walk along the street how very few     
people look really happy8 ,they are     
going along often with downcast eyes1   
and nearly always with dejected1 serious
 countenances2 if one comes along who   
looks at you smilingly it is a great    
relief1 and makes you feel a bit happier
 yourself4 ,and there is a reason why a 
,scout should go about with a smile on1 
because it makes other people happy4    
,you may not always feel cheerful       
yourself1 but you should not show this1 
as it will make other people feel glum1 
too4 ,if you make yourself look         
cheerful1 you will gradually find that  
you are becoming brighter4  ,if you are 
troubled or anxious1 or in pain1 force  
yourself to smile4 ,it will be difficult
 at first2 still1 force yourself to do  
it1 and you will find to your surprise  
that your trouble is not so great as you
 thought it was4  ,i have known men in  
action getting very anxious when great  

danger overshadowed them4 ,but if one   
began to laugh and to talk cheerily1 or 
to whistle1 the cloud passed by and     
everybody bucked up and was ready to    
face the situation4  ,that is what makes
 our men so formidable in the war just  
now4 ,in spite of heavy losses1 in spite
 of overwhelming attacks against them1  
they have always kept up their spirits  
and therefore their pluck4 ,it has often
 been the secret of their being able to 
hold their own1 and it will be the      
secret of their coming out victorious in
 the end4  ,remember this--and ,i have  
found it come true in hundreds of       
different kinds of cases3  ,a difficulty
 ceases to be a difficulty directly you 
smile at it and tackle it4         99   
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,scout',s ,,smile4  ,during one of my  
visits to ,birmingham1 ,i saw a ,rally  
of the local ,scouts4 ,one thing that   
struck me about them1 besides their good
 work1 was their cheerfulness4 ,the     
outside of their programme had printed  

upon it portraits of eight of their     
smartest ,scouts1 and each one of these 
has a big grin on4  ,well1 that is what 
,i like to see2 fellows who can work1   
and work cheerily4 ,it is just what our 
men are doing at the ,front4  ,i saw a  
letter the other day from an officer    
describing how the men lived a miserable
 existence crouching in the trenches1   
always wet and cold and muddy1 being    
shot at and shelled all the time1 but   
they welcomed the shells as if they were
 friends1 giving them the nicknames of  
,jack ,johnsons1 ,black ,marias1 ,woolly
 ,bears1 etc4 ,he says of the men3  ,if 
,i were asked what struck me most1 ,i   
would say that it was the marvellous    
cheerfulness of the men living in such  
awful circumstances4 ,every one to a man
 seemed happy4 ,they are always ready   
for a joke1 and they see fun in         
everything4  ,and that is why we shall  
succeed in this war1 because our men see
 the bright side of it1 and take things 
cheerfully and hopefully1 even in the   

worst circumstances4 ,it is also the way
 to succeed in peace time when doing    
work or suffering hardships or          
disappointments4         99       99    
99       99       99  ,,fighting ,,from 
,a ,,chair4  ,illustration3 ,,keep      
,,your ,,eye ,,on ,,the ,,dog4  ,one bit
 of advice ,i gave to the ,birmingham   
,scouts was that1 if ever you run a race
 with a dog1 keep your eye on the dog1  
and don't look about at other things4 ,i
 myself was an example of how not to do 
it1 for ,i had had a race with my       
dog--,i was running in shorts--and he   
saw me looking round and promptly ran   
between my legs and threw me over4 ,so  
,i had to go to ,birmingham on two      
sticks with a bandaged knee4  ,but what 
is true of a dog race is true of any    
other competition in life4 ,when you    
start out to do a thing1 keep your      
attention fixed on what you are doing1  
and do not let it wander off to other   
things1 otherwise you may come a        
cropper4  ,it is a bit of a handicap to 

go about inspecting ,scouts with one leg
 out of action1 but still ,i was only   
carrying out the example of other       
,scouts4  ,there was ,rob4 ,miller1 a   
,scout at ,whitby1 who1 when he lost a  
leg through a ,german shell1 was quite  
cheery1 and wrote to me that he felt it 
an honour to be the first ,scout wounded
 whilst on duty1 and that he meant to go
 on scouting notwithstanding the loss of
 a leg4  ,another ,scout who lost his   
eye through a ,toby ,tenderfoot fooling 
with a gun wrote to say that he could go
 scouting just as well with one eye as  
with two4 ,that is the spirit of the    
scouts4  ,in addition to these1 ,i had a
 fine example in a namesake of mine1    
,major ,h4 ,g4 ,powell1 out at the      
,front4 ,he had left the ,army some ten 
years ago1 but when the war broke out he
 went back to his old regiment4 ,in     
advancing to an attack he sprained his  
ankle badly4 ,however1 he got a stick   
and a chair from a neighbouring cottage1
 and continued to hobble along at the   

head of his men1 sitting down whenever  
there was a halt and directing their    
operations from the chair4 ,he went on  
doing this until he himself was hit and 
badly wounded1 and he was able to be    
carried safely back still sitting in his
 chair4  ,illustration3 ,a ,,cheery     
,,old ,,scout4         99       99      
99       99       99  ,,how ,,to ,,live 
,,long4  ,i suppose none of you ,scouts 
who read this are cheerful1 happy       
fellows6 ,i don't think6 ,but if you    
should happen to want to live to be #ajj
 years old1 here is the way to do       
it--written by one who has done it3  ,be
 cheery1 and work hard6  ,that is what  
,mrs4 ,rebecca ,clark1 of ,high ,road1  
,wood ,green1 said a few days before she
 died1 and she was #aaj years old1 so   
she ought to know4  ,i think that most  
,scouts are doing exactly what she      
recommends--so in ,a4,d4 #bjaj there    
will be #bjj1jjj old fellows of over    
#ajj years of age1 skipping about in    
bare knees and worn-out hats1 singing3  

,boys1 ,be ,prepared6         99        
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,only ,,bad ,,thing4  ,mrs4 ,scoresby  
,routledge1 a well-known lady explorer1 
wrote to me once to say that while      
travelling in the ,pacific she came     
across ,scouts in all sorts of          
unexpected places4  ,after giving them a
 good character1 she added that the only
 bad thing about ,scouts was that they  
whistled4  ,she pointed out that a great
 many people already suffer from the    
noises in the streets of our towns1     
especially people who are ill and weak4 
,even small1 harmless noises get on     
their nerves1 and keep them from        
resting4 ,and whistling is one of these 
dreaded noises4  ,i hope ,scouts1 in    
going about the streets1 will think of  
this1 and tone down their whistling1 as 
a good turn to people who may possibly  
be disturbed by it4  ,at the same time1 
,i need not remind you that it is good  
to whistle and smile in a difficulty1   
when otherwise you might break out into 

curses1 or into a cry of pain or of     
panic1 or take to your fists 7or your   
heels71 according to what might be      
happening to you4  ,i have known fellows
 whistle in very bad times in action1   
and their whistling has not only kept   
them calm themselves1 but has also made 
those around them feel calm and cheery1 
too4         99       99       99       
99       99  ,,an ,,ancient             
,,inscription4  ,at ,timgad in ,algeria 
there are some interesting ruins1 among 
them being those of the theatre and the 
baths4  ,the theatre is a huge open-air 
one of horse-shoe shape with stone seats
 rising like steps above each other1 and
 with a row of private boxes at the top4
  ,the stage is a handsome one built of 
stone with fine marble pillars1 and a   
back wall--for the ,romans did not make 
use of painted scenery as we do--and    
behind the stage are the dressing-rooms 
for the actors4  ,the theatre itself was
 big enough to seat #cdjj spectators1   
which is more than most theatres in     

,london could do1 and as ,timgad was    
merely a country town of no very great  
size it shows that the ,romans were as  
fond of theatrical plays as the ,english
 are of cinematograph shows to-day4     
,they were equally fond of bathing1 and 
in this one town alone there were twelve
 public baths4 ,they were what we call  
,turkish baths1 that is1 there were     
bathrooms of several grades of heat to  
be gone through--one tepid1 the next    
warm1 the next one very hot1 and then   
cooler and cold1 and the ,romans were   
fond of taking these baths every day4   
,this is too much of a good thing1 as it
 is apt to weaken a man4 ,the ,romans1  
as you know1 were in the end driven out 
of their ,empire1 because they allowed  
themselves to become weak in mind and in
 body by too much laziness in           
theatre-going and continual hot baths4  
,one inhabitant had inscribed on a stone
 in ,timgad what he thought to be the   
best form of happiness4 ,he wrote3  ,to 
hunt1 to bathe1 and to laugh--that's the

 way to live4  ,and there is a good deal
 in what he says1 for in hunting you    
have to use much woodcraft and hard     
exercise1 and keeping clean and being   
cheery is all part of the ,scout's life4
  ,but he has forgotten to mention one  
very important thing towards making your
 life a happy one1 and ,i expect that   
any ,scout could tell me at once what   
that point is--couldn't you8  ,he has   
left out the happiness which you get    
from doing a good turn4 ,if he had      
slightly altered his sentence1 and had  
put it this way3  ,to scout1 to bathe1  
to do a good turn1 and to smile--that is
 the way to live and be happy1 he would 
have said the truth1 and he would have  
exactly described what every ,boy ,scout
 does4         99       99       99     
99       99  ,,don',t ,,stand ,,with    
,,your ,,back ,,to ,,the ,,sun4  ,this  
is one of the ,scout mottoes4  ,every   
,scout knows that when you examine      
footmarks on the ground1 you should     
generally do so facing the sun1 have    

them between you and the light1 and you 
will see them all the better4  ,but that
 is not the meaning of this text2 it has
 a second and bigger meaning4  ,it means
 that when there is any sunshine or     
brightness possible1 look out for it    
when you are in trouble or misfortune1  
and make the most of it4  ,if you feel  
inclined to grumble at your lot because 
you have damaged your leg and can't play
 in a game of football1 think of other  
poor cripples who never can play at all4
  ,however down on your luck you may be1
 remember there is a bright lining to   
every cloud4 ,there is some brightness  
somewhere1 if only you look out for it  
and don't turn your back on it4  ,when  
things are looking their worst1 and     
everybody is depressed1 make up your    
mind that you1 at any rate1 will be     
hopeful4  ,try to see where there is    
hope4  ,remember ,st4 ,paul said that   
,god was the ,god of ,hope4 ,hope gives 
you pluck and comfort at a bad time1 and
 your hopefulness will comfort others   

round you and nerve them to stick it    
out4         99       99       99       
99       99  ,,lord ,,roberts4  ,lord   
,roberts died the best death that could 
have been hoped for him4 ,he died in the
 field1 within the sound of the guns1   
doing his duty for his ,country even at 
the age eighty-two4  ,it was very many  
years ago that ,i first got to know him4
 ,it was at ,simla1 in ,india4 ,i had   
just joined the ,army1 and was enjoying 
myself in all the glory of my new       
uniform at a ball4 ,i had gone to the   
refreshment-room to get something for my
 partner1 but ,i could not make the     
native waiter understand what ,i wanted1
 as ,i had not at that time learnt any  
,hindustani4  ,a very small but very    
polite officer alongside me kindly      
explained to the servant what ,i wanted4
 ,then he said to me that if ,i wanted  
to enjoy ,india ,i ought to learn the   
language as soon as possible4 ,i should 
get much more fun out of the country if 
,i could talk to the natives4 ,and he   

asked me my name and where ,i was       
staying4  ,after thanking him1 ,i       
thought no more about the matter till   
next day1 when there arrived at my house
 a native teacher of ,languages1 who    
said that ,sir ,frederick ,roberts had  
sent him to give me some lessons6       
,thus1 like everybody else1 ,i began my 
acquaintance with him by heartily liking
 him4 ,he had gone out of his way to do 
a kindness to a young officer of whom he
 knew nothing4 ,but that was just like  
him--it was his way4  ,i need not tell  
you about his early career in the ,army4
 ,probably every ,scout knows how1 in   
the ,mutiny in ,india in #aheh1         
,lieutenant ,roberts won the ,victoria  
,cross4 ,he had charged with the        
cavalry1 and had followed the flying    
mutineers1 when he saw one of them      
attacking a loyal native cavalryman4    
,roberts at once dashed to his rescue   
and cut down the ,sepoy4 ,as he did so1 
he saw two more ,sepoys making off with 
a regimental flag2 so he pushed on after

 them1 although single-handed and alone4
 ,he seized the ,standard and cut down  
the man who held it4 ,the other man     
aimed his rifle at him1 close against   
him1 and pulled the trigger but the gun 
failed to go off1 and the man turned and
 fled for his life4  ,in #ahhj ,lord    
,roberts made his famous march in       
,afghanistan1 from ,kabul to relieve    
,kandahar1 which was besieged by the    
,afghans4 ,he took ten thousand men and 
marched the #cbj miles in twenty-two    
days1 which was a splendid performance  
in that difficult1 mountainous desert4  
,he arrived in time to relieve ,kandahar
 and to inflict a very heavy defeat on  
the ,afghans4 ,for his splendid victory 
here he received the title of ,lord     
,roberts of ,kandahar4  ,in #aijj he was
 ,commander-in-,chief of the ,british   
forces in the ,boer war in ,south       
,africa4 ,here again he displayed his   
self-sacrifice and determination4  ,his 
winning of the ,victoria ,cross had     
showed that1 though a very small man--he

 was very nearly rejected from the ,army
 because he was so small--he had great  
pluck4 ,and he also had a great heart4  
,his pluck and self-control were perhaps
 better proved by his bracing himself up
 to send men to their death in battle   
when he loved them and would gladly have
 saved them if duty and the good of the 
,country were not at stake4 ,and it was 
in ,south ,africa that he met with the  
sorrow of his life1 when his only son   
was killed in trying to save the guns at
 the battle of ,colenso4  ,for his      
gallantry on this occasion young        
,roberts was awarded the ,victoria      
,cross1 although he was dead4 ,it is    
seldom that the ,victoria ,cross has    
been won by both father and son4  ,in   
,south ,africa ,lord ,roberts again did 
me a kind act by riding out many miles  
to meet me on my coming into ,pretoria  
after the siege of ,mafeking4  ,on his  
return to ,england after that war1 ,lord
 ,roberts became ,commander-in-,chief of
 the ,british ,army4  ,when the ,boy    

,scout movement began1 he took the      
greatest interest in it1 because he was 
always fond1 of boys and knew how useful
 to the ,country they might be if only  
they were trained to it4  ,so he came on
 the ,council of the ,scouts'           
,headquarters1 and he reviewed the      
,scouts at a big ,empire ,day parade in 
,hyde ,park4  ,when ,i went to stay with
 him1 he talked of little else but the  
,scouts2 and the ,scouts at ,ascot1 who 
were raised and organised by his        
daughter1 ,lady ,aileen ,roberts1 miss  
their great friend4  ,the ,ascot ,scouts
 formed part of the ,guard of ,honour   
which escorted his body through that    
place on its way to burial in ,london4  
,at ,st4 ,paul's ,cathedral ,i was glad 
to see also a ,guard of ,honour of      
,scouts1 who had come to pay their last 
respects to our national hero4  ,lord   
,roberts was a splendid example for any 
boy to follow1 because he rose from     
small beginnings to the highest position
 in the ,army and1 what is more1 to the 

highest position in the admiration and  
affection of all his fellow-subjects of 
the ,king1 whether they were white or   
coloured4 ,and he did it all by his own 
merit1 though he was not extraordinarily
 brilliant or clever as a lad4  ,how did
 he manage it8  ,i think it was largely 
because he was a true ,scout in every   
sense of the word4 ,the things which    
brought him success were3  ,his pluck in
 facing every kind of difficulty or     
danger with cheery hopefulness4  ,his   
eagerness to work hard and to do his    
duty regardless of whether it was what  
he liked or wanted to do4 ,his honesty  
and straightforwardness1 which made     
everybody trust and believe in him4     
,his humility1 by which he put himself  
on equal terms with everybody2 he had no
 kind of swank or pride1 in spite of his
 brilliant successes4  ,his             
kind-heartedness and thoughtfulness for 
others1 especially those at the bottom  
of the ladder4 ,and that was one of the 
secrets of his success--those working   

under his orders worked like slaves for 
him because they loved him4  ,his simple
 faith in ,god1 which led him true and  
straight through every difficulty4      
,well1 when you come to look into it1   
you will see that by doing these things 
in his daily life ,lord ,roberts was    
exactly carrying out the ,scout ,law4   
,it is what you as a ,scout are already 
aiming to do4  ,so1 now that you have   
his great example before you1 all you   
have to do is to go ahead and stick to  
it1 with all the greater determination  
that you will make yourself1 like ,lord 
,roberts1 a cheery1 brave fellow and a  
valuable man for your ,country4         
,,thrift  ,law #i4 ,a ,,scout ,,is      
,,thrifty4  ,it is expected that a      
,scout will save every penny he can1 and
 put it in the bank1 so that he may have
 money to keep himself when out of work1
 and thus not make himself a burden to  
others2 or that he may have money to    
give away to others when they need it4  
,there are many ,boy ,scouts to-day who 

will in a few years' time become very   
rich men although they have not much to 
begin with4 ,that is a certainty1       
because a good many are determined to   
make their fortunes1 and if a lad begins
 by being thrifty he generally succeeds 
in the end4  ,a fellow who begins making
 money as a boy will go on making it as 
a man4 ,some fellows1 of course1 want to
 do it by easy means1 and that as a rule
 does not pay4  ,some fellows see a     
fortune in betting on a horse race or   
football match2 you may win a few       
shillings now and then but you are      
absolutely certain to lose half the     
time1 and it is a fool's way of trying  
to make money1 because the bookies who  
make a living by it trust to there being
 a sufficient number of fools to keep on
 betting and supplying them with money4 
,such money is not earned1 it is only   
gained by chance and therefore is not   
worth having--to a fellow with manly    
ideas4  ,any number of poor boys have   
become rich men1 but it was because they

 meant to from the first4 ,they ,,worked
 for it and put by every penny that they
 earned in the bank to begin with4      
,lots of boys are already at work doing 
this1 and ,i hope that very many of the 
,boy ,scouts are also at it4 ,two good  
rules are given for making your fortune4
 ,the first is ,spend less than you     
earn4 ,the second is ,pay ready money1  
and don't run into debt4  ,many of you  
probably have heard of the ,nasmyth     
steam hammer which is used in all the   
great iron works8  ,well1 ,nasmyth1 as a
 boy1 worked in his father's workshop1  
and used to spend a great deal of his   
spare time in a neighbouring iron       
foundry1 and he took to using tools and 
making all sorts of models of engines1  
etc41 just as you ,boy ,scouts who are  
working up for your ,engineer's ,badge  
might do4  ,he made one model           
steam-engine so large that a man bought 
it for the purpose of driving a machine 
tool in his factory1 and so he began to 
make money by selling his own home-made 

engines4 ,and finally he went to work at
 a big engineering shop because he felt 
that he was one of a large family and   
that his father could not afford to keep
 them all and he was resolved to make   
his own living4  ,he could not afford to
 have his food cooked for him on the    
small pay that he got as a boy at the   
works1 but he manufactured his own      
cooking-stove and found that with its   
help he was able to live on ten         
shillings a week4  ,he worked so well in
 the shop that the manager raised his   
wages to fifteen shillings a week4 ,but 
as he had found that he could live on   
ten shillings1 he put by the extra five 
shillings each week in the bank1 and all
 the time he kept making tools for      
himself in his spare hours1 and         
eventually started himself in business  
on his own account with his own money   
and his own tools1 and finally invented 
his celebrated steam hammer4  ,by the   
time he was forty-eight1 he had made a  
big income and quite a fortune4 ,many   

men would not have been content with    
this1 but would have gone on until they 
became millionaires4 ,but ,nasmyth did  
not1 he was content to retire from hard 
work with sufficient money to buy a     
happy home1 where he went in for making 
telescopes and studying astronomy and   
also in doing good turns to people not  
so well off as himself4  ,and he gave   
some good advice to young fellows       
wanting to make a success of their lives
 in the following words3  ,if ,i were to
 try to compress into one sentence the  
whole of the experience ,i have had1 and
 offer it to a young man as a certain   
means of bringing success in whatever   
position he holds1 it would be          
this3',duty first1 pleasure second1'  ,i
 am certain from what ,i have seen that 
what so many call 'bad luck' comes in   
nine cases out of ten from putting that 
maxim the other way round and satisfying
 your pleasure first and attending to   
work and duty afterwards4  ,one poor    
man1 a farm labourer1 made himself rich 

by writing poetry4 ,his name was        
,stephen ,duck1 the thresher poet4 ,but 
unfortunately numbers of other working  
men1 seeing his good fortune1 also      
thought it would be an easier way of    
making money to write poetry rather than
 by doing hard work1 and ,horace        
,walpole1 when writing of ,duck1 said41 
that he succeeded as a poet1 but he also
 succeeded in ruining at least twenty   
good workmen4  ,there are very few young
 men who have not at one time or another
 in their lives thought themselves      
splendid poets4 ,i hope this will be a  
warning to them1 and that they will take
 to hard work as a means of making their
 way in the world4         99       99  
99       99       99  ,,the ,,man ,,who 
,,stuck ,,to ,,it4  ,lord ,strathcona   
began life as a poor boy in ,scotland   
and he ended up by being one of the     
richest men in ,britain1 and1 not only  
the richest in money1 but in having also
 the admiration and affection of a vast 
number of his fellow-countrymen4  ,when 

he was eighteen1 as plain ,donald       
,smith1 he went out to ,canada and      
joined the ,hudson ,bay ,trading        
,company there4 ,this ,company used to  
buy fur skins from the trappers and     
,indians1 and their trading stations    
were built in far-off1 out-of-the-way   
places in order to be near to the       
hunting-grounds of these people4  ,also1
 as you never could trust the ,red      
,indians1 they were all fortified posts1
 ready for defence against attack4      
,young ,smith was sent up to a place    
called ,mingan1 right away up in the    
north-east of ,canada1 in ,labrador1 a  
cold1 bleak1 dreary country4  ,after he 
had been there some time1 his eyes began
 to give him great trouble1 and he      
feared he was going blind4 ,there was no
 doctor nor anyone else to consult1 so  
he started off to make his way down to  
,montreal to see a doctor4 ,he took with
 him as guides two half-breed ,indians4 
,for weeks he toiled through the awful  
wilderness1 among snow and blizzard1 but

 at length he reached ,montreal4  ,do   
you think they made a hero of him8  ,not
 a bit of it4 ,his employers rounded on 
him for quitting his post without leave1
 and told him to go back at once4  ,at  
first he felt--like many of us would    
have done--so angry that he was on the  
point of throwing up the whole thing and
 leaving the service of the ,hudson ,bay
 ,company4  ,but on second thoughts he  
felt that1 after all1 the managers were 
right4 ,they had put him there to have  
charge of valuable stores and important 
work1 and that it was his duty to stick 
there1 and not to come in to civilised  
parts for his own sake4  ,so he accepted
 the wigging1 and started back on the   
long1 dreary journey to his gloomy post 
in ,labrador4  ,he had luckily been able
 to see a doctor1 and had got his eyes  
put right4  ,it was an awful journey3 so
 bad that the two guides gave way under 
their hardships and died4 ,but again    
,donald ,smith stuck to it1 and         
struggled on1 and in the end he just    

managed to get to his post1 worn out and
 exhausted4  ,but that sticking to it   
was exactly what was the secret of his  
success4  ,for thirteen years he stuck  
to his job in that awful country and    
then his employers saw that he was so   
strong on doing his duty that they      
promoted him to higher and more         
important work1 till in the end he      
became ,chief ,factor or ,head ,manager 
of the ,company4  ,then came the idea of
 making the ,canadian ,pacific ,railway 
right across ,canada4  ,people said it  
was a mad scheme2 that it could never   
pay to make a railway into that vast    
wilderness which in those days had not  
been properly explored4  ,but ,donald   
,smith looked far ahead1 and saw the    
time when ,britain would be overcrowded 
with people1 and corn-growing1          
cattle-raising land would be needed for 
colonists4  ,so he put his savings into 
the railway and worked hard to make it a
 success4  ,everything seemed to go     
against it4 ,but he stuck to it1 and    

fought against all difficulties1 until  
in the end he came out successful4 ,and 
to-day the ,canadian ,pacific is one of 
the greatest railways in the world1 and 
has opened up ,canada to be a great     
country1 peopled by thousands of        
,british colonists4  ,and so he made his
 fortune1 and later on1 in return for   
his splendid work for the ,empire1 he   
was made ,lord ,strathcona4  ,most men  
leave off work when they are between    
sixty and seventy1 but ,lord ,strathcona
 did not4 ,he still continued to stick  
to it for twenty or thirty years longer 
than most men4 ,only a few days before  
his death he was at work in his office  
7and he died at the age of ninety-four74
  ,and in his office every day he stuck 
to it1 for he went there about eleven in
 the morning1 but seldom left before    
seven--often he was there till nine4    
,when all the neighbouring offices in   
,victoria ,street had turned off their  
lights and closed their doors for the   
night1 ,lord ,strathcona's window was to

 be seen still brilliantly lit up1 so   
much so that the policemen and others   
about there called it ,the ,lighthouse4 
,now1 why should a man go on working    
overtime like that8 ,he was not making  
money2 he had enough of that and to     
spare4 ,it was simply because he        
considered it was his duty1 and he stuck
 to it4  ,besides his adventures in     
,canada1 and besides his power of       
sticking to his duty1 ,lord ,strathcona 
was also a good scout1 because he was   
kind and helpful to others4         99  
99       99       99       99  ,,money  
,,is ,,not ,,everything4  ,for the      
,south ,african ,war he paid the        
expenses of raising a regiment to fight 
for the ,king--and a fine regiment it   
was1 too--of mounted men1 which was     
called after him ,strathcona's ,horse4  
,also the ,boy ,scouts owe him a debt of
 gratitude1 because in the early days of
 the movement1 when we were struggling  
to get along1 he gave #ejj ,pounds to me
 to help to start our brotherhood4  ,so 

,boy ,scouts owe much to ,lord          
,strathcona for that1 and for setting a 
real living example of how a man should 
stick to it in doing his duty1 and in   
being kind and helpful to others4  ,from
 these stories of poor boys who have    
made successes of their lives and become
 rich men ,i do not want you to think   
that ,i look upon money as the aim of   
your life4 ,you should only wish to gain
 sufficient money to put you in a       
position where you can live happily into
 old age if necessary1 and bring up a   
family without calling on other people  
to support you4  ,and ,i would tell you 
just one more story of a poor man who   
yet made a fortune other than that which
 money produced4  ,this man was ,john   
,pounds1 and he kept a little cobbler's 
shop in ,portsmouth1 where he worked    
hard and well1 so that people began to  
bring their boots to him for repair in  
preference to any other cobbler1 because
 they knew that he did honest work and  
they got a better return for their      

money4  ,soon he began to gather in much
 more cash than was necessary for his   
modest wants4 ,but he did not buy a big 
house and set himself up in comfort4 ,he
 did a better thing than that4  ,when he
 was at his work1 idle boys used to come
 and hang around his shop watching him  
busily employed1 and while he stitched  
and cobbled he chatted with the boys and
 took an interest in them4  ,boys are   
good fellows1 and when they found       
somebody thought about them1 although   
they were dirty1 ragged urchins1 they   
took an interest in him1 until gradually
 they came at their own desire to hear  
him talk1 and began to imitate him in   
doing steady work4 ,then he made use of 
his savings in a way that was better    
than feeding himself on good things1 for
 he fed these boys who badly wanted a   
good meal4  ,as time went on1 he started
 a sort of club or school for his ragged
 friends1 and in the end had a sort of  
,scout troop of boys who learnt         
handicrafts under him and became strong 

with their good feeding1 became good    
workmen under his instruction1 and saved
 up money under his example4  ,thus he  
was able to send out into the world a   
number of good1 strong1 prosperous      
workmen who would otherwise have drifted
 into being wasters4  ,and from his     
little effort in ,portsmouth sprang up  
similar ragged schools and boys' clubs  
in different parts of the ,kingdom4  ,so
 he did as much by his thrift as many   
have done by saving their millions4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,,how ,a ,,poor ,,boy ,,became ,,rich4  
,how can ,i ever succeed in becoming    
great and rich8 ,it is impossible4 ,i am
 only a poor boy6  ,that is what a lad  
said to me4 ,i was able to restore him  
to greater hopefulness by saying3       
,nothing is impossible if you make up   
your mind to do it4 ,many a great man   
who is alive to-day began as a poor boy 
like yourself1 with no help besides his 
own wits and pluck4  ,then ,i told him  
about ,sir ,william ,arrol4 ,at nine    

years of age he went to work as a piecer
 in a cotton factory4 ,a few years later
 he became apprenticed to a blacksmith4 
,he worked hard and well1 and was very  
steady1 so that at the age of           
twenty-three he found himself foreman in
 ,messrs4 ,laidlaw's boiler works in    
,glasgow4 ,like a ,scout1 he was        
thrifty1 and in five years of this      
employment he saved up #he ,pounds of   
his wages1 and with this sum he started 
a business of his own4  ,at first he    
made boilers and girders1 and then1 as  
his business grew bigger1 he took up    
bridge-building4  ,steadily he worked at
 this1 being at all times anxious to    
show good solid work1 without any       
scamping4  ,to start with he had met    
with disappointments and failures1 but  
he would not give in to then2 when      
things looked their worst he kept a     
smiling face and stuck to it4  ,and in  
the end he came out successful1 as every
 man does who is patient and sticks it  
out4 ,he got a name for steady1         

persevering work1 and for giving full   
value for any money paid to him4  ,for  
these reasons he obtained good contracts
 for building bridges1 and soon enlarged
 his business into a very big one4      
,among others1 the great ,tay bridge and
 the bridge over the ,forth in ,scotland
 are his work4  ,he died a rich and     
highly respected man1 but in the height 
of his power he never forgot that he    
began as a poor boy1 and he always did  
what he could to help other poor boys to
 win their way to success4  ,he used1   
however1 to say that success depended   
mainly on the boy himself4 ,if a boy    
were determined to get on1 and knew a   
handicraft or two1 he would probably    
succeed1 but if he merely dabbled in one
 thing and then another1 and wasted his 
time in amusements1 and could not stick 
it out when luck seemed against1 him1   
that boy would be a failure1 and would  
probably go on being a failure all his  
life4         99       99       99      
99       99  ,,thrift ,,is ,,manliness4 

,so you see if1 as a ,scout1 you pick up
 and really practise what ,scouting     
teaches you1 it gives you every chance  
of being a success in life1 since it    
teaches you to be active and enduring1  
to be trustworthy1 to be obedient to    
your duty1 to be thrifty1 and to learn  
handicrafts4  ,in fact1 it teaches you  
to ,be ,prepared to make a successful   
career for yourself if you stick to it4 
,the knights in the old days were       
ordered by their code of rules to be    
thrifty1 that is1 to save money as much 
as possible in order to keep themselves 
and not to be a burden to others1 and   
that they might have more to give away  
in charity4  ,if they were poor1 they   
were not to beg for money1 but had to   
make it by their own work4  ,thus1      
,thrift is part of manliness because it 
means hard work and self-denial1 and    
boys are never too young to work for    
pay1 which they should put in the ,post 
,office ,savings ,bank or some other    
,government security4   ,,cleanliness   

,law #aj4 ,a ,,scout ,,is ,,clean ,,in  
,,thought1 ,,word ,,and ,,deed4  ,decent
 ,scouts look down upon silly youths who
 talk dirt1 and they do not let         
themselves give way to temptation1      
either to talk it or to do anything     
dirty4 ,a ,scout is pure1 and           
clean-minded1 and manly4  ,when boys are
 getting big1 they generally want to    
show off and to impress other boys with 
their manliness--or at least what they  
think is manliness4  ,it generally      
begins with smoking4 ,they think it fine
 to smoke1 so they suck and puff at     
cigarettes1 partly because these are    
cheap1 and partly because a pipe would  
make them sick4  ,the reason why half of
 them do it is because they are arrant  
cowards1 and are afraid of being laughed
 at by the other boys if they don't do  
it4 ,they think themselves tremendous   
heroes1 while in reality they are little
 asses4 ,then they like to use swear    
words because they think this makes them
 appear tremendously ferocious and big4 

,also they think it the height of       
manliness to tell smutty stories and to 
talk dirt4  ,but these things don't say 
much for the boy who does them4 ,he     
generally curls up and hides them       
directly a man is present4 ,he only     
produces them for swanking in the       
presence of other boys1 ,this shows that
 he is not really very proud of his     
accomplishments1 and the boy who has a  
sense of honour in him knows at once    
that such things are against his        
conscience-law and he will have nothing 
to do with them4  ,this often puts him  
in a difficult position when among boys 
who are showing off1 as they will be    
ready to jeer at him2 but if he has     
honour and pluck--in a word1 if he is a 
true ,scout--he will brave it out and1  
as a result1 he will come out the only  
real man of the party4  ,the probability
 will be that though they do not show it
 at the moment1 some of the others will 
see that he is right and that they are  
wrong1 and will pluck up courage        

themselves and follow his example in    
being clean and straight4  ,if1 by his  
conduct1 a ,scout can in this way save  
one fellow1 he will at any rate have    
done something in the world4  ,you may  
think there is no harm in a little      
joking of a risky kind1 or in the       
occasional secret smoking of a          
cigarette1 although you allow it may be 
silly2 but if you look into it1 and     
especially when you have1 later on1 seen
 results such as ,i have seen that come 
of it1 you will at once understand there
 is great harm--great danger in it4 ,it 
is the beginning2 and the beginning of  
anything is very often the important    
point4  ,if you talk or listen to what  
is wrong1 you get to think about what is
 wrong and very soon you get to doing   
what is wrong4  ,by doing things which  
you would not care to do before your    
father or mother1 you are becoming a bit
 of a sneak4 ,you do these things       
secretly1 you are not straight4  ,a     
fellow who is not straight at starting  

is pretty sure to go on being crooked   
for the rest of his career4 ,he knows   
all the time in his inmost heart that he
 is a sneak1 and he can therefore never 
take a pride in himself and others are  
bound to find it out sooner or later1 so
 he never gets a real friend nor a good 
employer4  ,then these things are likely
 to do him bodily harm4  ,smoking is    
poison to a growing lad4 ,it may not do 
you much harm if you take to it when you
 are grown up2 but while you are still  
forming your muscles as a lad it is     
almost certain to do damage to your     
heart1 your wind1 your digestion1 and   
very likely your eyesight and teeth4  ,i
 take it that most boys want to be good 
healthy runners and able to play at all 
the games1 and ,i am certain that every 
,scout wants to ,be ,prepared to be a   
good healthy man for his ,country4      
,well1 you can't do it if you begin by  
smoking as a boy4  ,drinking begins1    
like everything else1 in a small way2   
but it very soon grows on a fellow      

unless he is on the look out to stop it4
 ,more than half the crime in ,great    
,britain is due to drink1 and so is most
 of the poverty1 and three-quarters of  
the insanity4 ,and it is much the same  
with thoughts about women2 they soon    
grow into wrong action1 and if these are
 kept up they grow into habits which    
lead in an awful number of cases to     
misery1 disease1 and madness4  ,brace   
up6  ,be a man6 ,keep off these dangers4
  ,if fellows around you are swanking in
 dirt1 leave them and go elsewhere4     
,don't let yourself ,,begin loafing     
about1 taking drinks1 talking smut1 or  
doing what you know is wrong2 give      
yourself bettor things to do--games1    
handicrafts1 good turns1 work1 and you  
will grow up a clean1 straight1 and     
happy fellow1 and1 what is more--a man4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,,manliness ,,is ,,not ,,dirtiness4     
,not long ago there was a lot of        
argument about certain music-halls in   
,london4 ,many people were disgusted at 

the low and dirty talk or hints made by 
some of the performers4 ,most of these  
rotten ideas of half-dressed women1     
dancing about trying to look pretty1    
come from abroad1 and do not really     
please the ordinary ,british man4       
,harry ,lauder is delightfully funny1   
but he is funny without being dirty1 and
 so is ,chevalier1 the coster singer4   
,dan ,leno made you laugh1 but he was   
never dirty--and that was why he and    
these other singers have been so        
popular4  ,i saw a performance not long 
ago1 where a half-dressed woman came and
 danced about on the stage1 but1 though 
she was tremendously advertised as the  
great attraction of the place1 she got  
very little applause4 ,soon after her   
there came a bright-looking girl in     
ordinary clothes1 who merely sang an    
,english ballad1 but she was cheered and
 applauded till she had to come on again
 and sing a second1 and even a third    
time4  ,i believe that the proper1 manly
 ,britisher likes a good clean show on  

the stage2 he likes to have a good      
hearty laugh1 or to hear good music1 but
 ,i believe it is only a very few 7and  
those nearly all slackers and wasters7  
who care to go and see the nasty1       
half-indecent shows which come sometimes
 from other countries4         99       
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,order ,,of ,,the ,,bath4  ,in the old 
days when being made ,knights1 members  
of the ,order of the ,bath used to go   
and take a bath as part of the ceremony4
 ,i was very glad to see in ,hull during
 a visit there that at the ,boys' ,club 
every boy on coming into the club has a 
bath4  ,in the first room he comes into 
on entering the club he takes off all   
his clothes and puts them in a rack made
 for the purpose4 ,then he goes into a  
big warm plunge bath1 from which he goes
 into a drying-room1 and beyond this is 
a dressing-room1 where he gets a club   
shirt and pair of shorts to wear for the
 evening1 till it is time to get into   
his own clothes to go home again4       

,illustration3 ,,british ,,soldiers     
,,surprised ,,the ,,french ,,natives    
,,by ,,their ,,eagerness ,,to ,,have ,a 
,,wash1 ,,even ,,on ,,icy ,,cold        
,,mornings4  ,this daily bath is an     
excellent thing for keeping a fellow    
healthy and strong--and the most        
important part of it is the rubbing with
 the towel4  ,well1 it is often         
difficult for a ,scout to get a bath4   
,sometimes in his home there are no     
means for doing it1 and often out on the
 veldt or desert there is very little   
water1 but if he has a towel1 especially
 a damp one1 he can always give himself 
a good rub down with it--he should scrub
 himself well all over6 and that is what
 ,i should like every ,scout to do every
 morning when he gets up4 ,it will not  
only keep him clean1 but will make him  
grow far more healthy and happy and     
strong1 because it cleans the skin and  
wakes up the blood so that it rushes    
through his veins and brings him health4
  ,so get yourself a towel1 every       

,scout2 and carry out your rubbing every
 day when you get up4  ,in the same way 
see that you clean your teeth regularly 
night and morning--not because it will  
help you to pass the time away1 but     
because it will prevent your teeth from 
getting rotten1 thus saving you from    
toothache4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,,spitting4  ,gentlemen do 
not spit2 men must not spit is a notice 
which may be seen in an ,american city2 
also there is a similar one which says3 
,if you expect to rate as a gentleman1  
don't expectorate4  ,on the steamships  
to ,south ,america the ,english         
passengers were often disgusted by the  
amount of spitting about the decks done 
by some of the foreigners on board4     
,one of the captains thought of a good  
idea2 he ordered a sailor1 carrying a   
mop1 to follow each of these foreigners 
where-ever he went2 whenever the        
foreigner spat1 the sailor used the mop1
 and in a short time all the foreigners 
learnt that if they behaved like other  

gentlemen and did not spit1 they were   
spared having an attendant with a mop1  
so they soon gave up the dirty habit4   
,when ,i was in charge of a public      
building in ,malta1 which was guarded at
 night by ,maltese watchmen1 ,i soon    
found that ,i need not be always going  
round to see that they were alert1      
because their habit of constantly       
spitting showed me next morning whether 
they had been awake and where they had  
stood or walked during the night4  ,one 
day ,i found the pavement of one man's  
beat quite clean and dry1 so ,i had him 
up and accused him of having been absent
 without leave4 ,he did not know how ,i 
found it out1 so confessed that he had  
been away to see a friend1 thinking     
there was no harm in it1 since the place
 was all locked up and secure4          
,englishmen are fortunately not so dirty
 in their habits as to be always        
spitting1 but1 still2 there is a little 
of it going on in our streets2 and even 
a little is a bad thing4  ,it is not    

only a habit that is nasty to other     
people1 but it is dangerous as well1 for
 the following reason2  ,so many men are
 suffering from consumption or disease  
of the lungs even without knowing it4   
,when they spit they throw out a number 
of tiny germs1 which1 although too small
 to be seen1 get into the air and are   
very easily breathed in again by other  
passers-by2 and these germs contain the 
seeds of the disease1 which are thus    
sown in healthy people1 and make them   
consumptives also4  ,unhappily people   
are rather fond of spitting in railway  
carriages4 ,a man doing this was fined  
ten shillings and two guineas costs not 
long since4  ,his excuse was that he had
 a bad cough4  ,any ,scout could have   
told him1 apart from the dirty1         
disgusting part of the habit1 how very  
dangerous to other passengers it is for 
a person with a bad cough to indulge in 
this habit4  ,little living seeds of    
disease are in this way let loose to get
 into other people's throats and lungs1 

and possibly to bring them illness and  
death4         99       99       99     
99       99  ,,the ,,war ,,against      
,,consumption4  ,sixty thousand people  
die every year of consumption in ,great 
,britain4  ,one death in every eight is 
from consumption4  ,two hundred and     
fifty thousand people1 or one in every  
two hundred1 have the disease in them4  
,consumption is caught through          
carelessness or ignorance1 by breathing 
the germs1 or in drinking them in milk4 
,the following are a few simple rules   
which1 if followed1 should help to      
prevent you from getting it3     #a4    
,live much in the open air4    #b4      
,sleep with the window open4    #c4     
,breathe through the nose4    #d4 ,if   
you drink milk1 be sure that it is pure4
    #e4 ,keep your blood healthy with   
exercise1 good and plain food4    #f4   
,keep your home clean and well          
ventilated4    #g4 ,never neglect a     
cold4   ,here are some pictures showing 
how people get the germs of consumption 

into them unless they are very careful4 
,a large number of cows have the germs  
or seeds of consumption in them1 and    
they give out these germs in their milk4
 ,so milk ought to be sterilised1 that  
is to say1 it should be made so hot that
 the germs are killed before it is      
drunk4  ,illustration3 ,,do ,,not       
,,drink ,,milk ,,straight ,,from ,,the  
,,cow1 ,,as ,a ,,great ,,number ,,of    
,,these ,,animals ,,have ,,the ,,germs  
,,of ,,consumption ,,in ,,them4  ,then a
 large number of people have the        
consumption germs in them1 although they
 may not yet be ill with it4 ,they will 
get ill sooner or later1 and they give  
out germs whenever they cough or spit4  
,illustration3 ,,how ,,consumption ,,is 
,,spread4  ,a man spits and the germs   
rise4 ,they try a boy who breathes      
through the nose1 but get thrown out    
again4 ,then they try another boy who   
breathes through his open mouth1 and so 
they get into his lungs4  ,these germs  
get blown about in the air with the     

dust1 and get into other people's       
mouths1 and so into their lungs--that   
is1 if the other people go about with   
their mouths partly open4 ,if they      
breathe through their nose only1 as ,i  
hope all ,scouts do1 there is less      
chance of the germs getting into the    
lungs1 as they get caught in the sticky 
liquid in the nostrils1 and get driven  
out again when you blow your nose4  ,it 
is the same with other diseases besides 
consumption4  ,the ,missioner ,scout can
 safely go about among people who are   
ill with colds1 measles1 and other      
sicknesses1 if he breathes only through 
his nose4 ,all illnesses that are       
catching are spread by germs flying from
 one person to another4  ,the           
consumptive germs get into you and go   
for your lungs1 which are big sponges   
inside you1 through which your blood    
gets the air1 which is necessary to keep
 it healthy4 ,consumption germs consume 
your lungs4  ,the nasty little germ of  
disease thrives in dirt1 and dark and   

muggy air1 and so he grips even the     
healthiest people in rooms that are dark
 and dirty1 and where the windows are   
not kept open4  ,fresh air1 sunlight1   
and cleanliness kill the germs4  ,now   
that you know what consumption is1 you  
will be doing a good turn to get other  
people to understand it4  ,i want every 
,scout who reads this to show the       
pictures to at least five other people1 
,,and ,,explain them4 ,he may thus save 
lives4     ,,travels ,,abroad  ,,camping
 ,,in ,,norway  ,after a delightful     
little voyage in one of the smart       
,wilson ,line steamers1 ,i arrived one  
morning early in ,christiania1 the      
capital of ,norway4  ,the town is an    
ordinary ,continental town1 but stands  
on the shores of an arm of the sea which
 is so shut in by wooded hills for some 
twenty miles that it is more like an    
inland lake than a gulf of the ocean4   
,what a place for ,sea ,scouts6  ,one of
 the first ,norwegian boys to attract my
 attention was a ,boy ,scout--so like an

 ,english ,scout that he may have been  
one for all ,i know1 but ,i was not able
 to speak to him1 ,i was catching a     
train1 and he was going off in a hurry  
in another direction1 evidently in      
trouble1 as he was whistling and        
smiling6 ,and it is difficult to tell a 
,norwegian boy from an ,english boy by  
his appearance1 for they are very much  
alike4  ,and so are the girls and young 
women very like their ,british sisters4 
,but then1 as we all came of the same   
blood in bygone times1 it is not        
altogether surprising4  ,then their     
,royal ,family is related to ours1 for  
,queen ,maud1 the wife of ,king ,haakon1
 is sister of our own ,king4  ,so       
,norwegians have much in common with the
 ,english1 and since my visit ,scouts of
 the two countries have become good     
friends and camped with each other4     
,there could be no better country than  
this for camping out4 ,as you come      
through it in the train1 you keep       
passing among wooded hills and then     

alongside rivers and lakes2 a great deal
 of wild country with occasional        
cultivated parts where there are neat   
little wooden farmsteads and villages4  
,the houses are painted bright colours1 
and are roofed with tiles or shingles1  
that is1 wooden slates1 as in ,canada4  
,in fact1 with its forests1 lakes1 and  
rivers1 and their floating timber1 and  
the sawmills1 the country generally is  
not unlike ,canada4  ,as wood is so     
abundant here1 farm ,scouts will be     
interested to see from the picture how  
they make their fences in place of      
hedges or ordinary post-and-rails4 ,it  
is a kind of fence that you can make    
easily with almost any kind of slats or 
with brushwood or branches4             
,illustration3 ,a ,,norwegian ,,fence4  
,a way which the ,norwegian woodmen have
 of piling their small timber in the    
woods in order to dry it is one which   
might also be useful to ,scouts when    
making a bivouac-hut1 where there are   
plenty of saplings4 ,you pile them as   

shown in the picture1 all with their    
butts or thick ends together to         
windward1 and thin ends splayed         
outwards4  ,when you have got this frame
 together you can cover it with a       
waterproof sheet1 or straw mat1 or      
brushwood1 to keep out the weather1 and 
light your fire opposite the opening4   
,in my camp ,i had one friend1 ,george4 
,illustration3 ,,an ,,easily-,,made     
,,bivouac ,,hut  ,we found a good site  
on the bank of a rushing roaring river  
between high hills covered with forest4 
,we were thirty-five miles from the     
nearest railway station1 and about four 
miles from a farm1 where we got our     
butter and our milk4 ,the river supplied
 our fish1 and we shot our own game4    
,we carried just enough kit to make a   
load for a pack-pony--a bundle of about 
#ejlb4 weight on each side of him4      
,there were no roads1 and a pack-pony is
 the only means of carrying heavy       
luggage1 such as tents1 etc4  ,we each  
had our bivouac tent1 bedding1 change of

 clothes1 cooking pots1 and fishing     
rods1 etc4  ,of course1 we did our own  
cooking1 woodcutting1 and cleaning up4  
,and cleaning up is a very important    
part of camp work4  ,our camp was small 
and never likely to be seen by anybody  
besides ourselves1 but it was always    
kept very neat and tidy1 and we could   
shift camp at any moment1 and leave     
scarcely a sign that we had been there4 
,that is how ,scouts should always have 
their camp--everything in its place1 so 
that you can find anything you want at a
 moment's notice in the event of a      
sudden turn out in the dark1 or for     
shutting up for a sudden rain squall4   
,all scraps of food should be burnt or  
buried1 and not thrown about round the  
camp4 ,on service these scraps would be 
good sign to an enemy's scouts as to who
 had occupied the camp1 and how long    
ago1 and how well off they were for     
provisions1 and so on4  ,another reason 
against letting your camp ground get    
dirty is that it quickly becomes the    

camping place also of thousands of      
flies4 ,if you have flies in camp it is 
a sign that the camp is not kept clean4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,a ,,camp ,,bedroom4  ,i have made a    
sketch of my tent1 which1 as you will   
see1 is a kind of hammock with a roof to
 it1 slung between two trees4 ,this form
 of tent keeps you dry in wet weather or
 on swampy ground2 you never have to lie
 on the ground1 you can get snakes and  
other nice visitors crawling into your  
bed4 ,the cot is long enough to hold    
your kit as well as yourself4  ,it is   
kept stretched out by two side poles and
 a ridge pole4 ,these can be cut in the 
wood where you camp1 and the cot itself1
 with bedding and kit inside1 can be    
rolled up in the waterproof1 and this   
forms a neat roll for half of the       
pack-pony's load4  ,the cot is springy  
and most comfortable to sleep in4  ,when
 you are ill or wounded it makes a very 
good stretcher1 the side poles forming  
the carrying handles4 ,in the same way1 

when you are dead it makes an excellent 
coffin1 as the sides and ends fold in1  
and can be laced over the body4 ,i have 
not tried it myself in that way4        
,another advantage which ,i have twice  
found the cot-tent to have was1 when a  
tornado visited camp1 and all the tents 
were blown down into the mud1 my little 
cot was swaying quietly in the wind--it 
cannot blow down4  ,in the drawing you  
see also1 besides my bedroom 7in the    
cot71 my dressing-room1 my drawing-room1
 and my bathroom--in fact1 my whole     
residence4  ,the dressing-room was where
 my fishing waders are hanging up to    
dry1 together with my shaving-glass1    
hat1 and holdalls4  ,over the cot are   
hanging my overcoat and moccasins and   
towel4 ,my drawing-room was the rug on  
which ,i sit1 my writing-case lying     
there ready for use4  ,illustration3    
,,my ,,camp ,,residence ,,in ,,norway4  
,my cot-tent will be seen in the centre 
of the picture4  ,my bath was down      
below1 through the trees1 in the river6 

,my whole house was carpeted with a     
beautiful soft springy moss1 so dry that
 a match dropped on to it would soon set
 the whole forest in a blaze4  ,so we   
had to be very careful about our camp   
fire4         99       99       99      
99       99  ,,the ,,camp ,,fire4  ,we  
made our kitchen near the river1 where  
this dry moss did not grow4  ,a camp    
fire for cooking is not a bonfire4 ,a   
tenderfoot never remembers this2 but an 
old campaigner can be recognised by the 
smallness of his fire2 he does not waste
 fuel4 ,in the woods there may be plenty
 of timber1 but he is not going to waste
 time1 energy1 and axes in cutting down 
piles of firewood when he can make a few
 handfuls do equally well2 and if he is 
out on the plains where firewood is     
almost unknown1 he has to do with a few 
roots of grass1 or bits of cow-dung1    
etc4  ,then a big roaring fire1 though  
it looks very cheery1 sends off sparks1 
and in dry camping weather these are    
very dangerous1 whether in the woods1 or

 on the heather1 or among the grass4    
,illustration3 ,,my ,,camp ,,kitchen4   
,we began our fire by1 first of all1    
collecting a heap of firewood1 chiefly  
dead branches from trees2 then by laying
 a few shreds of birch-bark between two 
good flat stones of equal height 7about 
six inches71 and on these we laid a few 
bits and splinters of dry wood taken    
from the inside of a dead tree1 and on  
that just two or three small dry sticks1
 and then set it alight4 ,as it burnt we
 gradually added more small sticks till 
it was a good strong little fire1 then  
we added more and more sticks1 the      
object being to get the space between   
the stones gradually full of glowing    
red-hot bits of wood to give heat to the
 cooking pots1 which we then stood on   
the two stones so as to bridge over the 
fire4  ,the great art is to begin with a
 very small fire and a very dry one4    
,you can then add to its size as you    
please later on1 and when it is going   
strong you can add damper wood if dry   

wood is scarce4 ,birch-bark cannot be   
found everywhere1 but it is the best of 
lighting tinder when you have it4  ,the 
channel between the stones is much      
better if laid so as to face the breeze4
 ,the fire can then be kept going at the
 mouth of it1 and the heat will blow    
through2 a bigger kind of log can be put
 in from the other end to catch fire and
 add to the heat in the channel4  ,of   
course1 there are plenty of other ways  
of making fires1 which you can read     
about in ,scouting for ,boys1 but this  
is the particular kind of cooking fire  
that we used in my ,norwegian camp4  ,at
 night1 when we had cooked our supper   
and the night was getting chilly1 of    
course1 we put on big logs laid across  
each other1 and so got a big1           
star-shaped fire to make a blaze to warm
 us1  ,but we kept a good watch on any  
sparks to see that they didn't touch the
 moss or heather1 and when we turned in1
 we trod out the fire and poured water  
over the whole of the ashes1 so as to   

prevent any chance of embers blowing out
 into flame again during the night and  
setting light to the grass4  ,scouts    
cannot be too careful in this matter1   
especially in ,england1 where landowners
 are very good at lending their ground  
to troops for camping1 but are naturally
 very nervous all the time lest by some 
carelessness a grass fire may get       
started1 and thousands of pounds' worth 
of timber or property get burnt4  ,early
 in the morning we were to leave our    
rest-house near the railway in order to 
drive 7and partly to walk7 to the place 
where we were going to make our         
headquarters4 ,this was forty-nine      
kilometres distant4 ,how many miles is  
that8  ,as kilometres are generally used
 abroad for telling distances1 a ,scout 
ought to know how to compare the two and
 here is a simple way of doing it3      
,multiply your number of kilometres by  
five and divide the result by eight1 and
 you will have the number of miles4     
,thus3  ,we want to know how many miles 

our forty-nine kilometres are4       #di
       #e     ---   #h7bde     ---      
#cj #e_/h or about #cj #a_/b miles4  ,as
 ,i have said1 we were to leave early1  
but we found that the ,norwegian idea of
 early is not so very early as with us  
in ,england4 ,they thought eight o'clock
 breakfast very early1 and the cart1    
which was supposed to start at nine1 did
 not get away till #aj3cj4  ,it was a   
little ramshackle sort of dogcart with a
 very high seat1 which just gave        
standing room for us among our baggage1 
while the boy in charge of the pony hung
 on as best he could behind4  ,the pony 
was fine and strong and fat1 but awfully
 sedate2 in fact1 it was only after a   
lot of persuasion that we got him to    
move at a trot1 and then it was a       
marvellously slow trot4  ,however1 ,i   
found that if one showed him the spare  
end of the rope reins1 and offered to   
strike him with it1 he mended his pace  
considerably4 ,he kept his eye on me all
 the time--  ,the ,norwegians seem to be

 very kind to their animals4 ,they don't
 use whips or blinkers or bearing-reins 
on their horses and before we had gone  
very far the boy in charge considered it
 time to unharness and feed his horse   
for a few minutes4 ,we walked on while  
he did so1 and as it wasn't for an hour 
and a half that he overtook us again1 we
 guessed he had given the horse a very  
fine feed indeed4  ,illustration3 ,,the 
,,horse ,,kept ,,his ,,eye ,,on ,,me    
,,all ,,the ,,way4  ,we didn't do       
ourselves badly1 either1 because all    
along the road1 which ran through       
beautiful woods along the hillside1 we  
found lots of excellent raspberries     
growing wild4  ,we changed ponies       
half-way3 but when we had got nearly to 
our journey's end1 the boy said he must 
stop and feed the horse4 ,we said3 ,no2 
it is only four or five miles more1 and 
the pony will be home4 ,but the boy     
began to cry at our cruelty1 so we had  
to stop and let the horse graze4 ,it was
 very pleasing to see that they are so  

kind to their animals4  ,i have said    
that ,i was not one day in ,norway      
before ,i saw a ,boy ,scout4 ,well1 ,i  
was not two days in the country before  
,i saw a ,girl ,guide4 ,correctly       
dressed in the same kits those in       
,england1 with her patrol ribbons on1   
she was taking lunch at the rest-house  
where we stopped for ours4              
,unfortunately1 she could not talk      
,english1 so we could not have a chat1  
as ,i should have liked4  ,it is a grand
 thing for ,scouts who care to travel   
that ,boy ,scouts are now to be found in
 most foreign countries1 because you    
have only to make the secret sign a few 
times in any town1 and you will get an  
answer1 and find a brother ,scout ready 
to help you4  ,in ,norway1 especially1  
they seem likely to be very useful to   
,british ,scouts1 because they are very 
like ,british boys1 except that they    
have much more practice in woodcraft4   
,a large proportion of them live in     
wildish country1 among the forests and  

lakes1 and so they know how to look     
after themselves2 they are nice1 cheery 
fellows4 ,they are very clean1 and they 
speak the truth4 ,well1 that means a    
great deal1 because you can trust a     
fellow who speaks the truth1 and1 what  
is more1 you can trust him to behave    
well in danger or trouble4  ,i find that
 men who tell lies in peace time are not
 among the bravest in war2 and telling a
 lie is1 after all1 a bit of            
cowardice--the fellow who tells it is   
afraid to speak the truth1 or he hopes  
to get something in return for what he  
says1 if he can only get the other      
fellow to see the question as he wants  
him to4  ,well1 that's a sneaking way of
 doing it4 ,a manly fellow will speak   
out1 and always say exactly what he     
wants or what is the real state of the  
case2 he will be believed and will      
generally get his way4 ,in any case1    
show me a liar1 and ,i can show you a   
funk-stick4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,,hooks ,,and       

,,pot-,,hooks4  ,you may be interested  
in a picture of our camp on the         
,allalaer ,river in ,norway4 ,the       
shelter was rigged up with a waterproof 
sheet and a few poles cut in the forest4
  ,inside this shelter you see our      
store-cupboard2 in other words1 a box   
turned on end1 with a bit of the lid    
made into a shelf4 ,in this we stored   
our bread1 coffee1 sugar1 and such      
things4  ,then down on the left of the  
sketch is a small log bridge over a     
stream4 ,under this bridge we kept our  
milk1 butter1 and fish2 it made an      
excellent ice-cold larder4  ,next we    
come to the chopping block1 an old log  
on which we chopped firewood into the   
right size4 ,if you chop wood on the    
ground you will very soon blunt your    
axe1 so always use a chopping-block4    
,and when you have finished chopping1   
leave your axe sticking in the block2   
this preserves its edge from getting    
rusty or knocked by stones1 etc4 ,it    
also preserves your toes from getting   

cut by stumbling over an axe in the     
dark4  ,illustration3 ,,my ,,camp ,,on  
,,the ,,allalaer ,,river ,,in ,,norway4 
,next we come to the important part of  
the camp--the fire4 ,you see we made the
 fire between two big flat stones4      
,these were useful for standing the     
frying-pan on1 and cooking billies1 etc4
 ,the fire is made at the windward end  
of the channel1 between the stones1 so  
that the heat blows into the channel1   
while the fire forms a pile of red-hot  
embers outside1 at which toast can be   
made4  ,notice our automatic            
toast-makers1 made of a forked stick and
 a small supporting fork4               
,illustration3 ,,my ,,toasting-,,fork4  
,then over the fire we had a crossbar of
 green wood 7if you use old wood it will
 catch fire and drop your pot into the  
fire just as the stew is ready72 it was 
supported on two stout1 firmly-driven   
forked stakes1 not the wobbly1 rickety  
things which tenderfoots like to put up4
  ,on the crossbar our kettle was hung  

by a pot-hook--just a hooked stick with 
a good notch cut in it to take the      
handle of the kettle4  ,also on the     
crossbar in the sketch you see our      
tongs4 ,these are most useful things for
 a camp-fire for lifting hot embers into
 the spot where you want them for giving
 extra heat4  ,illustration3 ,,my       
,,automatic ,,kettle-,,holder4  ,the    
tongs are made from a green stick of    
hazel1 or alder1 or birch4 ,the stick   
should be about #b #a_/b to #c feet     
long4 ,at the middle you cut away a good
 bit of the wood from one side for about
 #d inches4 ,then cut a number of small 
notches across the grain of the wood to 
make it still more bendable at the      
centre4 ,here's the side view of the    
centre part of your stick4              
,illustration3 ,,the ,,tongs ,,before   
,,and ,,after ,,being ,,bent4  ,then    
flatten the inner sides of your stick   
towards both ends1 so that they get a   
better hold on things2 bend the two ends
 together and there you have your tongs3

  ,next to the tongs1 in the sketch1 you
 see a small branch of dwarf fir4 ,this 
makes a hearth-brush1 which is very     
useful for keeping the fire neat and    
clean4  ,the ordinary-looking stick     
leaning against the crossbar is an      
ordinary sort of stick1 but a very      
useful one4 ,he is the poker and        
pot-lifter4 ,he should be a stout green 
stick not easily burnt4 ,poplar is a    
difficult wood to burn1 but then many   
old hands won't use it1 because it is   
said to bring bad luck on the camp-fire 
where it is used2 but that is an old    
wife's story1 and ,i always use it when 
,i get the chance4  ,if the soup gets   
upset1 ,i look on it as my fault1 not   
the fault of the poplar poker4 ,in fact1
 whatever wood the poker is made of1 one
 always seems to get a kind of affection
 for him4 ,he is only an ordinary ugly1 
old half-burnt stick1 but he is jolly   
useful and helpful4  ,on this side of   
the fire you see the pile of wood that  
has been collected for fuel4 ,it is     

generally the right thing when in camp  
for each camper1 when coming in1 whether
 from bathing1 or fishing1 or anywhere  
else1 to bring with him some            
contribution to the wood-pile4          
,different kinds of wood are needed for 
it4  ,first you want punk and           
kindling--that is1 strips of birch-bark 
7which are better than paper for        
starting a fire71 dry fibre from the    
inside of old dead trees1 dry lichen or 
moss1 anything that will start a fire4  
,and also small1 dry splinters1 chips1  
and twigs to give the flame for lighting
 the bigger wood4  ,secondly1 you want  
lots of sticks1 about #a_/b to #a inch  
in thickness1 for making your           
cooking-fire of hot embers1 or you can  
get bigger logs1 from which you can     
afterwards knock off1 with our friend   
the poker1 red-hot embers for the       
cooking4  ,remember1 you don't want a   
great blazing fire for cooking1 but one 
that is all made of red-hot lumps4  ,for
 warming you up and giving a cheerful   

appearance to the camp at night you can 
have any amount of big1 dry branches and
 logs--the drier the better for a good  
blaze4  ,beyond the fire1 in the sketch1
 you see our dining-table and seat4     
,this is a plank set across a hole in   
the ground1 and the table is another    
plank beyond it4 ,that is one way of    
making a dining-table4  ,another way to 
make seats and tables in camp1          
especially in a country like this1 where
 the forest is full of fallen timber1 is
 to go and look out for a suitable pine 
tree with branches so placed that by a  
little lopping with an axe you can make 
a trestle like this3  ,illustration3    
,,home-,,made ,,seat4  ,two such        
trestles can be made to support a few   
split saplings1 or a number of stout    
straight rods1 which can then be nailed1
 spiked1 or lashed down with            
cross-battens to form a table2 and more 
such trestles can form the seats4  ,on  
the right of the sketch you see three   
forked uprights4 ,these formed our rack 

for holding fishing-rods and            
landing-nets4  ,the little tufts hanging
 on this rack are bunches of heather4   
,did you ever hear the yarn of the ,boy 
,scout who1 at his school examination in
 natural history1 was asked1 ,what is   
heather8 ,he replied1 ,well1 sir1 it is 
what we clean the cooking-pots with in  
camp4  ,he was quite right1 though      
perhaps the examiner did not think so4  
,a few bunches of heather are most      
useful as dishcloths for cleaning dishes
 and pots4 ,the reason why they are     
hanging on the rod rack is that they are
 handy for use in the scullery1 which is
 that part of the river close by the    
rack4  ,in using a river you always have
 certain spots told off to the different
 uses4 ,first and highest up-stream you 
get your drinking water4 ,next is your  
handwashing place 7not bathing place7   
and scullery for washing plates and     
cooking-pots4  ,below that is the refuse
 place1 where you throw away scraps off 
the plates and from cooking-pots1 and   

gut your fish4 ,this should be where the
 stream will carry away the scraps and  
not slack water1 where they will        
collect4  ,of course1 this throwing of  
refuse into the river only does in a    
wild country or where the river is big4 
,in most ,english camps1 all refuse     
should be buried in a pit or burnt4  ,i 
think that describes the whole of our   
camp4  ,oh1 no1 there is still one      
article--and one of great importance    
,alongside the tent you see our camp    
besom or broom4 ,it is made of a few    
birch twigs bound together4 7,the long  
thin roots of the fir-tree make very    
good cord47 ,this we used for sweeping  
the camp-ground every morning when we   
tidied up4  ,when we left our camp1 the 
last thing we did after everything was  
packed ready for moving was to go round 
and tidy up the whole ground1 and burn  
all the scraps1 chips1 and twigs that   
were left on the ground4 ,so when we    
left it would have been difficult for a 
stranger to say that anybody had been   

camped there except for the place where 
the fire had been4 ,but we left the     
cross-bars1 pot-hooks1 and wood-pile    
there1 so that anyone coming after us   
would find them ready for his use4      
,illustration3 ,a ,,fish ,,carrier  ,but
 ,i expect they will all have rotted    
away before any one else comes that way 
to camp1 for it is in an out-of-the-way 
corner where very few travellers come4  
,another hook ,i might1 mention is one  
used for carrying your fish when you    
have caught them4 ,it is merely a twig  
cut from the nearest bush4         99   
99       99       99       99  ,a ,,boat
 ,,voyage  ,i had heard of a wonderful  
gorge in the mountains to the west of   
us1 through which no man had ever       
passed1 and ,george wanted to go reeper 
shooting on the mountain slopes in that 
direction4 7,a reeper is a ,norwegian   
grouse47 ,so one fine morning found us  
starting in a boat to row down the great
 lake1 which would bring us to the foot 
of the mountains4  ,this lake is about  

eight miles long1 and one mile wide4    
,steep1 forest-clad hillsides run down  
to the lake on both sides1 and there are
 not half a dozen farms in sight of it1 
so we felt that we were getting into    
wilder parts as soon as we had started  
on our voyage4  ,the boats here are only
 made for one pair of sculls to be used 
at a time1 so it came heavy on each of  
us in turn to have to row our           
well-loaded ship with its cargo of two  
men1 two dogs 7,bruce and ,gordon71 and 
all our luggage1 guns1 and ammunition4  
,illustration3 ,i ,rigged up my oilskin 
coat as a sail1 with ,george to act as  
mast and rigging4  ,luckily for me1     
before it came to my turn to row1 a good
 breeze sprang up from behind us1 so in 
a very short time ,i had rigged up my   
oilskin coat as a sail1 with ,george to 
act as mast and rigging1 and ,i took an 
oar to steer with4  ,in a very short    
time we found ourselves running along at
 double the pace that we could have got 
by rowing4  ,on these lakes1 though     

there are plenty of boats1 you never see
 one fitted with mast and sails for     
sailing4 ,it is too dangerous2 sudden   
squalls come down from the hills and    
catch the sails the wrong way or too    
violently1 and so capsize the boat      
before the crew can do anything to save 
her4  ,even on ordinary water1 no one   
but a tenderfoot would sail a small boat
 with the sheets made fast2 the men     
sailing the boat hold these in their    
hands ready to ease them up at any      
moment should a squall strike them4 ,but
 the danger is much greater on a lake   
among mountains4  ,so you see a ,scout  
needs to know something about sea       
scouting if he wants to get about       
successfully in a country where he has  
to make use of boats or canoes4  ,by    
using an oar as a rudder--which is also 
understood by ,sea ,scouts--we found we 
could sail to some extent across the    
wind as well as before it1 and so we    
were able to get round headlands which  
came in our way without having to lower 

sail and take to rowing4  ,another thing
 to look out for on these mountain lakes
 is that a bit of wind very quickly     
makes quite fair-sized waves1 which1    
with a heavily loaded boat1 may lop in  
over the side1 if your helmsman is not  
very careful1 and swamp the boat4 ,so it
 is foolishness for any ,scout to go on 
this sort of expedition unless he can   
swim4  ,in fact1 every ,scout ought to  
be able to swim2 he is no use till he   
can1 and he will always find it useful  
to know something of sea scouting4  ,the
 oars of ,norwegian boats are worked not
 in rowlocks1 or crutches1 or between   
thole pins1 as at home1 but on a single 
thole pin1 to which they are attached by
 a strop or loop4  ,this is a useful    
dodge to know of in case one of your    
thole pins breaks1 as sometimes happens4
  ,illustration3 ,how the oars in       
,norwegian boats are worked4  ,in       
,norway1 the strop is made of a stick of
 birchwood 7hazel does equally well71   
which is first twisted and twisted round

 to such an extent that it is as        
flexible and as strong as a length of   
rope1 and is tied by twisting its ends  
round itself1 as shown in ,scouting for 
,boys4  ,a ,scout should be able at any 
time to twist a stick into rope1 but to 
do it successfully he must know which   
kind of wood to pick out for it4 ,that  
is one reason for knowing the different 
kinds of trees by sight4  ,while we     
sailed along we trailed a line astern of
 us with some tempting-looking flies on 
it in the hope that we might get a trout
 for dinner4  ,suddenly1 just when we   
were in the middle of a busy time over a
 squall of wind1 there came a tug1 tug1 
and a pull at our line4 ,all was at once
 excitement4  ,down mast and sail6 ,reel
 in the line6 ,hold the boat with the   
oars6 ,don't let him break away6        
,steadily he is hauled1 kicking and     
rolling over in the water1 and at last  
he is safely lifted into the boat--a    
fine1 silvery1 speckled trout4  ,what a 
dinner he will make6  ,how would you    

like him1 grilled1 fried1 or boiled8    
,alas6 we thought a good deal about what
 sort of dinner he would make4 ,and he  
did make a dinner1 too--but not for us6 
,we presently heard ,bruce crunching and
 munching something4 ,he had not waited 
for the fish to be fried1 or grilled1 or
 boiled4 ,he just ate him as he was4 ,we
 only had bread and butter and coffee   
for dinner that day--without any trout4 
,we didn't even mention trout during the
 meal4 ,we didn't seem to want any1 or  
we pretended we didn't4  ,still1 we had 
a very jolly dinner at a beautiful spot 
where we landed on the shore of the     
lake4 ,then after a further bit of      
sailing and rowing we reached the end of
 the lake4  ,here we hauled up our boat 
high and dry1 leaving all her gear in   
her1 for nobody steals things in        
,norway4 ,we humped our packs on to our 
backs1 and1 with rod and gun in hand and
 the dogs trotting alongside1 we started
 up the hills through the forest1 bogs1 
and rocks1 to get to the farm three     

miles away1 where we were to spend the  
night at the foot of the mountains4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,jasjvold ,,saeter4  ,that means 
the name of the farm where we stopped1  
and we made it our headquarters for     
several days4  ,saeter means summer     
farm4 ,the ,norwegian farmers are mostly
 dairy and cattle farmers1 and in the   
summer they take their herds up on to   
the high ground for the grazing1 and    
bring them back into the lower and      
warmer valleys in winter4  ,our farmer  
at ,jasjvold was named ,slackman2 and he
 was a slack man to look at--very wild  
and unkempt1 with a tousled head of     
hair1 and a rough beard2 clothed in a   
blue jumper1 and breeches and rough     
stockings1 and carrying a big knife in  
his belt1 he looked as if he could and  
would willingly slit your throat while  
you were asleep2 but on ,sundays he was 
a very different character4             
,illustration3 ,,the ,,jasjvold         
,,saeter4  ,even away up here in the    

mountains1 far away from any neighbours1
 he did not forget to keep the ,sabbath1
 and he appeared very clean and smart1  
neatly dressed1 with white collar and   
tie1 hair and beard trimmed1 and        
altogether so different that at first   
glance ,i did not recognise him on      
,sunday morning4  ,but1 in spite of his 
wild week-day appearance1 he was a most 
cheery1 kind-hearted man1 always anxious
 to do good turns for us1 and to help us
 in every way4 ,in the evenings he would
 come and sit with us1 eager to teach us
 ,norwegian1 and equally anxious himself
 to learn ,english4 ,so we got along    
splendidly together4  ,the saeter is a  
group of farm buildings2 each one is a  
separate single-storied log house4      
,there is the farmer's house1 the house 
for guests 7in which we lived71 the     
men's house1 the dairy1 the bakehouse1  
and the staboor1 which is a kind of     
hayloft1 stable1 and manure shed all in 
one4 ,being built on the side of a hill1
 it has three storeys on one side1 and  

only one or two on the uphill side4     
,the hay is put into the top storey1 and
 can be dropped down through a trapdoor 
into the stable1 which is on the second 
floor4 ,then the stable is cleaned out  
through trapdoors1 which let all the    
dirt fall into the lower storey1 from   
which it can be carted away to manure   
the fields4  ,a curious thing about most
 of the ,norwegian farms is that there  
are no muddy cart tracks to be seen1 the
 grass is green right up to the doors4  
,then there are no chickens about the   
place1 as a rule2 nor are there         
beehives1 nor any garden4 ,the carts are
 very small and low1 sometimes on       
wheels1 sometimes on runners1 as        
sledges4 ,the harness is very light1 and
 yet strong2 the driver walks behind the
 cart and drives the horse with a long  
pair of rope reins4  ,illustration3     
,,the ,,carts ,,are ,,small ,,and ,,low4
  ,our house in the saeter was1 like all
 the others1 a single-storied log house1
 with a roof of planks covered with     

birchbark1 over which is spread a thick 
layer of earth1 which soon becomes      
grass-grown1 so that it looks as if the 
roof were made of turf4  ,there were    
three or four rooms in the house1 nice1 
clean rooms1 with comfortable beds1 and 
a great big open fire hearth in the     
corner1 in which you light up your log  
fire whenever you like to have it--and  
we liked it pretty nearly always1 for at
 this height1 nearly #djjj feet1 close  
to snow-clad mountains1 the evenings and
 early mornings were very cold4  ,on our
 door was a big lock1 and a lock in this
 country is not boxed up inside iron    
casing but is left open to view1 so that
 you can see how it works1 and get your 
fingers pinched in it if you like to be 
careless4  ,the farmer's wife1 a kind1  
cheery1 clean1 motherly woman1 was      
always cooking up good things for us1   
and feeding us to such an extent that if
 we had stopped there much longer we    
should have grown too fat to carry out  
our expedition4  ,she didn't understand 

a word of ,english1 but she used to stop
 her work every now and then to come and
 hear us having our ,norwegian lessons1 
and she used simply to howl with        
laughing at our attempts to pronounce   
the words the right way4  ,the food she 
used to give us is much the same as you 
get everywhere in ,norway4 ,for         
breakfast1 which is generally about nine
 or ten o'clock 7we persuaded her to    
give it to us much earlier71 you have a 
cup of coffee and two or three glasses  
of milk1 home-made bread1 and a kind of 
thin oatmeal cake1 butter1 and          
goats'-milk cheese4  ,illustration3     
,,the ,,lock ,,on ,,our ,,door4  ,dinner
 is usually about three in the          
afternoon1 but we never had any1 as we  
were out all day1 and took bread and    
coffee with us4 ,supper1 at nine        
o'clock1 was much the same as breakfast1
 with the addition of trout1 or soup1   
and stewed fruit and cream1 again with  
milk to drink4  ,there was one girl1 who
 waited on us and did all the work of   

the house4 ,i never saw any servant do  
half as much as she did1 and yet she was
 always neat and clean and smiling4     
,she chopped our firewood1 made our     
beds1 greased our boots1 waited at      
table1 scrubbed the floors1 tables1 and 
chairs every day4 ,you never saw a place
 so clean1 ,if ,i were sitting at a     
table writing when she was on the scrub1
 ,i was politely requested to lift my   
feet up while she did the floor beneath 
them6  ,then there was a boy at the     
saeter1 who1 though he could not speak a
 word of ,english1 was a very nice      
,english-looking lad4  ,he was in charge
 of the pony and cart1 and his two      
ponies were the cheekiest1 tamest things
 ,i have seen4 ,they would follow you   
about like dogs1 and seemed to          
understand what you said to them4 ,that 
was all due to kind treatment by their  
young master4  ,this boy used to be sent
 off on long journeys over very rough   
country in charge of the cart4 ,then    
sometimes he would milk the cows and    

goats4 ,whenever he had any spare time  
he would take down his great #ah-;foot  
rod1 and go fishing for trout1 and      
generally he brought back some good     
ones1 too4 ,then he was a handy         
carpenter1 and understood mending a boat
 and sharpening tools on a grindstone4  
,all these are things which a ,scout    
should be able to do1 but ,i wonder how 
many of them an ordinary boy in ,england
 can do4  ,then1 sharpening your tools  
is a very useful thing to practise for  
putting an edge on to your axe or knife4
  ,there is a saying among ,sikh        
soldiers in ,india1 when speaking of any
 bad act1 that it is as disgraceful as  
having a blunt sword4 ,a ,sikh always   
keeps his as sharp as a razor4 ,it is a 
disgrace to him if it is blunt4  ,so1   
too1 a woodman would never be seen with 
a blunt axe or knife in camp4 ,he would 
never get through his work if he had    
them4 ,yet ,i often see ,boy ,scouts go 
into camp with axes so blunt that they  
will cut nothing1 and their knives very 

little better4 ,you don't know the      
pleasure of handling an axe till you    
have used a really sharp one4  ,and then
 every ,scout ought to know how to      
sharpen his own axe on a grindstone4    
,you must wet the stone first1 and then 
get someone to turn it1 running the     
wheel away from you1 while you lay the  
blade with its back towards you1 and its
 edge in the same direction as the wheel
 is moving1 and pass it gently on to the
 stone1 doing each side of the blade in 
turn a little at a time until the whole 
blade becomes bright1 especially at the 
cutting edge4         99       99       
99       99       99  ,,exploring ,,the 
,,gorge4  ,you remember that ,george and
 ,i went to ,jasjvold ,saeter in order  
to get some reeper1 and also to explore 
the gorge of which we had heard4  ,as   
you get higher up above the level of the
 sea1 the nature of the country and of  
the plants changes4 ,in the lower level 
you get trees and bushes and flowers    
very much like those in ,england1 but as

 you rise higher nothing but fir trees1 
pines1 and birch trees seem to grow4    
,then as you get up a bit the fir trees 
come to an end1 and you find only small 
birch trees1 after which there are no   
trees4  ,you come out on the open       
moorland where there is heather1 like   
that in ,scotland1 and other small      
shrubs1 one of which would interest boys
 because it grows a very nice little    
fruit called blue-berries4 ,above the   
heather1 that is1 at a height of over   
#djjj feet1 you get what is called moss4
 ,this is really a kind of lichen like  
you see growing on trees at home1 a     
pale1 yellowish-white1 spongy kind of   
plant1 which seems to thrive on barren1 
rocky mountain sides1 and forms feed for
 the reindeer which run wild in these   
parts4  ,well1 ,george and ,i used to go
 out from the ,saeter directly after    
breakfast each day1 carrying our        
ruksacks on our backs1 and one of us a  
gun and the other a fishing rod in his  
hand4 ,and the dogs went with us4 ,in   

our ruksacks we carried a kettle1 some  
bread1 butter1 and coffee1 and a change 
of shoes and stockings1 for what with   
wading through streams and stepping into
 bogs we were pretty wet about the feet 
before the day was ended4  ,on the first
 day we went and discovered the head of 
the gorge1 high up on the mountain side1
 and each day after that we explored a  
new bit of it till we had followed it   
down to where it opened on to the valley
 at its foot4  ,the gorge was a deep    
cleft in the mountain-side of dark1     
frowning cliffs1 with a bright1 clear   
mountain stream running along among the 
rocks and stones at its bottom4         
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,trout ,,stream4  ,the farmer had
 told us there were no fish in this     
stream1 and nobody ever fished there4   
,however1 ,i thought ,i might as well   
use my rod1 having brought it all the   
way there1 so1 pretending to myself that
 there was a fish in a swirling little  
pool behind a great rock1 ,i crept and  

crawled to a spot from which ,i could1  
unseen by the fish1 throw my fly so that
 it could float quietly in the current  
and be carried round the corner4  ,the  
first attempt from my crouching position
 was not a good one2 the line did not go
 out far enough1 and merely got into a  
backwater and drifted in close to me so 
,i shortened it up by pulling in a      
handful or two1 and then shot it out    
again over the water4  ,this time it    
fell well out1 the thin gut cast falling
 lightly as a cobweb on the surface1 and
 then sliding off with the current close
 round the edge of the rock2 and just as
 it went out of sight there was a sudden
 tug and a steady hold on it6 ,a rock #a
 ,no4 ,the next moment there was a rush 
and a strain1 the rod bending over and  
showing that a really nice fish was on4 
,illustration3 ,,our ,,daily            
,,excursion4  ,i won't tell you all the 
joy that followed in playing the fish   
till he was exhausted1 and then leading 
him to a smooth shallow1 where1 having  

no landing-net1 ,i could draw him       
steadily and quickly from the water and 
up the shelving rock without breaking   
the delicate line4 ,but ,i got him6 ,and
 after him we got many more1 enough for 
all our meals4 ,it was a delightful     
trout stream1 and ,i could only wish    
that every ,scout in the world were     
there to enjoy it1 too4  ,one particular
 run of water pleased me particularly4  
,the stream rushed through an opening   
between some rocks1 and then gradually  
opened over a gravelly bed in a long1   
rippling current4 ,the tail of the run1 
as they call it1 is the place to expect 
fish1 so ,i fished quickly over the     
rapid part of the run1 and went more    
gingerly when ,i got nearer to the tail1
 making my fly visit every inch of the  
water1 and ,i was quickly rewarded4  ,a 
sudden ting like an electric shock on my
 rod1 and a heavy rushing and jerking   
hither and thither1 till gradually the  
fish exhausted himself1 and ,i was able 
to hold him and gradually tow him up on 

the shelving beach4 ,out of that one    
pool we got no fewer than fourteen trout
 that day6 ,of course1 we only kept     
those we wanted for food1 and slid the  
others back into the water1 alarmed1 but
 not hurt4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,,stalking4  ,after a few  
miles the gorge got deeper and deeper   
and more and more narrow1 until it ran  
between high cliffs which could not be  
climbed1 and the stream became a torrent
 running between the high rocks1 so that
 progress was impossible along the      
bottom4  ,we were1 therefore1 obliged to
 keep up on the mountainside above the  
cliffs and make our way along in the    
same direction as the gorge1            
occasionally looking down into it to see
 its wonderful scenery4  ,on steep parts
 of the mountain we had to clamber along
 as best we could1 and sometimes it was 
jumpy work1 where1 if you kicked aside a
 loose stone1 you could see it go       
bounding away down into the gloomy gorge
 below4 ,at other times we were walking 

on beautifully soft moss1 into which our
 feet sank for several inches2 in fact1 
after a time1 with a good load on our   
backs we began to wish it was not quite 
so soft6 ,but it made our going very    
quiet and silent1 and we kept a sharp   
look-out for game4  ,at one time ,george
 was leading the way when we came to a  
slight rise in front4 ,like a good      
scout1 he never came to a rise without  
checking his pace and peeping very      
carefully over it before going on4 ,this
 he did more from habit than from any   
expectation of seeing anything the other
 side1 but it is a most valuable habit1 
and one which every good scout has4 ,on 
this occasion it proved its value4      
,george dropped flat on the ground1 and1
 taking the warning from him1 ,i1 too1  
squatted at once1 and made the dogs lie 
down4 ,i did not know whether we had an 
elk or rabbit in front of us1 but       
presently ,george crept back to me and  
reported that there were some duck on a 
pool a short distance ahead4  ,he1 being

 the gun-bearer1 then started to stalk  
these duck by going a long way round1   
keeping behind hillocks and rocks until 
he could get near enough to be within   
shot of them4 ,it took him a long time4 
,illustration3 ,george dropped flat on  
the ground1 and1 taking the warning from
 ,him1 ,i1 too1 squatted at once1 and   
made the dogs lie down4  ,he had a good 
look at the ground first from our       
hiding-place1 and he noted any peculiar 
rocks or bushes which would serve as    
guides to him while he was carrying out 
his stalk1 and off he went1 creeping and
 crawling from one landmark to the next1
 until at last he wriggled up to the    
bush which he had guessed would bring   
him within shot of the birds4  ,when he 
got there1 he peeped through the stems  
of the bush1 and found that it was not  
so close as he had hoped--it was        
scarcely within gunshot2 but the duck   
had already some suspicion that all was 
not well4 ,they are the cleverest birds 
alive2 they had all stopped feeding1    

were looking anxiously about1 and were  
beginning to swim away4  ,george saw    
that his only chance was to risk a long 
shot if we were going to have any dinner
 that day1 so1 pushing his gun through  
the bush1 he fired at the nearest duck1 
and1 immediately jumping to his feet1 he
 fired again at another1 which by this  
time was on the wing--and he killed     
both4  ,of course the dogs and ,i both  
hurried down to him in great jubilation4
 ,there were two good fat ducks floating
 on the little lake4 ,but how were we to
 get them8 ,neither of the dogs was a   
water dog1 and the lake was really a wet
 bog1 in which a man could neither swim 
nor wade4  ,luckily1 there was a breeze 
blowing1 so we went round to the lee    
side and sat down to wait for the birds 
to drift to us4 ,slowly they came nearer
 and nearer1 but it was very slow work4 
,it became slower and slower as the     
breeze dropped and at last died away    
when they were not twenty yards away4   
,illustration3 ,,fishing ,,for ,,duck4  

,then ,george--again as a good scout    
would--invented a plan4 ,he took my rod 
and began to fly-fish for the ducks6    
,that is1 he threw the line over a duck1
 and then gently drew it in so that the 
hook caught in the bird's feathers4 ,in 
this way he caught both of them in turn 
and dragged them ashore4  ,from the open
 high ground we gradually descended to  
lower heights4 ,first we came among     
scattered birch trees1 and below these  
we entered pine and fir woods1 and      
through them we came steadily down to   
the level of the valley in which lay the
 great lake4  ,just before getting to   
the valley we dipped once more into our 
gorge where it finally left the         
mountains1 and it was a grand sight4    
,the cliffs rose sheer up a hundred feet
 on either side1 even overhanging in    
some places1 and the opening between the
 cliffs was quite narrow1 where the     
stream in a dense body of water rushed  
its way through in a roaring cascade4   
,it was a magnificent scene4  ,just     

below the cascade the gorge opened out1 
and the stream spread itself over a     
shallow1 stony bed1 in many courses1    
till it joined the main river in the    
valley4  ,george and ,i clambered down  
the last cliff1 and close to the cascade
 ,i made the fire while he went and     
caught a couple of trout for lunch 7we  
were going to keep those duck for supper
 at the saeter71 and we were very glad  
of the lunch and a rest4  ,then we      
turned for home by a new road1 walking  
round the foot of the mountain over     
whose back we had come4 ,but we turned  
for home in another sense1 for that was 
the turning point of my trip in ,norway2
 ,i had to go back home to ,england from
 there4  ,on our way back we passed     
great swamps where there were duck1 but 
we had had enough of them to last us for
 the present4  ,in one part of the swamp
 we came upon the spoor of elk4 ,the    
elk1 you know1 is a great big stag--the 
same as a moose in ,canada2 a very lanky
 animal1 as big as a horse1 with a very 

blobby nose1 and heavy1 flat-spread     
antlers4  ,it was1 of course1 very good 
to learn that there really were elk in  
the neighbourhood1 but it only made me  
the more unhappy at having to leave the 
country4 ,george1 who had no ,boy       
,scouts demanding his presence1 was     
going to stay on there1 so everything   
that made me more sad made him all the  
happier--the unfeeling brute6  ,still1  
,i can't complain4 ,i think in the few  
weeks that ,i was in ,norway ,i had had 
as good a time as anyone could possibly 
have4 ,there is no better fun on earth  
than living in the open and catching and
 cooking your own grub1 in doing mutual 
good turns with a good comrade in camp1 
and in recognising ,god's handiwork in  
the mountains and forests around you4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,,how ,,to ,,fish4  ,george and ,i would
 have gone pretty hungry in our camp and
 on our tramps while in ,norway had we  
not both been able to catch fish1 for   
there was little else in the woods to   

eat besides blue-berries 7we were now   
too high up for the wild raspberries    
which are so good in the valleys74      
,every ,scout must know how to fish1    
otherwise he would feel so silly if he  
died of starvation alongside a stream   
full of trout4 ,and fishing--like       
shooting1 or cooking1 or swimming1 or   
anything else--is not a thing that you  
can do straight off without having      
practised it beforehand2 so my advice to
 ,tenderfoots is to take every chance of
 learning how to fish1 so that they may 
be able to do it when they may be in    
need of fish for food4  ,sea fishing1 as
 you know1 is generally done with a long
 line from a boat1 with a good lump of  
lead on the end of the line1 and a      
number of hooks every foot or so up it1 
baited with strips of fish with the     
silvery skin left on them4  ,then in    
rivers and lakes you fish with rod and  
line1 with a float to hold the bait at  
the right distance above the bottom4    
,the hook is on a yard or so of gut     

line1 which is invisible to the fish2   
this is weighted with split shot or     
small bits of lead1 and the bait is     
usually a worm1 or a grub1 or a little  
bit of bread paste4 ,this kind of       
fishing is called bottom fishing4  ,by  
the way1 here is a good dodge for       
catching worms which every ,scout ought 
to know4  ,mix a little mustard powder  
in a can of water1 and then sprinkle the
 water over a grass plot1 and very soon 
you will see worms coming up out of the 
ground in a tremendous hurry4  ,it would
 be rather a fine conjuring trick to    
play when people are not up to it--to   
take an ordinary watering-pot and       
apparently pour ordinary water on the   
grass1 and then play a mouth-organ or   
whistle a tune to call up the worms4    
,someone else will be sure to try it1   
too1 and if you have taken care to empty
 your can of mustard and water they will
 put in plain water and will get no     
result in the shape of worms4         99
       99       99       99       99    

,,fly-,,fishing4  ,then there is a third
 kind of fishing1 and that is           
fly-fishing4 ,it is the most difficult1 
but at the same time the most useful1   
because it is the only way that will do 
in the rapid rivers and streams with    
which you meet in the wilds2 and also it
 can be used on lakes and slower rivers1
 and it is much the best fun4  ,all the 
boys in ,norway catch their fish by     
fly-fishing4 ,you have to have a whippy 
rod with a long line to it1 and a long  
piece of gut 7called the cast7 on it1   
with from one to three hooks made to    
look like flies on it1 these are fixed  
at about two feet apart4  ,by using the 
rod as a spring you can throw the line a
 long distance to any point you wish1 so
 that the flies will float past the nose
 of a fish and tempt him to rush out and
 swallow one4  ,the throwing of the     
fly--casting it is called--is at first  
the difficulty for a beginner1 but it   
comes all right with a little practice4 
,you can learn to do it perfectly well  

without going to a river and without    
having any hooks on your line to begin  
with4  ,take a rod1 and a line as long  
as a rod and a half1 and try throwing it
 in a field or road or anywhere--till   
you can get the line to go out perfectly
 straight to its full extent on to the  
ground at the spot you wish4 ,the great 
points to remember which are the key to 
success arc these3 ,all the work is done
 by the tip of the rod1 not the butt4   
,bring your rod back with a little jerk 
at the end to throw the line back behind
 you1 but don't let the rod itself go   
back much beyond the upright position4  
,illustration3 ,,learning ,,to ,,throw  
,,the ,,fly4  ,before throwing the line 
forward again1 give a pause so that it  
has time to straighten itself behind    
you--and that pause is the secret of the
 whole thing4 ,it must not be too short1
 or your line will still be curled up   
when you shoot it forward and will not  
go out the distance you want1 and if the
 pause is too long it will fall and     

catch on the ground behind you1 and also
 will lose its spring4 ,that is where   
practice is so necessary1 so that you   
know exactly how long to pause4  ,then  
an important point to remember is that  
the jerking of the rod1 whether forward 
or backward1 is done from the wrist and 
only slightly from the elbow1 and not at
 all from the shoulder4 ,a beginner     
would do well to tie his elbow by a     
loose strap to his waist1 so as to      
remind him not to wave his whole arm as 
most beginners do4  ,all this sounds a  
good deal to think of1 but if you go and
 practise it you very soon get into the 
way of it1 and fly-fishing is the best  
sport that ,i know4  ,there are two     
kinds of fly-fishing1 wet and dry4 ,wet 
fly means that you let your flies sink  
into the water and you then draw them   
along under the surface4 ,a dry fly is  
made in such a way that it floats on the
 top of the water as many natural flies 
do1 and the fish1 seeing it floating    
there1 rises at it4 ,this is the best   

sport of all fishing1 but is also the   
most difficult to do well4  ,of course1 
it is difficult for some boys to buy    
rods and fishing tackle1 but a ,scout   
ought to be able to make his own as most
 of these ,norwegian boys do4           
,illustration3 ,,using ,a ,,young ,,tree
 ,,as ,a ,,fishing-,,rod4  ,cut a       
straight1 whippy rod of about ten feet1 
put on a line of strong1 thin twine1 and
 a cast of horsehair out of a pony's    
tail if you cannot get gut1 ,a hook is  
difficult to manufacture for yourself1  
though it can be done with a bit of wire
 and a file2 but most ,scouts going on  
an expedition take a few hooks with them
 as part of their outfit4  ,when ,i was 
out with ,george1 ,i had to make myself 
a rod1 as we only had one rod between us
 and ,i got tired of waiting for my turn
 with it2 but we were high up in the    
mountains where the woods were thin1 so 
,i only got a poor choice of sticks from
 which to make one4  ,however1 ,i cut   
down a likely looking birch sapling and 

trimmed him down1 and he did pretty     
well2 but he was not very springy1 so it
 required more brute force on my part   
than skilful turning of the wrist to get
 my line out1 ,but ,i caught a lot of   
fish with him all the same4         99  
99       99       99       99           
,,repairing ,a ,,rod4  ,one day ,i broke
 the delicate top joint of my           
fly-fishing rod by catching the fly in a
 bush during the back throw4  ,well1    
it's no use giving up fishing because   
your rod is broken2 the thing to do is  
to set to work and mend it4 ,it is an   
accident which often happens1 especially
 to a beginner1 and every ,scout ought  
to know how to mend his rod4  ,my rod   
had snapped off a few inches from the   
tip1 so ,i took the ring off the broken 
tip1 and1 after trimming the broken end 
of the rod with my knife1 ,i put the    
ring on to this and thus made my rod    
workable2 but it was just a few inches  
shorter than it had been before4  ,this 
is the way to bind your ring on to the  

new tip--at least1 it's the way ,i did  
it1 and it served quite well for the    
rest of my trip4  ,having no beeswax1 ,i
 took some gum from the bark of a fir   
tree and rubbed a thin coating on the   
rod and on the black silk thread ,i had 
with me2 then1 putting the ring on to   
the end of the rod1 ,i bound it there   
with a very careful and tight wrapping  
of the silk4 ,this ,i had previously    
wound on to a stick so as to get a good 
hold on it for pulling each turn tight4 
,to fasten the end of the silk1 proceed 
as follows3  ,illustration3 ,,how ,,to  
,,bind ,,the ,,ring ,,of ,a             
,,fishing-,,rod ,,on ,a ,,new ,,tip4    
,after winding from ,a steadily up      
towards the point ,b 7about an inch71   
when you have still about half a dozen  
turns to do1 make a big loop of your    
silk ,c1 and lay the loose end of it1 ,b
 ,d1 on the unbound bit of rod1 and go  
on binding over it until you have       
reached the point ,b with your thread as
 in the sketch4 ,you then pull ,d and   

the loop ,c gradually closes in till    
there is nothing left of it4 ,then you  
cut off the loose end ,d close to the   
rod4  ,put a coating of gum or varnish  
over the whole to make it fast and      
watertight1 and then you have your rod  
as strong and as sound as ever4         
99       99       99       99       99  
,,fishermen',s ,,knots4  ,in order to be
 able to fix your hook on to your line  
and to join up the different bits of    
line1 you want to know how to tie your  
knots2 but in addition to those which   
you have learnt as a ,scout there are   
several more which come in useful for a 
fisherman4  ,i will only give you one or
 two here1 but there are many others4   
,these are drawn half tied1 just before 
pulling tight4  ,here is the overhand   
loop3  ,illustration3 ,,knot  ,to join a
 line to a loop do it this way3         
,illustration3 ,,knot  ,much the same   
kind of knot is used to tie a hook to a 
line3  ,illustration3 ,,knot  ,to join  
two lengths of line together1 even when 

of different thickness1 follow out this 
method3  ,illustration3 ,,knot          
99       99       99       99       99  
,,killing ,,fish4  ,the ,scout ,law says
 that you should not kill ,god's        
creatures without good reason4 ,it is   
allowable when you need them for food4  
,in the case of fishing you often catch 
them when practising1 but you need not  
kill every fish you catch2 you can take 
them carefully off the hook and put them
 back into the water4  ,the hook as a   
rule catches them in the lip1 which with
 them is not the tender flesh that it is
 with us1 but merely a lot of bones held
 together by gristle1 so they do not    
suffer pain as we should--and this is   
shown by the way the same fish will come
 on again after having been already     
caught4  ,when you want to keep a fish  
that you have caught1 you should kill   
him at once and put him out of his      
misery1 and this you can do either by   
hitting him on the head with a stick1 or
 by driving your knife into his brain1  

or by putting your finger down his      
throat and then bending his head        
backwards and breaking his neck4        
99       99       99       99       99  
,,cleaning ,a ,,fish4  ,then when you   
have killed your fish you will want to  
cook him4  ,first of all you must clean 
him--that is1 take his insides out4 ,the
 stomach and guts of the fish are       
carried rather far forward in his chest1
 so with your knife you cut across the  
narrow bit of skin which joins his chest
 to his chin1 and with the point of the 
knife underneath the skin slit the skin 
of his chest and belly open as far as   
the fin near his tail4 ,then cut through
 the gut in his throat and the whole of 
his insides will be let loose to fall   
out4  ,but before doing this1 if you    
have slit the belly neatly it is        
interesting to look at the wonderful    
insides which he carries--the heart1 and
 lungs1 and liver1 and intestines1 all  
beautifully arranged and kept in their  
place and protected by the delicate     

ribs4 ,it is a wonderful piece of ,god's
 work1 and when you come to find that   
each trout that you catch is made       
exactly in the same way1 and just the   
same as a trout that you may catch in   
,new ,zealand on the opposite side of   
the world1 you begin to understand what 
a wonderful ,creator there must be ,who 
makes us all1 and gives this wonderful  
kind of machinery inside the body1 which
 keeps life going for us4         99    
99       99       99       99  ,,how    
,,to ,,cook ,,your ,,fish4  ,there are  
many ways of cooking your fish4 ,the    
usual way is to fry him in a hot        
frying-pan4 ,a slit should be cut in    
each side of the fish1 as otherwise the 
heat is likely to burst his skin4 ,a    
little salt and a pinch of mustard put  
in with the butter in the pan will add  
to his flavour4  ,but the simplest way1 
for you don't generally carry           
frying-pans with you when you go        
fishing1 is to cut a long stick that    
bends at an angle of forty-five degrees4

 ,cut one arm to about one-third the    
length of the other4 ,trim the short arm
 with your knife till it is fine and    
pointed2 pass this through the fish's   
mouth and then through the flesh near   
his tail1 and toast him by the fire1    
back downwards1 with a small lump of    
butter and a pinch of salt and mustard  
powder in his inside4 ,you will find him
 very good eating6 ,a clean1 flat stone 
makes a good plate4         99       99 
99       99       99  ,,the             
,,fisherman',s ,,hail4  ,there1 now     
,i've told you how to catch and kill and
 cook your fish1 ,i hope that you will  
soon be able to do it1 and ,i wish you  
the old salutation which every fisherman
 wishes to another when they start out  
to fish1 ,a tight line to you1 meaning  
that ,i hope you will get a big one on4 
,,foreign ,,boy ,,scouts  ,,the         
,,norwegians4  ,when my holiday in      
,norway came to an end1 ,i was very     
sorry to pack up and come away4 ,even   
when ,i drove the last thirty miles in a

 cart to the railway ,i carried my rod  
in my hand1 and when ,i saw a           
good-looking pool or run in a river--we 
were generally near a river--,i stopped 
the cart for a few minutes and tried for
 a trout1 and1 what was more1 ,i        
occasionally caught one6  ,illustration3
 ,,norwegian ,,scouts ,,were ,,very     
,,lively4  ,at last ,i got back to      
,christiania and to proper clothes and  
clean hands--and ,i didn't like it a    
bit4  ,however1 ,i was comforted by     
being told that the ,boy ,scouts wanted 
me to ,inspect them1 and ,i did so4     
,there was a parade of nearly eight     
hundred of them2 fine1 strapping1 big   
lads they were1 too1 just like a lot of 
,british boys1 and dressed the same as  
us1 and very lively and active4         
,illustration3 ,,the ,,norwegian ,,flag4
 ,as you will see1 it is something like 
the ,union ,jack4  ,i had to present    
,colours to some of their troops1 and   
their national flag is in some ways a   
little like our ,union ,jack4 ,and ,i   

told them that they were as like        
,british boys as their flag was like    
ours1 and that their forefathers1 the   
,norsemen1 were mixed up with our       
forefathers in the old days1 and ,i     
hoped that we would all be mixed        
together1 in a friendly way1 in these   
days--as brother ,scouts4         99    
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,swedes4  ,in ,england we are apt to   
look upon ,norway and ,sweden as almost 
one nation1 but they are not so in      
reality4 ,the ,norwegians in the old1   
old days formed one nation with the     
,danes1 but the ,swedes have always been
 a separate nation which has never been 
under the rule of any other people4 ,and
 they are very proud of this4 ,so when  
,i got amongst the ,swedes1 ,i found a  
totally different people1 but they were 
equally kind and friendly to me1 and    
they had an equally ,british-looking lot
 of ,boy ,scouts4  ,a large number of   
these had collected the day before ,i   
was to review them in ,stockholm1 and   

were camped there4 ,so ,i went and saw  
them overnight in camp1 and found them  
round their camp-fires1 cooking their   
suppers1 as jolly as sandboys4 ,if they 
could do nothing else1 they could1 at   
any rates cook their food very well4    
,but they could do other things1 too1 as
 they proved next day at the ,rally4    
,this took place on a big open sports   
ground4  ,the ,crown ,prince and        
,princess of ,sweden were there to see  
them 7the ,crown ,princess is the       
daughter of ,h4,r4,h4 the ,duke of      
,connaught1 our ,president74 ,their     
,royal ,highnesses are tremendously     
interested in the ,scouts1 and watched  
all that they did most keenly4          
,illustration3 ,a ,,swedish ,,boy       
,,scout ,,at ,,the ,,rally4  ,i heard   
many reports of the good work done by   
,swedish ,scouts4 ,here is one3  ,a     
poorly-paid working man in ,gothenburg  
found himself in great difficulties     
recently through his wife and two       
children being suddenly taken ill with  

diphtheria and removed to the hospital4 
,he himself had to go to his work at the
 factory all day1 but he had one of the 
children left on his hands1 as well as  
the home to look after4  ,he got the    
wife of one of his neighbours to do this
 for one day2 the next he came back home
 during the dinner-hour to see how      
things were going on1 and he found his  
home all cleaned and tidied up1 and a   
strange boy sitting on the floor playing
 with his child1 while another was still
 finishing the cleaning-up work4  ,when 
he asked who they were1 they explained  
that they were ,boy ,scouts1 and1 having
 heard that he was wanting help in his  
home1 they had come to give it4  ,you   
can imagine how grateful he was1        
especially as the ,scouts kept on at the
 work for over two weeks until the      
mother had got well and returned to take
 charge4  ,one of those boys was the son
 of a rich man1 while the other1 his    
comrade1 was quite a poor lad4          
99       99       99       99       99  

,,the ,,danes4  ,in ,denmark the ,boy   
,scouts are strong in numbers and keen  
and good at their work4 ,those of       
,copenhagen gave a ,rally in my honour1 
and twenty troops paraded and gave very 
good shows of scout work1 each troop    
doing its own in turn4 ,they seemed very
 good1 especially in their cooking4     
,there were two very smart troops of    
,girl ,guides also present at the       
parade1 who cooked1 too4  ,illustration3
 ,,avenue ,,of ,,crossed ,,staves4      
,formed by ,boy ,scouts and ,girl       
,guides at ,copenhagen4 ,i drove through
 it in a motor-car4  ,the consequence   
was that when ,i began tasting some of  
their good dishes1 ,i had to go and     
taste all1 so that when the time came   
for the official dinner ,i had to attend
 in the evening ,i was already so       
crowded that ,i could not eat any of it6
  ,when ,i drove away from the          
parade-ground after it was over1 the    
,scouts and the ,girl ,guides made an   
avenue1 crossing their staves overhead1 

through which ,i drove in my motor-car4 
,in ,copenhagen1 the ,town ,hall is the 
great thing to see4 ,it is quite modern1
 only lately built1 and is a magnificent
 building4 ,one of the features about it
 is the lifts1 which keep running slowly
 up and down4 ,they have no attendants  
in them4 ,you simply have to jump in or 
out fairly quickly4 ,i saw one stout old
 lady come and look at the lift4 ,she   
did not seem to like trying to jump in1 
but there seemed no way for getting it  
to stop for a minute2 she looked        
helplessly around2 then she had another 
look at it4 ,the more she looked the    
less she liked it1 and finally she gave 
up the idea of visiting the upper floors
 of the building1 and went sorrowfully  
away4  ,illustration3 ,the lift in the  
,town ,hall at ,copenhagen is a         
continuous moving one--you have to jump 
in or out of it pretty smartly4 ,old    
,lady3 ,shall ,i venture8  ,the ,scouts 
in ,copenhagen have been trained in     
first aid work by a ,first ,aid ,corps  

which exists in that city4  ,the ,danish
 ,first ,aid ,corps is very much like   
our ,fire ,brigade4 ,at the first aid   
station are motor-cars fitted up with   
things needed for almost every kind of  
accident1 and they are ready to turn out
 at any moment that their services may  
be required4 ,their office is on the    
telephone with every police station1 and
 when they get a call to an accident1   
the motor1 with all appliances1 leaves  
the station within thirty seconds of the
 alarm4  ,when ,i was there the alarm   
came that a man had been run over by a  
tramcar in ,market ,street4 ,in a few   
moments a motor lorry ran out of the    
station equipped with lifting jacks and 
levers to raise the tramcar1 while a    
second followed it immediately with     
stretcher and first aid appliances for  
the injured man4  ,in the station were  
kept all the things necessary for       
dealing with railway accidents1 for     
rescuing people overcome with gas1 for  
saving people in the water1 and for     

pumping air into them when apparently   
drowned2 there were derricks for raising
 fallen horses1 and fire escapes of     
every kind4 ,in fact1 it was fitted up  
and manned by thirty men1 all trained   
and prepared to deal with every kind of 
accident that could well happen4  ,well1
 that's just what ,i should like to see 
done by ,boy ,scouts in our country     
towns and villages4 ,they might make    
their club-room a first aid station1    
with as many appliances they could get  
together in the shape of bicycles1      
hand-carts1 ladders1 jumping-sheets1    
stretchers1 bandages1 spare harness1 and
 with every ,scout trained to deal with 
every kind of accident1 or to form fence
 while others rendered first aid1 and so
 on4  ,there might be some way of       
sending round or sounding the alarm when
 an accident was reported1 to bring     
together in a few minutes the patrol    
whose turn it was for duty4  ,in this   
way ,scouts would do most valuable work4
         99       99       99       99  

99  ,,the ,,dutch ,,scouts4  ,then ,i   
went to ,holland1 where ,i saw plenty   
more ,scouts1 both at ,amsterdam1       
,amersfoort1 and ,the ,hague2 and fine1 
smart1 clean-looking fellows they were1 
too4  ,illustration3 ,most of the       
,amsterdam ,boy ,scouts carry lassoes   
with which they are very handy4  ,one   
thing which they did especially well was
 throwing the lasso4 ,they all carried  
light cord-lassoes on them4 ,these came 
in useful for hundreds of things1 like  
making bridges1 rope-ladders1 rescuing  
people from burning houses1 and so on4  
,but the ,scouts also used them for     
lassoing each other1 and many of them   
were awfully good at it4  ,the ,dutch   
,scouts also had an excellent stretcher1
 which ,i think would be very useful for
 some of our ambulance patrols4 ,with   
its help1 one ,scout alone could take an
 injured man to hospital4 ,in the first 
place1 it was flat on the ground1       
without any feet to it1 so the ,scout   
could roll or drag his patient on to it4

  ,illustration3 ,,the ,,dutch ,,scouts'
 ,,stretcher4  ,then it had two pairs of
 canvas flaps1 which could lace across  
the patient's chest and loins1 with sort
 of pockets for his feet1 so that after 
the patient had been fastened on to it  
he could1 if necessary1 be stood        
upright4 ,this is sometimes useful in a 
narrow place like a tunnel or a mine or 
a passage4 ,then1 with a short chain and
 hook to each corner1 the stretcher was 
slung underneath a pair of wheels 7a    
,scout's hand-cart would do equally     
well71 and the ,scout was able to wheel 
his patient away4         99       99   
99       99       99  ,,belgian         
,,scouts4  ,before my visit to ,belgium 
the ,scouts there did grand work in     
helping the soldiers who had been sent  
to put out some forest fires4 ,for      
several days the ,scouts were camped    
with the soldiers4  ,they supplied a    
line of signalling posts1 by which      
communication was kept up with the      
nearest telegraph offices4  ,they       

rendered first aid to a good number of  
soldiers who got slight injuries from   
burning or other accidents in fighting  
the flames4 ,and also the ,scouts did   
good work in keeping the soldiers       
supplied with water when it was most    
difficult to get4  ,when the campaign   
with the bush fires was over1 the       
military commanding officer published   
his very sincere thanks and praise for  
the good work done by the ,scouts4  ,the
 ,belgian ,scouts made a very good kind 
of hut for themselves4 ,in the sketch   
below you see the framework of one hut1 
as well as the hut completed by being   
covered with turf sods1 and a wickerwork
 door4  ,illustration3 ,,belgian ,,boy  
,,scouts' ,,hut4 ,on the right is shown 
the framework4  ,during the war1 the    
,belgian ,scouts have amply sustained   
the reputation won for the ,belgians by 
the men in the fighting line4 ,indeed1  
many of the ,scouts themselves1 though  
boys1 joined in the fighting4 ,one boy1 
,leysen1 alone1 was decorated by ,king  

,albert for having captured no fewer    
than eleven spies1 and for having       
accounted for one of the enemy with his 
own hand4  ,two ,belgian ,scouts were   
captured by the ,germans while observing
 their lines and executed2 while a large
 number have been employed in the       
hospitals as orderlies1 in addition to  
doing good work conveying rations to    
troops in outlying trenches4  ,on the   
occasion of one of my visits to the     
,front1 ,i saw a smart troop of ,belgian
 ,scouts4 ,it was a cyclist troop and   
the boys had offered their services at  
the outbreak of war for orderly duty to 
the military authorities at ,antwerp4   
,they continued their work in the       
retreat from that place to ,dunkirk and 
to ,north ,france1 afterwards being     
employed on regular pay by their ,army  
,headquarters as orderlies4  ,i had the 
pleasure1 too1 of meeting the ,chief    
,scout of ,belgium1 ,dr4 de ,page1 the  
director of a splendid hospital for     
,belgian soldiers given by the people of

 ,great ,britain4 ,his three sons are   
,scouts1 two of them serving in the     
,army1 and the youngest doing his bit in
 the workshop attached to the           
hospital--where they make their own     
instruments1 such as scalpels1 scissors1
 etc4  ,finally1 ,i had an interview    
with ,king ,albert of ,belgium4 ,he told
 me that he considered the ,movement one
 of the best steps of modern times for  
the education of the boy4 ,his own son  
is an enthusiastic ,scout1 and the      
,belgian boys who had taken it up were  
quite changed for the better1 and had   
done valuable service in the war4 ,the  
war had been a high test for it1 but had
 proved that our training gave the very 
best foundation for making good         
soldiers--by developing the right spirit
 and intelligence as well as physical   
strength and activity4  ,at the opening 
of the ,mercers' ,arms 7the ,hut for the
 use of our troops which is manned by   
,scoutmasters7 a ,guard of ,honour was  
formed by a ,calais ,troop of ,french   

,boy ,scouts under ,scoutmaster ,laut4  
,these boys have been doing helpful     
service in the military hospitals4 ,it  
was very pleasing indeed to see our     
international comradeship thus          
exemplified4         99       99        
99       99       99   ,a ,,trip ,,to   
,,algeria  ,one ,january morning my wife
 and ,i sailed from ,southampton for    
,algeria1 on the north coast of ,africa4
  ,as we came into the ,bay of ,biscay1 
after leaving the ,english ,channel1 our
 ship got into a big swell1 the seas    
rolling us heavily1 and occasionally    
rushing over our bows in frothing green 
and clouds of spray4  ,after about      
twenty-four hours of rough weather we   
sighted ,cape ,finisterre--the first    
headland on the coast of ,portugal1 and 
not far from that we passed ,corunna1   
where1 during the ,peninsular ,war in   
#ahaj1 the ,british force under ,sir    
,john ,moore successfully got away from 
a superior force of ,french1 though     
losing their gallant commander in doing 

so4  ,the next important town on the    
coast is ,vigo1 and it was in ,vigo ,bay
 that ,drake singed the ,spanish ,king's
 beard by capturing and burning his     
fleet4  ,also later1 during the war of  
the ,spanish ,succession in #agjb1 an   
,anglo-,dutch fleet under ,admirals     
,rooke and ,stanhope attacked the       
,spanish silver fleet in ,vigo ,harbour1
 captured much treasure1 and sank many  
vessels4  ,past the ,torres ,vedras4    
where ,wellington successfully held off 
,napoleon's army till his own was fit to
 take the field4  ,and near that is     
,oporto1 where the port wine comes from1
 and which is well known to ,britons as 
being the place where the ,duke of      
,wellington defeated the ,french troops 
under ,marshal ,ney in the ,peninsular  
,war by crossing the ,river ,douro      
unexpectedly--the ,french thinking it   
quite impassable by ,british troops1    
,we got into calmer water near the      
mouth1 of the ,river ,tagus1 and here we
 saw the palace of our national guest1  

the young ex-,king of ,portugal1        
standing high up on a mountain peak     
above ,cintra4         99       99      
99       99       99  ,,algiers4        
,continuing our voyage1 we passed       
,trafalgar ,bay and ,gibraltar1 where we
 reviewed some ,scouts4  ,on arrival at 
,algiers1 the chief seaport and capital 
of ,algeria1 the first thing that struck
 us was the strange mixture of people we
 met in the streets4  ,there were       
,arabs1 in their flowing white garments1
 brushing shoulders with smartly dressed
 ,french officers and ladies1 and       
picturesque native soldiers and ,turks  
and ,italian peasants all busy at their 
different pursuits4  ,algiers is now a  
modern ,french town1 though formerly it 
was the headquarters of the ,algerian   
pirates4 ,the native quarter of the city
 is still a network of narrow streets   
and alleys1 made quite dark by the      
houses that almost meet overhead4       
,above the town stands the old fortress1
 called the ,casbah4 ,this was the      

stronghold of the ,turkish ,corsairs and
 it was here that they kept the         
prisoners which they captured from      
various vessels at sea4  ,those of the  
captives who were ,christians they      
treated with unusual severity1 and a    
large number of ,british sailors        
suffered torture at their hands4  ,we   
saw here a massive doorway with chains  
hanging festooned upon the upper part4  
,this was called the ,gate of ,pardon1  
because here the prisoner was given a   
chance of release4  ,he was made to run 
between two lines of soldiers armed with
 swords1 all of whom cut at him as he   
ran by1 and if he were able at the end  
of the course to spring up and catch    
hold of the chain he was allowed to go  
free4 ,if he failed he had to run the   
gauntlet back again1 and very few       
survived it4  ,illustration3 ,,the      
,,gate ,,of ,,pardon1 ,,algiers4        
,another reminder of the ,christian     
prisoners is to be seen in the chief    
mosque of the city4 ,this was designed  

and built by these captives under the   
orders of their heathen masters4 ,they  
naturally constructed it like one of our
 churches in the form of a cross4 ,this 
was afterwards recognised by the ,moors1
 and the church was used1 but the       
builders were put to death for their    
temerity4  ,we can admire the bravery of
 these men1 who1 in spite of the danger 
of being killed for it1 did their best  
to maintain their religion to the end4  
99       99       99       99       99  
,,constantine4  ,a day's journey by     
train from ,algiers1 through country    
closely cultivated with vines and crops 
by the ,french colonists1 and then      
through a mountainous district inhabited
 by the ,kabyle tribes1 brought us into 
,constantine4  ,this is a wonderful city
 perched on a high rock1 and surrounded 
on three sides by a narrow gorge some   
#djj feet deep4 ,it has been a fortress 
since ancient times2 and holds the      
record for being besieged1 having stood 
no fewer than eighty investments in its 

time4  ,on the last occasion it was held
 by the ,arabs against the ,french1     
whose first attempt to take the place   
was defeated by the natives after a     
desperate fight4 ,it looks practically  
impossible to capture the place1 but for
 two years the ,french did not give up  
hope1 continuing their efforts until in 
the end they were successful4  ,like the
 ,scouts they were not put off by very  
big difficulties1 but pluckily stuck to 
it1 and gained their end4  ,we visited  
here the ,french cavalry regiment1 the  
#crd ,chasseurs d',afrique4 ,this       
regiment distinguished itself in the    
,crimea by supporting the charge of the 
,british ,light ,brigade at ,balaclava4 
,it dashed bravely into the batteries of
 ,russian artillery1 who were firing    
into the flanks of our force1 and       
captured a number of their guns1 and    
thus enabled the survivors of the charge
 to make their way back from the field4 
,the records of this exploit are still  
preserved in the regimental museum1 or  

salle d',honneur1 as are also the       
trophies and memorials of other fine    
deeds performed by the regiment on      
active service4  ,among these was an    
interesting letter written by an officer
 after he had been mortally wounded by a
 shot which shattered his jaw4 ,it was  
his last message to the men of his      
squadron urging them to do their duty   
before all else1 and saying he was proud
 to die in the cause of his ,country4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,a ,,roman ,,house4  ,this portion of   
the ,globe was once an important part of
 the ,roman ,empire4  ,as every ,scout  
knows this great nation penetrated as   
far north as the borders of ,scotland1  
and ruled over ,england for nearly #djj 
years4 ,they also held ,germany1        
,france1 and ,spain1 and the larger     
portion of ,north ,africa4  ,in the     
course of our travels in ,algeria1 we   
came across remains of the ,roman       
occupation1 the finest of these being   
the ruins of the city of ,timgad4       

,these have been dug out of the sand1   
and preserved1 so that it is now        
possible to walk through the paved      
streets and visit what were once the    
market place1 theatre1 bathing          
establishments1 temples1 public         
libraries1 and private houses of people 
who lived there over #ahjj years ago4   
,the usual ,roman house consisted of a  
front hall leading into a central       
open-air courtyard1 which was surrounded
 by a colonnade1 and had a fountain or  
tank full of fish in the centre4 ,then  
leading out of this were the owner's    
study1 sitting-room1 bedrooms1          
dining-room1 and a series of three      
bathrooms1 one warm1 the second hot1 and
 the third cold4  ,the floors of the    
rooms were made of cement1 upon which   
ornamental mosaic was inlaid1 that is1 a
 pattern made out of very small stones  
of different colours4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,,an     
,,arab ,,market4  ,on arrival at ,timgad
 my wife and ,i found the weekly ,arab  

market in full swing4  ,illustration3   
,,an ,,arab ,,taking ,a ,,sheep ,,home  
,,from ,,market4  ,it is not in the     
least like an ,english market with its  
tidy pens of sheep and cattle and       
orderly arrangement of stalls1 for this 
is a dense crowd of white-robed ,arabs1 
in the midst of which camels and donkeys
 for sale stand about amongst tents full
 of clothes and corn and seed1 and      
strips of hide for making shoes4  ,and  
here and there in the dust are dark men 
cooking and selling unappetising bits of
 meat and making black coffee1 which is 
their only drink4  ,towards evening the 
fair breaks up4 ,those who have bought  
corn load up great sacks of it upon     
their camels' backs4  ,the camel1 as you
 know1 squats down on the ground whilst 
its master loads it1 and during the     
process looks round and gives out       
heartrending groans as if complaining at
 the excessive weight being put upon its
 back1 but when the load is adjusted1   
the animal gets up and walks away quite 

contentedly4  ,the camel can travel long
 distances for days together without    
drinking fresh water1 because his throat
 is fitted by ,nature with bladders1    
which he fills with water before        
starting4 ,when he feels thirsty1 he    
ejects one of these out of his throat1  
and then drinks the water from it4      
,others of the ,arabs who have been     
attending the fair mount their mules or 
donkeys--often two of them on one       
mule--carrying their purchases with     
them1 in some cases even carrying live  
sheep across their saddles4 ,many of    
them crowd into coaches to go home4     
,these are rickety-looking boxes on     
wheels with roofs to them1 drawn by six 
horses1 which travel three abreast4     
,when they were all comfortably settled 
in one of these coaches ready for their 
journey1 my wife stepped forward with   
her kodak to photograph them4 ,in a     
moment they were tumbling out of their  
places1 hurrying to get out of the range
 of the ,evil ,eye--for that is what    

they think the camera must be2 they fear
 it may bring sickness or bad luck upon 
them4         99       99       99      
99       99  ,,the ,,spahis4  ,while we 
were at ,timgad a gaily coloured little 
band of mounted men came trailing across
 the plain1 and finally made their halt 
close to us4 ,they were a troop of      
,spahis1 or native cavalry of the       
,french army in ,algeria4  ,the men     
dress in ,arab costume1 with the white  
turban on their heads1 a short red      
jacket1 and baggy blue ,turkish breeches
 with boots of red morocco leather4     
,they also wear a huge red cloak in cold
 weather4  ,illustration3 ,,aspahi1 ,,or
 ,,native ,,cavalryman ,,of ,,the       
,,french ,,army ,,in ,,algeria4  ,they  
are mounted on small grey ,arab horses1 
and sit in a very high-peaked saddle1   
and the horses all wear blinkers4       
,altogether they make very picturesque  
soldiers1 and at the same time are good 
riders and brave fighters4         99   
99       99       99       99  ,a       

,,tramping ,,camp4  ,prom ,biskra on the
 ,sahara we started' on a walking tour  
among the mountains of the desert4  ,we 
got a couple of tents1 bedding1 camp    
furniture1 and food1 and two mules to   
carry it all4 ,we also got two ,arabs to
 guide us and be generally useful4      
,their names were ,rahmoun and ,ibrahim4
  ,our preparations did not take us     
long1 and we were soon camped out on the
 desert1 far from other human           
habitations1 in the glorious sunshine of
 ,north ,africa4  ,at night1 although   
the air was keen and cold1 we had our   
beds put outside the tent in the open1  
and we slept under the stars4  ,the     
drawback to camping was the difficulty  
in getting fresh water and firewood4 ,we
 generally carried bottles of fresh     
water with us1 as even when we were able
 to find a trickle of water in a        
river-bed1 it was frequently brackish or
 half salt4  ,illustration3 ,we were    
soon camped out on the desert1 far from 
other human habitations1 in the glorious

 sunshine of ,north ,africa4  ,then     
there were no trees or bushes with which
 to light our fire1 so we had to collect
 the smallest sticks and straws to act  
as punk and loaded up any parched plants
 that we could find1 and these1 together
 with twigs and branches of little thorn
 tufts1 enabled us to make a fire4 ,it  
was not a big one1 but then a ,scout    
does not need a bonfire to cook his     
food4         99       99       99      
99       99  ,a ,,fortified ,,farm4  ,we
 left the railway to face the open stony
 desert and arid rocky mountains with   
the greatest keenness1 in the bright sun
 and clear air of ,southern ,algeria4   
,the last bit of civilisation that we   
saw was a ,french4 colonist's farm1     
fortified with a strong loopholed tower1
 in which the farmer and his family     
could take refuge and stand a siege if  
the ,arabs should rise in rebellion4    
,these fortified farms are to be seen in
 many parts of ,algeria1 and are a sign1
 of the farmers ,being ,prepared for    

what is possible1 though it may not be  
probable4  ,if our own people in ,south 
,africa had prepared their homesteads   
for defence in the same way against the 
,kaffirs1 the ,zulus1 the ,basutos1 and 
the ,matabele tribes1 they would have   
saved themselves in very many cases from
 death at the hands of these savage     
warriors when they rose at different    
times in rebellion against the white    
men4  ,any ,boy ,scout who goes later on
 to farm in an ,oversea ,dominion where 
there are fighting natives will do well 
to remember this1 and to make one of his
 farm buildings defensible1 so that it  
cannot be attacked or burnt by the      
enemy1 and where he and his family can  
stand a siege of some weeks1 having     
food1 water1 and ammunition always ready
 inside it4  ,this is ,being ,prepared1 
and not leaving things to chance4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,,cliff ,,homes4  ,our way next led us  
through a mighty gorge between the      
mountains4 ,there were high1 rocky      

cliffs on either side1 and a stream     
running among the stones at the bottom  
of it4  ,this ravine we clambered       
through for five or six miles1 passing  
on the way an ,arab village of          
flat-roofed mud huts perched on the side
 of the cliffs like swallows' nests4    
,and not far from them were holes and   
caves in the cliffs in which some of the
 ,arab tribes lived4 ,many of them were 
so difficult to get at that the         
inhabitants got to them by means of     
ropes lowered down over the edge of the 
cliff4         99       99       99     
99       99  ,a ,,mountain ,,of ,,salt4 
,the ,romans in the old days had        
marched1 fought1 and colonised all over 
,algeria1 and their doings have been    
recorded by their history writers4  ,one
 of these1 ,herodotus1 has described how
 in one part of ,algeria there were many
 wonders1 such as springs of water in   
which the water came out boiling1       
donkeys which had horns like rams' horns
 on their heads1 and lastly that there  

was a great mountain made of solid salt4
  ,of course1 he got a good deal laughed
 at1 and was entirely disbelieved by the
 ,romans who stayed at home1 but all the
 same his yarns were not far off the    
truth4  ,we ourselves were camped near  
one of the numerous hot springs in      
,algeria1 ,hammam ,mousketine1 it was   
called2 clouds of steam used to rise    
from it always4  ,also1 we met many     
,english sportsmen tramping and camping 
among the mountains in search of the    
moufflon1 a kind of mountain wild sheep1
 which1 at a short distance1 looks very 
like a donkey with big ram's horns on   
its head4  ,in the course of our tramp  
we paid a visit to the ,salt ,mountain1 
and found that ,herodotus had told      
nothing more than the truth4  ,the      
mountain is about #ijj feet high1 and   
about three miles long1 and consists of 
a jumble of crags and fissures1 chiefly 
of yellow sandstone1 in which are       
imbedded great blocks and sheets of     
salt4  ,the natives for miles round come

 with picks and mattocks1 and cut as    
much of it as their donkeys can carry to
 market4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,,in ,a ,,gale4  ,our next 
march took us across endless dry        
water-courses with steep sides1 which   
had to be clambered up and down under a 
hot sun4  ,there was no regular road1   
because every downfall of rain alters   
the course of the ravines4 ,so we had to
 make the best of our way in the general
 direction of the place we were making  
for4  ,it is wonderful how easily you   
lose your direction when you get into a 
mass of ravines unless you notice       
carefully your bearings beforehand1 and 
either make for some good landmark1 such
 as a distant mountain peak1 or else    
keep your direction by noticing the     
position of the sun4  ,in doing this1   
you must1 of course1 allow for the sun  
also changing his position in the sky as
 the hours pass by4  ,we used the sun to
 some extent this day1 but after a time 
a cold breeze sprang up1 and clouds     

began to gather1 so that in a very      
little while the sky was overcast and   
the sun was no longer any guide4  ,then 
came on a cold1 cold wind1 which got    
more bitter as we struggled against it4 
,but1 cold as it was1 ,i did not find   
that ,scouts' kit was so cool as people 
try to make out2 the wind certainly     
whistled about my knees1 but ,i did not 
feel so very cold then4  ,we searched   
for some sort of sheltered place to     
pitch our tent1 and found plenty of such
 in the dry bed of the river under the  
cliffs1 which formed its banks1 but we  
dared not use it1 as rain clouds were   
banking up1 and if heavy rain were to   
come the dry river bed would in a very  
short time be a raging torrent4  ,so we 
struggled on1 and at last found a ledge 
among some rocks above the river bed1   
which just afforded room for our tent1  
and here we pitched it4  ,and only just 
in time1 for before we had got it well  
up the rain began to come down1 and     
continued to rattle on our canvas roof  

for the rest of the night4  ,but the    
storm had come with so little warning1  
and the wind had come before the rain1  
so we comforted ourselves with the      
,scouts' weather mottoes3--     ,long   
foretold1 long last2    ,short notice1  
soon past4  ,and     ,when the wind's   
before the rain1    ,soon you may make  
sail again2    ,when the rain's before  
the wind1    ,then your sheets and      
halyards mind4  ,sure enough1 next      
morning the sky cleared1 and a beautiful
 sunny day enabled us to carry out our  
next march in comfort4         99       
99       99       99       99  ,,arabs' 
,,candles4  ,our next camp was a        
delightful one--in place of the open1   
dry1 stormy desert1 we found ourselves  
in groves of young palm trees on the    
river bank1 with plenty of fresh water  
and plenty of firewood4 ,so we were in  
luxury1 and stayed two days in this spot
 to enjoy it to the full4  ,we had the  
additional fun here of catching fish in 
the river with a hook and line attached 

to a stick cut from an oleander bush4   
,we found some worms in the irrigated   
garden1 and thus we were able to fish   
and to catch a good number of barbel4   
,these made a great addition to our     
larder4  ,a very useful tip to know in  
,africa is that when all other wood is  
wet1 dead palm branches will always     
light and burn well4 ,they are most     
useful as torches in camp1 and are      
nicknamed ,arabs' ,candles4         99  
99       99       99       99  ,a       
,,dragon',s ,,lair4  ,we left our camp  
ground1 with its palm trees down by the 
river1 and with our tent and belongings 
packed on to two mules1 and our two     
,arabs as guides1 trekked across a wide1
 stony plain under a blazing hot sun4   
,not a particle of shade the whole way1 
nor a drop of water2 every footstep had 
to be picked among the loose1 jagged    
stones1 and our way was continually     
barred by deep1 dry water-courses1 which
 had to be carefully clambered into and 
scrambled out of4  ,it was a very trying

 day's march1 but yet we enjoyed it4    
,the views of the mountains around us   
were splendid4  ,illustration3 ,,el     
,,kantara  ,we were marching parallel   
with the wonderful range which stands   
like a turreted wall between ,algeria   
and the ,sahara4 ,it is so regular in   
its outline that it looks almost as if  
built by the hands of giants1 and in the
 centre is a narrow1 broken gap1 ,el    
,kantara1 through which run the road1   
the river1 and the railway4             
,illustration3 ,,the ,,tooth1 or ,,the  
,,red ,,castle ,,mountain4  ,we passed  
on our way close under a solitary peak  
which stands out from the rest of the   
neighbouring mountains exactly in the   
likeness of a great red ruined castle1  
called by the ,arabs ,the ,tooth4  ,then
 we got into a deep ravine with red     
sandy cliffs on either side1 and        
marching up its rocky bed we finally got
 in among the mountains1 and there made 
our camp4  ,after getting our tent      
pitched1 and while the men were finding 

firewood1 my wife and ,i started a bit  
of engineering work in order to obtain a
 water supply4  ,we cleared out the     
little trickle of water which we found  
in the river bed1 and digging a hollow  
in the sandy bed1 we planted in it our  
india rubber bath1 and diverted the     
trickle so that it ran into this1 and so
 gave us a standing supply of clear     
water for our camp4  ,it was quite a    
triumph of engineering1 though we got   
pretty wet and muddy in carrying it out4
  ,then we went exploring among the     
hills1 following up our gorge4 ,we soon 
found that it became a narrow fissure   
between the mountains1 so narrow that   
the overhanging rocks often nearly      
touched each other high above our heads4
 ,it was a most weird place--exactly the
 sort of spot where one might expect a  
dragon to dwell4         99       99    
99       99       99  ,,arab            
,,politeness4  ,a thing that strikes one
 about the ,arabs is their politeness   
and readiness to do good turns4  ,every 

,arab we met as we tramped across the   
plains greeted us with good morning in  
,arabic or ,french1 and1 though it must 
be a strange sight to them to see a     
white lady walking1 and a man in shorts 
and shirt-sleeves 7for ,i always wear   
the ,scout kit for camping71 they never 
showed undue curiosity1 and never       
thought of jeering at us as ,i fear     
would be the case in many places in     
,england4  ,illustration3 ,,an ,,arab   
,,tent4 ,the goatskin slung on a tripod 
is full of water for the use of the     
family4  ,if they saw our mules in      
trouble1 or found us pitching our camp1 
they were always ready to lend a hand   
without any idea of getting a reward or 
a tip for doing so4  ,they have a good  
deal of the ,scout in them1 and many    
tribes of them do not know what it is to
 live in a house-they are nomads1 that  
is1 they are wanderers1 and live always 
in tents1 moving with their flocks and  
families from place to place where the  
grass gives the best pasture for their  

sheep and goats4  ,their tents are      
large1 low1 widespread awnings of black 
or brown goats'-hair cloth1 supported on
 numerous short poles4  ,the tent ropes 
stretch in various directions1 and round
 the whole they put up a hedge or       
zareeba of thorn bushes to keep out the 
jackals1 and to keep in their goats     
during the night4  ,in front of the tent
 hangs a goatskin slung on a tripod1 and
 full of water for the use of the       
family4  ,many ,arabs are well behaved  
and hospitable to strangers4 ,but all   
are not so polite3 there are some tribes
 who are pretty cunning thieves4 ,our   
two ,arabs always patrolled round our   
camp at night with loaded rifle and     
revolver to drive off any would-be      
robbers1 and our mules were shackled up 
at night with handcuffs on their        
fetlocks1 and these were locked to      
prevent them being stolen4         99   
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,hot ,,springs ,,of ,,hammam           
,,mousketine4  ,the first thing one     

notices about the hot springs of ,hammam
 ,mousketine which ,i mentioned above1  
is clouds of steam coming up out of the 
bushes at different points4 ,here you   
will find water bubbling up out of the  
ground and through a small mound of hard
 white or yellow crust4  ,the water is  
boiling hot1 and the crust is formed    
from salts and chemicals contained in   
the water drying on the surface4  ,there
 are about a dozen of these springs and 
a large number of cones or mounds which 
have been springs1 and which have choked
 themselves up or run dry4  ,half a     
dozen of these cones1 of about ten feet 
high1 stand together in a group1 and the
 ,arabs have a curious story about them1
 which ,i will tell you in the next     
paragraph4 ,also close by is a great    
waterfall about a hundred yards wide by 
fifty feet high1 but all turned to stone
 by the same process4         99        
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,arab ,,marriage4  ,a rich ,arab named 
,ali ,cassam had a beautiful sister     

named ,ourida4  ,ali thought her the    
best woman in the world1 and although   
she was his sister he determined to     
marry her4  ,such a marriage is         
considered just as unholy by the        
,mohammedans as it is with us1 and so   
everybody was against it4 ,but ,ali was 
great and powerful1 and he thought that 
by making a magnificent show of it he   
would get over the feelings of those who
 said it was wrong4  ,illustration3 ,the
 wedding party were all there in their  
places1 but all were turned into stone4 
,so a splendid feast was arranged1 and  
the ceremony began on a very big scale4 
,the priest ,abdallah undertook to carry
 out the religious part of it1 and had  
just taken the first step in the        
marriage service of placing the         
bridegroom's hand on the bride's head   
when there was a tremendous flash of    
lightning1 fire rushed out of the earth1
 the day was suddenly turned into night1
 and boiling water spouted up in all    
directions4  ,when the sun came out     

again the wedding party were all there  
in their places1 but all were turned    
into stone1 and the boiling water still 
bubbles up out of the earth round about 
them4  ,personally ,i could not         
recognise exactly the actors in this    
drama2 it needed a lot of imagination to
 believe that one mound represented ,ali
 and another ,ourida1 while ,abdallah   
was recognisable by his turban6  ,this  
was all that ,i saw of them4         99 
99       99       99       99  ,a ,,good
 ,,turn ,,to ,a ,,donkey4  ,owing to the
 absence of roads in the country the    
,arabs do not use carts4 ,all the       
carrying is done by camels1 mules1 or   
donkeys4 ,the donkeys are the commonest1
 being the cheapest2 and very patient1  
hard-working little servants they are4  
,on one of our tramps we came across an 
,arab standing very forlornly by his    
donkey1 which had fallen down4 ,there   
was the little beast lying on its side  
with its huge load of halfa grass partly
 across it1 and the owner quite at a    

loss to know what to do4 ,this halfa or 
esparto grass is collected by the ,arabs
 on the mountain side1 and brought down 
and sold to merchants to go and make    
paper in ,england4 ,it weighs very      
heavy1 which we soon found when we went 
to the assistance of the ,arab1 and     
lifted the load off the donkey4 ,the    
little animal seemed in no hurry to rise
 from his comfortable position on the   
ground1 and the ,arab was proceeding    
with a big stick to hint to him that it 
was time to get up1 when my wife        
intervened1 and showed the ,arab that   
this was no way to treat the good little
 beast4  ,illustration3 #a4 ,,in        
,,distress4  ,having induced him at last
 to rise1 the load of grass was         
up-ended1 the donkey put broadside on to
 it1 and the burden was quickly hoisted 
on to its back again4  ,illustration3   
#b4 ,,all ,,hands ,,to ,,the ,,rescue4  
,so we had been able to do a little good
 turn to the man1 though the donkey did 
not probably appreciate it quite so much

 at first1 but he did in the end1 for as
 soon as his load was securely on his   
back the man started to whack him on    
along his road4  ,but again my wife put 
in a remonstrance1 and the ,arab1       
grasping her meaning1 refrained from    
using his stick1 and coming back to us  
he gave us each a hearty handshake1 as  
if to show his gratitude for our help   
and his determination to treat his      
four-footed friend with greater kindness
 in the future4  ,illustration3 #c4     
,,all ,,pleased ,,except ,,the ,,donkey4
         99       99       99       99  
99  ,a ,,camp ,,invention4  ,we were    
awfully sorry to finish our tramping    
camp4 ,it was over much too soon1 but in
 the short time that we were at it we   
picked up lots of health and enjoyment1 
and also a good many useful camp hints4 
,illustration3 ,,whenever ,,we ,,had ,a 
,,moment ,,to ,,spare ,,she ,,set ,,to  
,,work ,,to ,,scrub ,,the ,,saucepan4   
,one of these--like so many great       
discoveries--was found by accident4  ,my

 wife1 like a good ,scout1 kept         
everything very clean in camp1 and our  
joke was that whenever there was a      
moment to spare she would set to work to
 scrub the saucepan4 ,that seemed to be 
her favourite job1 using a handful of   
sand and a twist of coarse grass1 and   
the result was a bright1 clean saucepan 
in which to cook our food4  ,a good deal
 of sickness comes in camps when dirty  
saucepans are used4  ,when she was not  
cleaning the saucepan her other spare   
minutes were spent in cleaning up the   
camp ground1 and burning all scraps4    
,one morning when doing this she made   
the great discovery4 ,it was this--how  
to make toast without a good fire4 ,she 
had wrapped some unused slices of bread 
in some waste paper1 and put the whole  
lot among the ashes of our palm-leaf    
fire in order to burn them4  ,the paper 
gradually charred and burnt itself away1
 and left the bread behind it nicely    
roasted into crisp brown toast6         
99       99       99       99       99  

,,truffle ,,hunting4  ,another tip which
 we learnt in camp was how to find      
truffles4 ,these are a kind of root akin
 to a mushroom1 which grow entirely     
underground4 ,they are very nice to eat1
 and command a good price in the market4
  ,in ,france the people find them with 
pigs2 the pigs are able to scent them1  
and proceed to root them up with their  
snouts1 when the man steps in and       
collars the truffle4  ,the ,arabs showed
 us how to find them on the desert1     
where they are quite plentiful4  ,we had
 to examine the ground pretty carefully 
as we went along1 and where we saw a few
 little cracks in the surface leading   
out from one centre where the earth     
bulged up a little--there we dug down   
two or three inches and found the       
truffle4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,,an ,,ex-,,boy ,,scout4   
,at one railway station in ,algeria we  
found a motor-car waiting to take us to 
our destination4 ,the driver1 unlike so 
many motor-car drivers1 set to work to  

carry our luggage himself1 and worked   
for us most willingly and well4 ,he     
spoke ,english perfectly1 with a ,south 
,african accent4  ,we soon found that he
 came from the ,transvaal1 and had      
learnt his energetic helpfulness and    
courtesy through having been a ,boy     
,scout in ,johannesburg6         99     
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,story ,,of ,,the ,,siwash ,,rock4     
,the story of the ,arab ,marriage       
reminds me of another legend about      
rocks1 but this one was a ,red ,indian  
story about a rock in ,british          
,columbia1 ,canada4  ,the ,arab story   
showed that the ,arabs respect decent   
behaviour1 and this one1 on the opposite
 side of the world1 shows that the ,red 
,indians also give honour to manliness  
and purity4  ,illustration3 ,,tunisian  
,,arab ,,boy ,,wearing ,a ,,chekia ,,or 
,,fez4  ,illustration3 ,,tunisian       
,,woman ,,out ,,for ,a ,,walk--,,black  
,,mask ,,and ,,roomy ,,bags4  ,just at  
the entrance to the harbour of          

,vancouver stands a solitary pinnacle of
 rock1 straight and upright4 ,it is     
called the ,siwash ,rock4  ,a young     
chief had made himself renowned for his 
wonderful courage in war and for his    
sense of duty to his tribe and to his   
religion1 and for his courtesy to women4
  ,he had married a wife1 and when she  
was about to give birth to a child they 
did as laid down in the laws of the     
tribe1 that is1 they both bathed in the 
sea to be so clean that no wild animal  
should be able to scent them4 ,this     
would ensure their child being clean in 
thought and deed4  ,the woman returned  
to their tent1 but the young chief went 
on swimming to make sure that he should 
be clean and pure for the birth of his  
son4  ,while he swam a canoe came along 
with four giants in it4 ,these shouted  
to him to get out of their way1 but he  
only laughed back at them that he was   
swimming on important business4  ,but   
they shouted to him that he must cease  
swimming in the channel1 as they were   

messengers of the great ,god1 and that  
if he did not they would turn him into a
 fish1 or a tree1 or a stone4           
,illustration3 ,a ,,spahi 7,,native     
,,cavalry ,,soldier7 ,,admired ,,by ,,an
 ,,abab ,,boy ,,scout ,,of ,,the        
,,future4  ,but he only replied that he 
must be clean for the birth of his      
child1 and therefore he meant to go on  
swimming1 no matter what the risk was to
 him4  ,this quite nonplussed the       
giants4  ,they could not run him down1  
because if their canoe were to touch a  
human being their power over men would  
be lost4  ,just then1 when they were    
pausing1 wondering what to do1 they     
heard the cry of a baby come from the   
woods on the shore4  ,then one of the   
giants stood up and chanted to the      
swimmer a message from the great ,god   
that1 because he had bravely held out   
against all their threats in order that 
his child should be the son of a clean  
father1 he should never die1 but should 
remain for ever as a reminder to other  

warriors to do their duty1 and to obey  
the law of the tribe4 ,and his wife and 
child1 too1 should be for ever near him4
  ,so the moment he touched the shore he
 became the great upright rock1 now     
called the ,siwash ,rock4 ,and a short  
distance from him1 in the woods1 are two
 more rocks1 a big one and a little one 
beside it--his wife and child4  ,they   
are monuments to the ,indian belief that
 those who do their duty in spite of any
 difficulty or danger are the best men  
and the greatest heroes4         99     
99       99       99       99  ,,tunis4 
,the ,souks4  ,perhaps you do not know  
what a souk is8  ,imagine yourself in a 
long1 narrow tunnel lit with skylights  
here and there1 with small open shops   
along either side4 ,that is what one of 
the souks or bazaars in ,tunis is like4 
,there are miles of them1 and they are  
generally crowded from end to end with  
the white-cloaked ,arabs and shrouded   
figures of women with black masks over  
their faces1 all busy shopping1 buying  

or selling4  ,each trade has a souk to  
itself4 ,thus1 in one souk you will find
 nothing but shoemakers' shops one after
 another1 in the next will be all       
coppersmiths1 in another the cloth      
merchants1 and so on4  ,there still     
stand the ,bardo or ,palace of the ,bey 
or ,king of ,tunis1 and the kasbah or   
castle in which the ,tunisian pirates of
 old days used to imprison the          
,christians whom they captured at sea2  
and there is still the old slave market 
where they used to sell them4  ,many an 
,english sailor has been lost for ever  
to his home and friends in that dismal  
place4  ,but on one occasion the        
prisoners got the better of their       
captors4 ,as many as ten thousand of    
them had been collected1 and they made a
 plan to escape1 and1 rising against    
their captors1 they overwhelmed them by 
force of numbers and got away4  ,home1  
,sweet ,home1  ,an interesting spot in  
the city is the old ,christian cemetery1
 in which lies buried the man who wrote 

the well-known song1 ,home1 ,sweet      
,home4 ,most people think that it is an 
,english song1 but the composer was in  
reality an ,american--a clerk in the    
,consulate--named ,john ,howard ,payne4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,,carthage4  ,close to ,tunis is the    
site of ,carthage1 the capital of the   
great country of that name in ,north    
,africa4  ,there is very little to be   
seen of it to-day1 for the city was     
destroyed by its enemies1 and the stones
 were taken to build the present town of
 ,tunis4  ,it was founded nearly #ijj   
years before the time of ,christ1 and   
was for hundreds of years a powerful and
 prosperous country till #adf years     
before ,christ1 when it was conquered by
 the ,romans1 and the city was given    
over to the flames4  ,the city was at   
that time twelve miles round1 and was   
defended by huge walls sixty feet high  
and thirty-three feet thick with rooms  
inside them4 ,in the lower storey were  
stables for horses and elephants 7of    

which there were #cjj71 and the upper   
storey served as barracks for over      
#bj1jjj soldiers1 who formed the        
garrison for defence of the city4  ,but 
very few of these soldiers were         
,carthaginians4 ,the ,carthaginian young
 men did not care about soldiering3 they
 preferred to loaf about and do nothing 
but watch public games1 and foreigners  
or poor men were hired to do the        
soldiering for the country4  ,the       
country was large and rich1 and had many
 colonies oversea and plenty of ships4  
,it looked as though no enemy could ever
 arise to come and attack her4 ,but what
 seemed so unlikely actually happened in
 the end4  ,the ,romans had no great    
fleet to speak of1 but they had a fine  
army1 and they meant business4 ,they put
 their soldiers into crowded transports1
 and sailed across the short distance of
 ocean that lay between the two         
countries--not much farther than        
,hamburg in ,germany is from ,hull in   
,yorkshire4  ,thus the country which1   

like ,germany1 had a fine1 well-trained 
army1 landed a force in ,carthaginia1   
the country which1 like ,britain1 had a 
great fleet and great colonies1 but only
 a small army1 and it smashed up the    
,carthaginians through their not ,being 
,prepared for it4  ,boar ,hunting4      
,from ,tunis one sees to the southward a
 mountain called ,zaghouan4 ,though     
forty miles away it was from here that  
the ,carthaginians got their water      
supply1 and they conveyed it by a small 
canal1 which they built all the way to  
,carthage4  ,illustration3 ,you can     
imagine the fun of having a lot of      
wildly excited ,arabs firing from the   
opposite side of the circle straight in 
your direction1 with the animal in      
between you4  ,that canal still serves  
to bring the water into ,tunis1 though  
it is now a good deal over two thousand 
years old6  ,i went to ,zaghouan once to
 hunt wild boars4 ,we got on that       
occasion a hyena4 ,it was an exciting   
time when our ,arab beaters1 working in 

a big circle1 gradually closed in on him
 from all sides4  ,it was exciting      
because every beater carried a gun1 and 
every man meant having a shot at that   
hyena4  ,you can imagine the fun of     
having a lot of wildly excited ,arabs   
firing from the opposite side of the    
circle straight in your direction at the
 animal in between you6  ,fortunately on
 this occasion the first few shots      
killed him1 and there were no other     
deaths to record4  ,the ,arabs          
themselves see no special danger in it1 
because1 they say1 the guns are all     
pointing downwards at the animal1 and if
 the bullet misses him it will only bury
 itself in the ground4  ,that is all    
very well1 but it might as likely as not
 hit a stone and glance up again and    
catch one in the eye or elsewhere that  
might be unpleasant4  ,personally1 ,i   
did not hold with that kind of shooting1
 but the ,arabs seemed to enjoy it so   
much and were so cheery and jolly over  
it that ,i1 too1 had to smile and look  

as if ,i liked it4  ,there is plenty of 
game near ,tunis1 and this day we saw   
two dead wild boars being brought in4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,,elephants ,,used ,,in ,,war4  ,in the 
old days1 as ,i told you1 ,carthage was 
the ,london of that time1 being a city  
of #gjj1jjj inhabitants1 and the capital
 of a great empire1 which had overseas  
colonies in ,spain1 ,corsica1 and       
,sicily4  ,for a very long time it was  
at war with the ,romans1 who were the   
great military nation then1 and at first
 the ,carthaginians got the better of   
their adversaries4  ,one great help to  
them was their corps of elephants4      
,these elephants had scythes fixed on to
 their tusks1 so that when they charged 
they not only cut down the serried ranks
 of their enemies1 but they also        
trampled them underfoot4  ,in their     
great fight outside ,carthage1 the army 
belonging to the ,carthaginians under a 
,greek officer1 ,xanthippus1 carried the
 day with a grand charge of elephants1  

and thus defeated and routed the ,romans
 under ,regulus4  ,of the #bj1jjj men   
who formed the ,roman force only #bjjj  
escaped4 ,regulus and a number of his   
best officers were captured and held as 
prisoners of war for several years4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,a ,,brave ,,man ,,faces ,,torture4  ,as
 time went on1 the ,carthaginians tried 
to make peace1 and they sent their      
prisoner1 ,regulus1 over to ,rome to    
persuade the ,roman ,government to come 
to terms4 ,they made him promise on his 
word of honour that if he failed to     
bring about peace he would return again 
to ,carthage1 and become a prisoner once
 more4  ,when he got to ,rome1 instead  
of urging them to make peace1 he told   
his countrymen to go on with the war4   
,the ,roman ,government were inclined to
 do this1 but at the same time they saw 
that if they did1 ,regulus would        
probably be put to death by the         
,carthaginians for not having procured  
peace1 so they did not know what to do4 

,regulus1 seeing their difficulty1 told 
them that he was an old man and his life
 did not matter1 and he pretended that  
he had already taken slow poison4 ,so   
the ,romans resolved to continue the    
war1 and ,regulus went back to          
,carthage1 according to his promise1 and
 gave himself up to the ,carthaginians4 
,illustration3 ,,an ,,arab ,,boy ,,and  
,,his ,,moke4  ,you might think that    
they would have admired him for his     
courage and sense of honour1 but the    
,carthaginians1 as ,i told you1 were a  
cowardly lot2 they hired soldiers to do 
their fighting for them1 and1 like all  
cowards1 they were cruel1 too2 so       
instead of respecting this plucky old   
,roman1 they punished him by shutting   
him into a box lined with sharp spikes1 
so that he could get no rest nor sleep4 
,then they cut off his eyelids1 and took
 him out of his dark cell into the      
blazing sunlight1 so that he was        
blinded1 and finally they killed him by 
crucifying him4  ,supposing that we were

 invaded by an enemy who had a strong   
army1 and we had nothing but paid       
soldiers to defend ourselves with       
because our men were too cowardly or too
 unpatriotic to learn how to defend     
their homes4 ,if such an enemy were to  
defeat our weak army1 and then order us 
to destroy every house in ,london1 how  
should we like it8  ,should not we feel1
 like the ,carthaginians1 enraged with  
our ,government who had not made the    
country strong1 and also enraged with   
ourselves because we had not trained    
ourselves to defend our homes before it 
was too late8  ,the ,carthaginians in   
despair sent more messengers to the     
,roman general at their gates1 begging  
for thirty days' grace in which to make 
their arrangements1 but the conquerors  
sent these men back with the order that 
the destruction of the city was to begin
 at once4  ,then a change came over the 
,carthaginians4 ,from a mob of          
despairing1 panic-stricken wretches they
 organised themselves into a defence    

force4 ,they barred the city gates1 and 
started to make weapons to replace those
 which they had surrendered to their    
enemies4  ,night and day they           
worked--men1 women1 and children4 ,they 
manufactured daily #ajj shields1 #cjj   
swords1 #ejj spears1 and #ajjj balls for
 their catapults1 and the women cut off 
their hair and plaited it into ropes for
 the catapults4         99       99     
99       99       99  ,a ,,catapult4    
,illustration3 ,a ,,carthaginian        
,,catapult4  ,the catapult which the    
,carthaginians used was not the little  
implement that a boy uses nowadays2 it  
was a big kind of windlass1 by which a  
number of ropes were twisted up tightly 
till they acted as a spring to a strong 
wooden arm at the end of which was a    
leather cup4 ,this held a stone about   
the size of a man's head4  ,when the    
spring was let go1 this arm was flung   
violently forward1 and the stone was    
thereby hurled into the air1 and flew   
with great force for #djj or #ejj yards4

  ,the catapults served the purpose of  
artillery in those days when gunpowder  
had not been invented4  ,the            
,carthaginians1 when a favourable wind  
blew1 sent a lot of fire boats filled   
with faggots and tar to drift among the 
,roman fleet and burn their ships4      
,they also got together the wrecks of   
their own ships which had been smashed  
up by the enemy1 and from them they     
built up others and sallied out of port 
in order to astonish the ,romans4  ,but 
they did not make any bold attacks1     
consequently the ,romans only sat tight 
and got reinforcements over1 and in the 
end they attacked and forced their way  
into the city4 ,there the fighting in   
the streets was very close and bitter4  
,for six days it went on1 but the stern 
discipline and valour of the ,romans    
gradually told1 and very soon the whole 
city was in their hands4 ,fifty thousand
 inhabitants were allowed to escape1 and
 the city was given over to the flames4 
,one lot of defenders the ,romans       

refused to spare4 ,some #ijj of them    
took refuge1 and made a last stand1 in  
the ,temple of ,a,esculapius1 and among 
them was the wife of ,hasdrubal1 the    
commander of the ,carthaginians1 and her
 two sons4  ,hasdrubal himself saved his
 skin by surrendering to ,scipio1 the   
,roman commander1 but his wife stood up 
on the temple1 which was now on fire1   
and reviled him as a coward4 ,then she  
killed her two boys1 and threw herself  
into the fire rather than give in to the
 ,latin enemy4         99       99      
99       99       99  ,,malta4  ,a ,home
 of ,scouting4  ,malta was a home of    
,scouting1 since the ,knights of ,st4   
,john1 who settled there after the      
,crusades1 were typical ,scouts4  ,they 
knew how to ,be ,prepared  ,i remember  
reading the diary of a traveller who    
visited ,malta in their time--some three
 hundred years ago4 ,he said that one   
morning a pirate ship was sighted off   
the island4 ,the ,grand ,master at once 
ordered one of the fighting ships to get

 ready1 and called upon the knights to  
man it4 ,any who desired to go were to  
parade in front of the ,castile ,palace 
7now the ,mess house of the ,royal      
,artillery74 ,some fifty or sixty would 
be sufficient1 but instead of this over 
three hundred turned up on parade with  
their retainers and men-at-arms ready to
 start then and there4  ,in the ,armoury
 can be seen among many others the suit 
of armour worn by the ,grand ,master    
,wignacourt4  ,one cannot but admire the
 beautiful fitting of the different     
folds of armour1 made so that the arms  
and legs could be bent and yet          
thoroughly protected against wounds2    
also the whole is beautifully engraved  
with ornamental designs4 ,among these a 
quick-sighted ,scout will at once notice
 the fleur-de-lys1 or ,scout's badge1 on
 the breast4         99       99        
99       99       99  ,,never ,,say     
,,die4  ,the badge also occurs on       
another badge of the knights1 that is1  
on the ,maltese ,cross1 which all of    

them wore4 ,this cross was eight-pointed
 in shape1 and was originally derived   
from the skull and crossbones2 it came  
from the crossbones1 and served to      
remind the knights that it was their    
duty to fight to the death and never to 
give in4  ,illustration3 ,a notice on   
the walls of the fortifications of      
,malta1 where caper-plants grow         
plentifully1 says3 ,no one is allowed to
 cut capers here except the ,commanding 
,royal ,engineer4 ,this is how ,i       
picture him4  ,their motto might well   
have been that which the ,boy ,scouts   
use to-day3 ,never say die till you are 
dead--struggle on against any difficulty
 or danger1 don't give in to it1 and you
 will probably come out successful in   
the end4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,,the ,,maltese ,,cross4   
,most of the ,oversea ,scouts wear1 in  
addition to the ,scout's badge of the   
fleur-de-lys1 the badge belonging to    
their country4 ,for instance1 the       
,canadian ,scouts wear the maple leaf1  

and the ,new ,zealanders wear a leaf of 
the tree fern4  ,if the ,maltese ,scouts
 want a badge of their own they could   
not do better than adopt the ,maltese   
,cross of the knights1 and then stick   
to1 and act up to the meaning of it4    
99       99       99       99       99  
,,how ,,malta ,,came ,,to ,,be          
,,british4  ,when ,napoleon was trying  
to conquer the whole of ,europe a       
hundred years ago1 he proceeded to take 
,malta4  ,but the ,maltese people rose1 
and held the rest of the island against 
him1 and sent and asked the ,british    
under ,lord ,nelson to come to their    
assistance4  ,this was promptly done1   
and the ,british ,fleet laid siege to   
the ,french in ,valetta1 so that no     
supplies of food could be brought to the
 ,french1 and some ,british troops were 
landed to help the ,maltese4  ,thus the 
,french were defeated1 and the ,maltese 
handed themselves and their island over 
to become a colony of the ,british      
,empire4  ,one celebrated officer who   

largely helped to defeat the ,french in 
,malta was ,admiral ,troubridge4        
,someone was condoling with ,nelson once
 on his losing his right arm in action4 
,the gallant seaman replied cheerily3   
,my good sir1 ,i have got three right   
arms4 ,here is one 7raising his left    
arm71 and there are my other two        
7pointing to ,capt4 ,ball and ,capt4    
,troubridge74  ,at the time of the      
,british investment of the ,french in   
,malta1 the ,maltese themselves were    
suffering from famine1 and their state  
was so deplorable1 and the ,british     
authorities so slow to help them1 that  
,commodore ,troubridge could bear it no 
longer1 and to ease their sufferings he 
caused some grain ships at ,messina to  
be seized and brought to ,malta and     
their contents to be given out to feed  
the starving people4  ,commodore        
,troubridge began life as a ship's boy  
at fifteen1 and rose from seaman to be  
an officer through his steady attention 
to his duty1 so in all ways he was a    

good example for a ,scout to follow4    
,malta remains to-day a ,british colony1
 small in size--not much bigger than the
 ,isle of ,wight--but having a numerous 
population of people speaking their own 
language1 and at the same time loyal to 
,king ,george and the ,british ,empire4 
,malta is chiefly valuable as having a  
harbour1 dockyard1 and coal stores for  
our ,mediterranean ,fleet1 and is       
therefore strongly fortified and        
garrisoned by ,british troops1 both     
infantry and artillery4  ,the ,maltese  
themselves supply some companies of     
,fortress ,artillery and two battalions 
of ,infantry ,militia4         99       
99       99       99       99  ,,maltese
 ,,boy ,,scouts4  ,now1 also1 they have 
their ,boy ,scouts1 whom ,i saw during  
my visit4  ,for ,sea ,scouts it is an   
ideal place1 with its fine harbours1 and
 its coasts with their numerous creeks  
and landing places4  ,the warm climate  
also induces much to bathing1 and the   
,maltese are naturally good swimmers and

 handy men in boats4 ,their boats are   
very graceful in shape2 they are called 
daisas1 which is spelt dghaisa1 but ,i  
never could see the use of the letters  
gh in the word2 it sounds all right     
without them4  ,illustration3 ,a        
,,maltese ,,dghaisa4         99       99
       99       99       99  ,,my       
,,dghaisa4  ,long ago ,i was quartered  
in ,malta for three years1 and ,i       
greatly enjoyed my life there1          
especially the boating and the bathing4 
,after the ,south ,african ,war the     
people of ,malta very kindly sent me a  
beautiful present1 and1 ,i suppose on   
account of my known love of boating1 it 
took the form of a silver model of a    
sailing dghaisa4 ,it was so accurately  
and carefully made that not only did it 
include oars and boat-hooks1 etc41 but  
even the thole-pins and the scoop for   
bailing out water4  ,i was1 of course1  
delighted to see the place again after  
twenty years' absence1 and to see so    
many of my old friends4 ,nothing seemed 

very much changed in all that time1     
except that the ,boy ,scouts had come   
into existence there as in every other  
important part of the ,british ,empire4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,,sicily4  ,any boy who has read        
,marryat's ,midshipman ,easy will       
remember how that cheeky young ,naval   
officer and a friend of his went for a  
spree in an ,italian sailing boat from  
,malta to ,sicily1 which is eighty miles
 away1 and how their spree turned into a
 pretty desperate adventure4  ,the boys 
were attacked by their boat's crew      
during the night1 and they only saved   
themselves by using their pistols on the
 ,italian desperadoes4 ,they eventually 
landed on the ,sicilian coast not far   
from ,syracuse4  ,anyone who has read   
,count ,erbach's diary of his visit to  
,malta in the time of the ,knights of   
,st4 ,john will remember his exciting   
experiences when1 on leaving the island1
 for ,sicily1 the vessel in which he    
sailed had got within sight of ,syracuse

 when a rakish-looking craft1 which     
proved to be an ,algerian pirate1 ran   
out from under the land1 and chased and 
captured his ship1 and carried him off a
 prisoner to ,tunis4  ,going farther    
back1 every boy who has read his ,greek 
and ,roman history knows how ,syracuse  
was in ancient days one of the great war
 harbours of the ,mediterranean4  ,it   
was the arsenal where fleets fitted out1
 and the depot where they brought back  
their booties of valuables and slaves   
after their victorious raids4  ,you may 
imagine1 then1 that it was interesting  
to us to steam into the beautiful bay on
 a calm1 sunny morning1 past the old    
fort which guards the entrance1 and into
 the back of the island on which the    
town now stands4  ,all was looking sweet
 and peaceful where for hundreds of     
years had been the scene of strife and  
adventure4 ,the ,cathedral and ,circus4 
,the walls of the cathedral are         
supported by immense columns1 which1    
#ejj years before ,christ was born1     

formed the walls of the ,temple of      
,jupiter4  ,many are the signs of the   
,greek and ,roman occupation of the     
place4  ,we visited the great open-air  
circus where gladiators used to fight   
each other to the death1 and where      
slaves were given to lions to devour    
before the eager eyes of ten thousand   
spectators4 ,the seats are still there1 
and the dungeons of the slaves1 and the 
dens of the wild beasts4         99     
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,ear ,,of ,,dionysius4  ,in the        
neighbourhood are the great quarries in 
which the slaves not only worked1 but   
also lived4 ,they were made to cut the  
walls so that they inclined inwards1 and
 therefore could not be climbed4  ,the  
only entrance to the quarries was by    
ladder1 so there was no escape for a man
 once he got in there4  ,there are huge 
caves cut in the walls of the quarries  
in which the slaves lived1 and one of   
these caves has been cut into a narrow  
cleft exactly on the principle of the   

inside of your ear4 ,so that anyone     
sitting at the top of the cleft can hear
 every word that is being spoken or even
 whispered in the cave below4  ,it is   
said that ,dionysius1 the ruler of      
,syracuse1 had this made so that he     
could sit in the cleft 7where there is a
 little chamber with private door7      
unknown to the people in the cave1 and  
there he could overhear all that the    
prisoners talked about and plotted among
 themselves4  ,the whole cave is called 
,the ,ear of ,dionysius4  ,i remember a 
similar kind of ear in a natural cave in
 ,matabeleland4 ,it was here that one of
 the native sorcerers used to hide      
himself1 and when he whispered through a
 crack in the rocks it could be heard   
all over the cave4  ,the people believed
 that it was the voice of a god speaking
 to them1 so they used to come and pray 
to him for advice1 and the old villain  
told them that they must rise up and    
murder all the white people1 and their  
chief1 ,lobengula1 who had long been    

dead1 would come to life and lead them  
against their enemies once more4  ,he   
had nearly persuaded them to come out on
 the war-path1 when ,burnham1 the       
,american scout1 made his way into the  
secret part of the cave and shot the    
supposed god while he was preaching     
murder4         99       99       99    
99       99  ,,carts ,,in ,,sicily4  ,a 
curious thing that strikes you in       
,sicily is the kind of cart and harness 
used by the country people4             
,illustration3 ,a ,,sicilian ,,painted  
,,cart ,,and ,,decorated ,,harness4     
,the cart is a light1 two-wheeled affair
 of an ordinary kind1 but every inch of 
it inside and out as far as the ends of 
the shafts and down the spokes of the   
wheels1 is painted in gaudy colours1 for
 the most part yellow1 blue1 red1 and   
green4  ,pictures of incidents in ,bible
 history1 of the war against the ,turks 
in ,tripoli1 of ballet dancers1 etc41   
are to be seen on most of these carts1  
while on others ornamental patterns only

 are painted4  ,then the harness of the 
horse is of a very gaudy kind when new1 
but being largely made up of cheap gold 
braid and coloured cloth1 it soon fades 
and looks tawdry4         99       99   
99       99       99  ,a ,,musical      
,,saddle4  ,in place of a bit there is a
 steel noseband on the horse's bridle by
 which he is driven and guided1 and     
instead of the ordinary pad on the      
horse's back1 a great ornamental brass  
affair is used4  ,years ago ,i bought   
one of these pads and brought it home as
 a curiosity4 ,a friend met me as ,i was
 bringing it along1 and said3  ,hullo6  
what on earth is this8 ,surely it must  
be some sort of musical instrument4     
,look here6 ,i am getting up a concert2 
you must bring your instrument and play 
it there4 ,will you8  ,of course1 ,i    
always like to oblige a friend1 and ,i  
did not like to disappoint this one1 so 
,i meekly promised4  ,i chose a         
beautiful piece of high-class music1 and
 got the orchestra to practise it over  

as accompaniment to my instrument1 the  
sellura4 ,i tuned it by winding the     
brass flags which adorn it4  ,i fingered
 the knobs up and down the front of it  
as if they were the notes2 the big      
projections on either side ,i pulled as 
if to alter the tone4  ,and the music8  
,well1 ,i got that out of a comb and    
paper affixed to the back1 and into     
which ,i sang4  ,but1 mixed up with the 
other instruments1 it sounded all right1
 and ,i got lots of applause and lots of
 questions afterwards as to where you   
could buy these wonderful organs1 and   
how long did it take one to learn to    
play them1 and so on6         99        
99       99       99       99           
,,taormina4  ,six hundred feet up on a  
mountain spur overhanging the sea stands
 the little town of ,taormina4  ,long   
ago it was chosen as a beauty spot by   
the ,romans and ,greeks1 and here they  
had their villas and baths and theatre4 
,the theatre stands to this day1 in     
ruins1 it is true1 but sufficiently     

whole to show what an ancient theatre   
was like4  ,one can sit in the upper    
circle and look down upon the pit and   
orchestra1 and the marble pillars and   
wall which formed the back of the stage 
in those days in place of scenery4  ,but
 an earthquake has thrown down the      
greater part of the back wall1 and has  
thereby opened up a beautiful view of   
the coast of blue water and white sand  
far below1 and of the purple slopes and 
snowy crest of ,mount ,etna above--a    
scene such as no scene painter could    
have equalled4  ,illustration3 ,,the    
,,theatre ,,at ,,taormina4  ,among the  
quaint and ancient buildings of the town
 stand the old monastery and church of  
,san ,domenico4 ,the monastery is now   
the chief hotel1 and with the splendid  
view from its windows and its pretty    
gardens makes a charming place to stay  
at in this most charming spot4          
99       99       99       99       99  
,,naples4 - ,,vesuvius4  ,naples is a   
city lying around a great bay on the    

,italian coast1 and behind it1 about ten
 miles distant1 rises the double-peaked 
mountain1 ,vesuvius4 ,vesuvius is1 as   
you know1 a volcano and a thin cloud of 
smoke is always coming out of it4  ,when
 ,i visited ,naples a few years ago1 the
 mountain was shaped like this3         
,illustration3   ,now it is like this   
,illustration3   ,it lost its peak in   
one night1 and ,i was there the night   
that it happened4  ,i was sleeping      
peacefully in my hotel1 when ,i was     
awakened in the middle of the night by  
heavy bangings1 and it at once occurred 
to me that the artillery were firing    
guns in the street below my window4  ,i 
thought3 ,hullo1 here's a revolution or 
something going on1 and ,i rushed out on
 to my balcony4  ,the street below was  
empty1 but in other streets ,i could    
hear people calling to each other and   
crying out4  ,then came more of the     
awful banging1 like claps of thunder1   
all round4 ,then there was suddenly a   
great blaze of red light up in the sky1 

and ,i realised that ,vesuvius was      
breaking out4  ,it was just like a      
fountain of fire squirting up1 with     
volumes of smoke and steam above it all 
lit up with the glow1 and round it      
jagged1 white lightning kept blazing and
 darting about4  ,soon the flames were  
dimmed1 the whole outbreak became a dull
 glare1 even the houses round us grew   
indistinct1 and what seemed to be a     
regular ,london fog set in4  ,but it was
 not a fog2 it was a cloud of light     
dust--the ashes from the volcano1 which 
had begun to fall over ,naples4  ,when  
daylight came you could no longer see   
the mountain1 although you could hear it
 rumbling like thunder4  ,you could     
scarcely see across the street1 so thick
 was the ash fog4 ,the fine dust got    
into one's eyes and nose1 and           
everything1 indoors and out1 was covered
 with a thick coating of grit4  ,at the 
foot of ,vesuvius a great stream of     
red-hot lava mud slid down the mountain 
side1 straight across fields and roads1 

and over farms and villages1 slowly but 
steadily pushing its way1 the country   
people fleeing before it with such of   
their property as they were able to     
bundle on to carts or carry away with   
them4         99       99       99      
99       99  ,,pompeii4  ,but on the    
whole the people were not so frightened 
after the first outbreak as one might   
have expected4  ,yet they had every     
reason to be1 because near the mountain 
stand the ruins of the ancient ,roman   
city of ,pompeii1 which was overwhelmed1
 not by lava1 but by just such a fall of
 ashes from a great eruption of         
,vesuvius about thirty years after the  
death of ,christ4  ,the ashes had fallen
 lightly at first1 but so thickly that  
in a very short space of time the whole 
city was buried under tons of it1 and   
the people were crushed or suffocated in
 their homes4  ,you will find the whole 
story of it in the novel called ,the    
,last ,days of ,pompeii1 but if you ever
 go to ,pompeii the ruins which have    

been dug out tell their own story better
 than any book can do4  ,you walk       
through silent streets of beautifully   
decorated houses1 of shops1 theatres1   
and baths2 the pavement is scored with  
the wheelmarks of the chariots1 and in  
some of the houses the skeletons of the 
inhabitants are still to be seen4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,,boy ,,scouts ,,of ,,naples4  ,to-day  
the whole country around the foot of the
 mountain is thickly populated1 and     
towns and villages stand on the slopes  
of ,vesuvius as if there were no danger 
of his ever breaking out again4  ,and   
,naples itself is a great1 flourishing  
city with big factories1 and a busy     
seaport where ships of every nation     
congregate4  ,and last1 but not least1  
it has its ,boy ,scouts4  ,they are     
,italian boys1 but they dress and work  
just the same as their ,british         
brothers4 ,they have done a lot of      
camping out1 and are all very good at   
cooking their grub4 ,and also they do a 

bit of sea scouting in the splendid     
harbour and bay of ,naples4     ,,on    
,,an ,,orient ,,steamship  ,,our        
,,floating ,,home4  ,our ship of twelve 
thousand tons1 ,r4,m4,s4 ,orsova1 was   
more like a floating hotel than a       
sea-going vessel1 and the passengers    
living in bright1 comfortable cabins    
with a fine dining saloon and first-rate
 food1 could hardly imagine the work    
that was going on in other parts of the 
ship to insure their travelling with    
such ease and speed and safety4  ,a tour
 round the ship1 such as we made one    
day1 is full of interest and wonder4    
,the second-class passengers are housed 
and fed just as well as those in the    
first-class1 and there is accommodation 
for #bcj of them4  ,in the third-class1 
again1 they are wonderfully comfortable 
in cabins for two or for four people    
each1 with nice dining and              
sitting-saloons1 and a roomy1 roofed-in 
deck where they can enjoy the fresh air 
in all weathers4 ,there is room for #hjj

 of these1 and the cost of the journey  
from ,england to ,australia is only #ag 
,pounds1 which means board and lodging  
of the best description for six weeks   
while doing the journey out4  ,the crew1
 of course1 live forward1 and1 including
 seamen1 stokers1 engineers1 stewards1  
etc41 they number about #cjj men4 ,on   
the navigating staff of officers1       
quartermasters1 and look-out men depends
 much of our safety at sea4  ,then down 
in the depths of the ship are the       
engineers and stokers1 who make the ship
 go4 ,our chief engineer1 like all chief
 engineers1 is a ,scotsman1 and he loves
 and takes a pride in his engines1 and  
is glad to show them4  ,in ,rudyard     
,kipling's song of the chief engineer1  
he describes him as looking upon his    
engines as almost the work of ,god1 in  
their wonderful power and intricate     
working4         99       99       99   
99       99  ,,in ,,the ,,engine ,,room4
  ,and it is indeed an impressive sight 
to stand below these great monsters of  

steel and watch them faithfully and     
untiringly pounding at their work1 all  
in order1 and exactly in agreement with 
each other1 taking no notice of night or
 day1 of storm or calm1 but slinging    
along at all times1 doing their duty    
with an energetic goodwill which makes  
them seem almost human--almost like     
gigantic ,boy ,scouts6  ,the great steel
 shaft which the four pistons keep      
driving round is nearly #ajj yards in   
length1 and carries the big bronze screw
 propeller at its end1 which thrusts the
 ship along4 ,there are two of these1   
one on each side of the ship1 which is  
therefore called a twin-screw vessel4   
,there are four cylinders to each shaft1
 and the same lot of steam is used1     
passing from one cylinder to the other1 
beginning with the small high-pressure  
cylinder1 which it enters at its highest
 strength1 something like #bej lb4 to   
the square inch1 and ending with the big
 low-pressure cylinder1 where the       
pressure is only about #e lb4  ,then    

there are numbers of other engines4 ,one
 for condensing the salt water from the 
sea and making it into fresh water for  
the boilers4 ,this is done by boiling up
 the salt water so that the watery part 
of it becomes steam1 while the salty    
part remains behind as salt2 the steam1 
when cooled1 becomes fresh water1 and is
 then fit to be used in the boilers to  
make steam4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,,the ,,stokehold4  
,then we go into the stokehold among the
 mighty boilers4 ,here are powerful1    
grimy men at work getting coal out of   
the coal bunkers1 and shovelling it into
 the furnaces4  ,it sounds easy to      
shovel coal on to a fire1 but it takes a
 lot of practice to get the knack of    
stoking a fire properly1 and a lot of   
strength and skill to throw great       
shovelfuls quickly and well into the    
right part of the furnace4  ,the stokers
 work in gangs for four hours at a time1
 under leading stokers1 whose duty it is
 to see that the proper pressure of     

steam is kept up in the boilers by the  
heat of the fires4  ,anyone who has     
travelled on an ocean-going steamer will
 know the sound which comes up from the 
interior of the ship every twenty       
minutes or so1 which sounds like a      
rataplan being hammered by someone for  
his own amusement4  ,this is in reality 
the signal which is given by striking   
iron with a shovel1 and can be heard by 
the men all over the stokehold1 telling 
them to stoke up their various fires4   
,besides the main engines there are     
pumping engines for supplying water to  
the boilers and to the various parts of 
the ship4 ,then there are ice-making    
machines for keeping the food-storage   
rooms cold1 and electric dynamos for    
supplying electric light all over the   
vessel1 and for use in the laundry4     
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,laundry4  ,this is an           
interesting department4 ,here all the   
bed sheets1 towels1 tablecloths of the  
ship1 and the linen of passengers are   

washed1 dried1 and ironed by machinery4 
,the linen is put into a circular drum  
full of soapy water and whirled round   
and round till well washed4  ,it is then
 partly dried by being put into another 
metal tub1 which is whirled round by    
electricity at such a pace that the     
water flies out of the clothes4 ,these  
are then put into a kind of mangle      
between hot steel rollers1 which squeeze
 out any water that remains1 and at the 
same time so heats the things that they 
come out quite dry and ironed into the  
airing-room1 where they receive a final 
drying in hot air4  ,the ironing of     
small articles like shirts and blouses  
is done by a few laundrymaids using     
flat-irons heated by electricity4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,,our ,,birthday ,,cake4  ,while on     
board we celebrated our birthday--that  
is1 my wife's birthday and my own 7for  
by a curious chance we were both born on
 the same day1 though not in the same   
year67--and at tea-time a beautiful     

birthday cake appeared upon the scene1  
beautifully sugared and decorated with  
our names and appropriate inscriptions1 
just as if it had been made ashore4  ,i 
do not know how the knowledge of the    
birthday got about1 but ,i do know that 
the cake was a most excellent one1 and  
the kind thought of the baker in making 
it was greatly appreciated by both of   
us4         99       99       99        
99       99  ,,food ,,and ,,feeding4    
,after seeing the stokehold1 the        
engines1 and the laundry1 we visited the
 kitchens4 ,the feeding of the          
passengers is an important point1 for on
 board are no fewer than #bjj           
first-class1 #bcj second-class1 #hjj    
third-class passengers1 and over #cjj   
officers and crew--more than #aejj      
people altogether4  ,the voyage to      
,australia takes nearly six weeks1 so   
you can imagine that a pretty large     
amount of food has to be carried on     
board to take the ship out and home     
again4  ,tons of fresh meat and         

vegetables1 butter1 and eggs are stored 
in ice-cold cellars4 ,each day a supply 
is brought up and put into iced larders 
for that day's issue4  ,here are some of
 the amounts taken in the ship for one  
voyage3 #e tons bacon1 #ej1jjj eggs1 #f 
#a_/b tons butter1 #de1jjj oranges1     
#ijjj lb4 jam4  ,in the great kitchen   
are a dozen cooks at work preparing the 
meals for all classes--the cooking is   
exactly the same for all4 ,also the     
quality of food is the same1 except that
 the first-class get more variety and   
choice of different dishes4 ,in the     
bakery is made the daily supply of bread
 for the whole ship1 and also baked     
puddings1 cakes1 and sweetmeats4        
99       99       99       99       99  
,,potato ,,peeling4  ,there were lots of
 interesting machines used in the       
kitchen to save time and labour4  ,for  
instance1 there was a machine for       
peeling potatoes2 a round metal tub in  
which the potatoes were rushed round and
 round until their skins were rubbed    

off1 and they were ready for the        
cooking-pot4  ,there were egg-boiling   
machines1 which1 working by clockwork1  
kept the eggs in boiling water for      
whatever time was desired1 and then took
 them out without any attention on the  
part of the cook4  ,there was a         
bread-slicing machine and a             
plate-washing machine1 the dirty plates 
being placed in iron racks and lowered  
into a tank where boiling water is      
dashed on to them from both sides1 so   
that they clean themselves in no time4  
,there was also a machine for kneading  
the dough for making bread4  ,in fact1  
the whole place was a marvel of work and
 organisation all compressed into a very
 small space1 and yet done most         
successfully and cleanly4         99    
99       99       99       99  ,a ,,good
 ,,dinner4  ,here is one day's bill of  
fare for the third-class passengers1    
which shows that they do not fare badly4
 ,i had some of it myself1 and it was   
excellent4  ,,breakfast  ,porridge with 

,milk ,yarmouth ,bloaters ,hashed ,meat 
,cold ,corned ,pork ,bread ,butter ,jam 
,marmalade ,tea ,coffee ,cocoa          
,,dinner  ,mulligatawny ,soup ,roast    
,mutton ,potatoes ,mashed ,pumpkin ,suet
 ,pudding with ,syrup ,children--,milk  
,pudding ,bread ,cheese ,biscuits       
,,tea  ,lancashire ,hot-,pot ,cold ,meat
 ,salad ,pickles ,bread ,butter ,jam    
,marmalade ,currant ,cake   ,,supper    
,bread ,butter ,cocoa ,biscuits and     
,cheese ,gruel for ,infants if required 
,cocoa or ,coffee with ,biscuits at     
#f4cj a4m4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,,an ,,echo ,,of ,,the     
,,zulu ,,war4  ,of two of the cooks with
 whom ,i talked1 one had been           
twenty-three years in the service of the
 ,orient ,company and the other         
twenty-six years3 and nearly all the    
ship's company had been in this ship    
four years1 though their engagement only
 lasts for one voyage4 ,so it looks as  
though the ,orient were a satisfactory  
line to serve with4  ,one of the cooks  

had been a soldier in the ,wiltshire    
,regiment1 and had served in the ,zulu  
,war of #ahgi4 ,he had been in the siege
 and defence of ,etshowe4  ,this place  
was surrounded by the ,zulus1 and       
another ,british force tried to get into
 signalling communication with it by    
means of the heliograph1 which at that  
time was quite a new invention4  ,i     
reminded my cook friend of this1 and he 
told me this little yarn about it4 ,he  
said3  ,i was walking out on the ridge  
there close to the camp with a corporal 
in my company when we noticed a light   
flickering on a hill in the distance4   
,he had been through a course of        
signalling1 and said it looked as if    
somebody were trying to flash a signal  
to us1 so we got a bit of looking-glass 
and flashed it in their direction4      
,suddenly he said to me3  ',write down  
what ,i tell you4'  ,i got out a piece  
of paper and a pencil1 and he spelt out 
a message which was meant for ,colonel  
,pearson1 our commanding officer4 ,it   

was to say that if we sent a signaller  
on to the church steeple in ,etshowe    
they could signal direct to him4  ,i    
took the message to the colonel1 and    
soon after a sailor managed to get up   
somehow or other1 and we very quickly   
had messages going and coming4    ,,sea 
,,scouting   ,in the days of ,queen     
,elizabeth1 nearly four hundred years   
ago1 the sailors of ,spain1 of ,england1
 of ,holland1 and of ,portugal were all 
making themselves famous for their      
daring voyages in small sailing ships   
across unknown oceans1 by which they    
kept discovering new lands for their    
country in distant corners of the world4
  ,there was one small cabin-boy on a   
coasting brig in the ,english ,channel  
who used to long to become one of these 
discoverers but when he looked at the   
practical side of the question it seemed
 hopeless for a poor little chap like   
him ever to hope to rise in the world   
beyond his present hard life in a       
wretched little coaster1 living on bad  

food and getting1 as a rule1 more kicks 
than halfpence--but it shows you how the
 poorest boy can get on if he only puts 
his back to it4         99       99     
99       99       99  ,,sir ,,francis   
,,drake1  ,young ,drake--for that was   
his name--did get on in spite of his    
difficulties2 he worked hard at his duty
 until he became a captain of two small 
ships1 one of seventy1 the other of     
thirty tons1 and with these he sailed to
 fight the ,spaniards1 who were at that 
time our enemies1 away across the ocean 
in ,central ,america4  ,he not only     
fought them1 but was successful in      
taking some of their ships and a great  
deal of valuable booty from their towns4
  ,on his return home he was promoted to
 command a large expedition of five     
ships1 the biggest of which1 however1   
was only #ajj tons1 and the smallest was
 #ae tons--no bigger than a fishing     
smack4  ,with these he sailed down the  
,west ,coast of ,africa1 then across to 
,brazil and down the ,south ,american   

coast till he rounded the end of it     
through the dangerous and difficult     
,straits of ,magellan into the ,pacific4
 ,he coasted up the western side of     
,america as far as ,california1 and then
 struck across the ocean to ,india1 and 
thence via the ,cape of ,good ,hope to  
,england2 this voyage took him nearly   
three years to complete4  ,his good     
ship1 the ,golden ,hind1 though much    
battered and wounded with war and       
weather1 was received with great honour 
at ,deptford4 ,the ,queen herself went  
on board1 and while there she showed    
such pleasure at ,drake's good work that
 she knighted him1 using his own        
well-worn sword to make him ,sir        
,francis ,drake4  ,soon after this ,king
 ,philip of ,spain began to prepare an  
enormous fleet1 and though he told      
,queen ,elizabeth that it was not       
intended to be used against ,england1   
,sir ,francis ,drake1 who was now in    
command of a small fleet of ,british    
ships1 maintained that it could be for  

no other purpose4  ,illustration3       
,,drake',s ,,ship1 ,,the ,,golden       
,,hind4  ,and a secret letter was       
shortly afterwards intercepted which    
proved that his suspicions were right4  
,drake went off with his fleet and      
sailed up and down the ,spanish coast   
destroying their ships and stores       
wherever he could find them1 and thus he
 hindered their preparations for war4   
,in this way he sank or burnt some      
#ab1jjj tons of shipping1 which meant a 
great many ships in those days4  ,he    
merely described it in his report as1   
singeing the ,spanish ,king's beard4    
,at the end of #aehh1 the great ,spanish
 fleet--the ,armada--was ready1 and     
sailed against ,england4 ,but there were
 a fine lot of ,british admirals and men
 awaiting it1 for besides ,lord ,charles
 ,howard of ,effingham1 the ,lord ,high 
,admiral1 there were ,frobisher1 and    
,davis1 ,walter ,raleigh1 and ,francis  
,drake4  ,it is true they had only #fg  
ships with which to oppose the #acj of  

the ,spaniards1 but they sallied out and
 tackled them at once before the        
,spaniards were really ready for them1  
and drove them into ,dunkirk4 ,here the 
,spaniards felt secure and would not    
come out till one night the ,english    
sent fire ships in among them which     
forced them to put to sea4 ,then ensued 
a tremendous sea fight1 in which ,drake1
 in the ,revenge1 took the lead4  ,the  
battle lasted all day1 with guns roaring
 and ships foundering or exploding4  ,at
 length the ,spaniards drew off         
northward to the ,german ,ocean1 the    
only line of escape open to them4 ,round
 the north of ,scotland and ,ireland    
they went1 damaged by shot and beset by 
a gale1 so that in the end1 out of the  
magnificent fleet of #acj sail which had
 set out for the conquest of ,england1  
only #ec got back1 with only about #ijjj
 out of the original #cj1jjj men4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,,nelson4  ,two hundred years after     
,drake came ,nelson4 ,he was the son of 

a clergyman in ,norfolk1 a poor1 sickly 
little fellow1 and was for a time in the
 merchant service4  ,his first step to  
greatness was when the ship which he was
 in captured an enemy's ship1 and the   
first lieutenant was ordered to take a  
boat and some men and go aboard the     
prize4 ,but owing to the heavy sea which
 was running the officer gave up the    
attempt as too dangerous1 whereupon     
,nelson1 like a good ,scout1 stepped    
forward and offered to go4  ,he         
succeeded1 and thence was marked as a   
good officer4  ,every boy knows how1    
after a splendid career of fighting for 
,britain1 he finally won the great sea  
battle of ,trafalgar against the ,french
 and ,spanish fleets1 and fell mortally 
wounded in the hour of victory4  ,but   
his work1 and that of other great       
sea-captains who served with him1       
completed the supremacy of the ,british 
,navy begun by ,drake and the sea-dogs  
of his time4  ,the navies of our enemies
 were entirely swept from off the seas1 

and their merchant ships could only     
carry on their trade so long as their   
countries remained at peace with        
,britain4  ,and that supremacy has      
remained with us till to-day4  ,in      
consequence of this we have been enabled
 to put a stop to the awful slave trade 
which used to go on on the coasts of    
,africa2 to discover new lands for our  
,empire1 and to bring civilisation to   
savages in the farthest corners of the  
world4 ,and the enterprise of our       
merchant ships has made our trade       
successful all over the globe1 and so   
increased the prosperity of our people  
both at home and in our ,oversea        
,dominions4  ,the sailor has a grand    
life of it4 ,continually visiting       
strange and interesting lands1 with a   
good ship manoeuvring through distant   
oceans1 with plenty of contests with    
tides and winds4 ,a free1 open1 and     
healthy life1 which breeds cheery       
handiness and pluck such as make a      
sailor so deservedly loved by all4 ,and 

all the time he is doing grand work for 
his country4         99       99        
99       99       99  ,,our             
,,lifeboatmen4  ,we are hearing a great 
deal of the heroes of everyday life1 but
 there are perhaps no greater heroes1 no
 truer scouts than sailors of the kind  
that man our lifeboats all round the    
coasts of ,great ,britain4 ,they have to
 ,be ,prepared to turn out at any       
minute1 when the dangerous storm is at  
its worst1 to face danger in order to   
save others4  ,because they do it so    
often and so quietly we have come to    
look upon it almost as an everyday      
affair to be expected1 but it is none   
the less splendid of them or worthy of  
our admiration4 ,a large number of ,boy 
,scouts have1 by taking up sea scouting 
and by learning boat management and     
seamanship1 been able to take their     
place in the service of their ,country  
as seamen on our battleships1 and in the
 merchant service1 and as lifeboatmen   
upon our coasts4         99       99    

99       99       99  ,,seamanship      
,,games4  ,during the summer months     
,scouts in many parts of the country    
practise sea scouting as well as camping
 on shore4 ,this involves living on     
board ship and learning all the duties  
of sailors--going on watch1 going aloft1
 managing boats1 saving life at sea1 and
 swimming and saving life from          
drowning--with plenty of interesting    
games and practices4         99       99
       99       99       99             
,,smugglers4  ,one game which can be    
played either by night or day is that of
 ,smugglers4  ,a patrol of smugglers    
endeavour to land from the seaward in a 
boat to conceal their goods1 which      
consist of nothing more valuable than a 
brick to each man1 in a place called the
 ,smugglers' ,cave1 and then to get away
 in their boat again4  ,other ,scouts   
arc distributed as preventive men to    
watch the coast for a considerable      
distance with sentries4 ,so soon as one 
of these preventive men sees a smuggler 

land he gives the alarm1 and collects   
the rest to attack them2 but the attack 
cannot be successful unless there are at
 least as many preventive men on the    
spot as smugglers1 and if the smugglers 
succeed in depositing their goods in the
 ,smugglers' ,cave and then getting away
 again before they are attacked by an   
equal number of preventive men1 they win
 the game4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,,treasure ,,island4       
,another exciting game which tests the  
,scoutcraft of a patrol is that where   
they approach the shore in a boat and   
look out for marks which have been told 
to them1 and1 on finding these1 they    
land1 find a map hidden away1 which     
gives further clues by means of         
landmarks1 compass directions1          
tidemarks1 and so on1 to where the      
hidden treasure is to be found4 ,only a 
certain time will be allowed for finding
 it4  ,this game can be made a          
competition for one patrol against      
another1 each patrol taking it in turn  

to carry out the same task4 ,naturally1 
each patrol would be very careful to    
wipe out all footmarks and tracks4      
,then there can be whale hunts1 as given
 in the book ,scouting for ,boys1 and   
also ,shipwreck1 when everybody on board
 ship will take their places and carry  
out orders for getting the women and    
children safely away1 followed by the   
men of the ship4  ,castaways on a       
,desert ,island may also be practised1  
when they have to get ashore on rafts   
and otherwise1 and rig up such shelters 
as they can out of the materials        
available1 and light their fires and    
cook their food1 and so on4  ,the       
pursuit of slavers' dhows by pinnaces   
from men-of-war can be practised1 and   
cutting-out expeditions by boats full of
 armed ,scouts taking a hostile ship or 
place in the night4  ,salvage may also  
be practised by boats going out in      
parties1 where they are to save some    
derelict ship in distress1 and to tow   
her into safety4         99       99    

99       99       99  ,,water ,,sports4 
,water sports can also be indulged in1  
such as polo1 jousting1 pillow fighting1
 greasy pole1 hurdle races1 into the    
lifebuoy race1 and other exciting       
incidents4 ,but to take part in these   
practices and games it is necessary that
 a ,scout should be able to swim1 and ,i
 hope that every ,scout will take the   
earliest opportunity of doing so4  ,and 
not only should he learn swimming       
without delay1 but also study the means 
he ought to take for saving a drowning  
man and for reviving him when he has got
 him ashore4 ,no ,scout is too young for
 this4  ,i saw a case in the paper      
recently which is a fine example to     
other boys1 where ,frederick ,delvin1   
eleven years of age1 rescued another boy
 from drowning in the ,surrey ,canal1   
near the ,old ,kent ,road bridge4  ,a   
small boy named ,george ,spear was      
fishing in the canal when he fell into  
the water1 and was on the point of      
drowning when ,delvin1 who had learned  

to swim last summer1 jumped into the    
water and brought him safely ashore1 and
 thus saved his life4  ,well1 now1 any  
,scout could do that1 if he knew how and
 had the pluck1 and ,i should hope that 
every ,scout has that at least4         
99       99       99       99       99  
,,jack ,,tars' ,,presence ,,of ,,mind4  
,a serious disaster was narrowly averted
 at ,dover in connection with a treat   
given to six hundred schoolgirls on the 
battleship ,albion4  ,the children were 
being taken out to the battleship in    
boats in a rather heavy sea4 ,a steam   
pinnace1 towing two whaleboats1 each    
containing about eighty girls1 was      
rounding the ,prince of ,wales ,pier1   
when the ,government tug ,adder         
unexpectedly came round from the        
opposite side of the pier1 bearing right
 down on them4  ,there was great        
excitement1 as a disaster seemed        
certain2 but the ,naval men in charge   
quickly cut the second boat adrift1 and 
the tug passed between the two crowded  

boatloads4 ,the boat drifted towards the
 ,admiralty ,pier until it was picked up
 and got safely in tow again4  ,that is 
the kind of presence of mind which every
 ,scout should have4         99       99
       99       99       99  ,,how ,,van
 ,,tromp',s ,,broom ,,was               
,,raised--,,and ,,lowered4  ,in sea     
scouting1 it will1 of course1 be        
necessary to know a lot of small as well
 as big things about our ships which the
 ordinary fellow does not know4 ,here is
 one4 ,a man-of-war on duty always flies
 a pennant at her masthead--that is1 a  
very long1 very thin flag1 which makes  
the mast look like a whip with a lash on
 the end of it4 ,here is the story of   
it4  ,in the old days1 #bej years ago1  
,britain and ,holland were both powerful
 nations at sea and rivals in commerce1 
but as we had command of the ,british   
,channel we made all foreign ships      
salute our men-of-war when passing them4
  ,one day1 ,may #aith1 #afeb1 a ,dutch 
fleet of forty-five ships2 under their  

great admiral ,van ,tromp1 came sailing 
up the ,channel1 and passed a ,british  
,fleet of twenty-three ships under      
,admiral ,blake4 ,seeing how strong he  
was1 the ,dutch admiral declined to     
salute us4 ,so our flagship fired a shot
 across his bows1 as a signal to remind 
him of his duty2 but ,van ,tromp        
promptly replied with a broadside into  
the stern of ,admiral ,blake's ship4    
,that's very rude of him to break my    
windows1 remarked ,blake1 and promptly  
ordered his small ,fleet to attack the  
,dutch1 although it was twice as strong4
  ,the battle began at four o'clock in  
the afternoon1 and went on hammer and   
tongs till after dark4 ,the firing then 
lulled1 and the ,british ,fleet1 having 
been badly mauled1 spent the whole night
 repairing damages4  ,by dawn1 although 
tired1 they were all ready for a further
 go at the enemy1 but as daylight came  
on they found there was no enemy to go  
for2 he had cleared away in the night to
 less dangerous quarters4 ,but only for 

a time1 in order to get more ships1 and 
a few days later he reappeared with     
something like eighty vessels4  ,this   
and a contrary wind proved too much for 
,blake's small ,fleet1 and though he    
made an obstinate fight of it1 he was at
 last compelled to take refuge in the   
,thames1 pursued by the ,dutchmen4      
,then it was that ,van ,tromp hoisted a 
broom at his masthead1 as a sign that he
 had swept the ,british from off the    
seas4 ,but he was a little bit previous1
 as they say in ,america4 ,the people in
 ,britain rose to the occasion1 and1    
instead of being down-hearted1 they at  
once started to build a stronger ,fleet1
 and trained men and boys--like sea     
scouts--to man it4  ,so soon as the     
ships were fitted out ,blake put to sea 
with a ,fleet of sixty1 and went to look
 for the ,dutchmen1 and he soon found   
them4  ,van ,tromp1 with seventy        
men-of-war1 was coming up the ,channel1 
guarding a large fleet of richly-laden  
merchant ships making for ,holland4     

,the ,british1 of course1 went for this 
convoy1 and it was a pretty tough fight1
 the ,dutch merchantmen crowding on all 
sail to escape to ,holland1 while their 
men-of-war kept behind them1 fighting   
stubbornly to hold off the pursuing     
,british4 ,it was a running fight1 which
 was kept up for three days and nights1 
and at the end the ,british came home   
triumphant1 having captured or sunk     
seventeen of the enemy's men-of-war and 
thirty of his merchant ships4  ,van     
,tromp had to take down his broom4      
99       99       99       99       99  
,,how ,,the ,,whip ,,was ,,hoisted4  ,it
 was in ,june1 #afec1 that the two      
fleets finally came together for the    
deciding bout4 ,both countries had seen 
that a big naval fight must come sooner 
or later1 and both had gone on building 
ships as hard as they could to meet the 
danger4  ,when each fleet was about     
ninety ships strong1 they met at sea4   
,unfortunately ,admiral ,blake had been 
laid up in ,england with an old wound1  

while the ,dutch fleet was under three  
of their best admirals1 tough and plucky
 old sea-dogs all of them--,van ,tromp1 
,de ,witt1 and ,ruyter4 ,for a whole day
 the two fleets were engaged1 both sides
 hammering away stubbornly and well1 but
 by nightfall neither had gained much4  
,next day they went at it again1 and if 
anything the advantage was beginning to 
rest with the ,dutch1 when suddenly1 in 
the afternoon1 a fresh ship came banging
 its way through the rear of the ,dutch 
fleet4  ,it was ,blake6  ,his return    
seemed to put new life into the         
,british4 ,they went at it again with   
all their might4 ,they boarded ,van     
,tromp's ship2 he blew her up and       
escaped to another2 but in the end1 with
 his fleet shattered and broken1 he had 
to make his retreat under cover of night
 as best he could4  ,the ,british thus  
remained masters of the ,channel1 with  
eleven good ,dutch men-of-war as prizes 
and eight more of them sent to the      
bottom4  ,then it was said that ,blake's

 pennant was the whip that had driven   
outsiders from off the seas4         99 
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,loss ,,of ,,the ,c #aa4  ,whenever a  
,british submarine goes down there is a 
tale of gallantry to relieve the sorrow 
of it4  ,c #aa1 on her way to join the  
,fleet display in the ,thames1 was run  
down by a steamer which came suddenly   
upon her in the night4  ,a submarine1 as
 you know1 is a long1 tube-like boat1   
shaped like a hollow cigar1 with one    
trap-door on the top leading to a small 
look-out tower4 ,she runs along with    
this tower above water until she gets   
near to an enemy's ship2 then the       
trapdoor is closed1 and she sinks       
herself down below water1 and runs under
 the ship and fires a torpedo into her  
in passing4  ,i was on board a submarine
 not long ago1 and when ,i was down in  
her dark1 narrow inside1 surrounded with
 a tangle of pipes and engines of every 
kind1 ,i could quite picture to myself  
what the inside of the whale's belly    

must have looked like to ,jonah4 ,also  
,i could picture the hopeless feeling of
 dismay which must come over a crew of  
thirteen men boxed up in this small     
vessel if an accident occurred to her4  
99       99       99       99       99  
,a ,,sailor ,,hero4  ,the crew of ,c #aa
 were all below1 asleep1 when the crash 
came2 and the boat rolled sideways1 and 
then sank down under water almost       
immediately4 ,on the turret were        
,sub4-,lieut4 ,watkins and ,able-,seaman
 ,stripes1 who were navigating the      
vessel4  ,lieut4 ,brodie1 the commander1
 was below at the time2 but at the      
collision he at once realised the       
danger1 and first shook up some of the  
sleeping men1 and then sprang up the    
hatchway to see what was wrong4 ,few    
were able to follow him before the      
vessel sank heavily down4  ,the next    
minute the survivors found themselves in
 the water swimming for their lives4    
,sub4-,lieut4 ,watkins1 being fully     
clothed and in his big sea-boots1 had   

great difficulty in keeping afloat1 and 
was in immediate danger of drowning1    
when ,lieut4 ,brodie came to his        
assistance and held him up until1       
fortunately1 their plight was seen from 
neighbouring vessels1 and they were     
picked up just in time--both being      
completely exhausted4 ,but ,lieut4      
,brodie never let go of his comrade in  
order to get a better chance of saving  
himself4 ,he had the true spirit of a   
,scout in him in ,being ,prepared to    
give up his own life in the attempt to  
save another4  ,if ever you find        
yourself in a position of difficulty or 
danger1 keep your head1 think what is   
your duty1 and do it3 remember how it   
was done in the case of ,c #aa4 ,when   
sudden death and darkness were all      
around1 the officer kept cool and full  
of courage4         99       99       99
       99       99  ,,fishermen         
,,heroes4  ,a terrific gale sprang up   
one winter in the ,orkney ,islands1 away
 to the north of ,scotland4 ,three      

fishing smacks were out in it1 and ran  
for shelter into a narrow channel       
between two of the islands4  ,two of the
 smacks rode out the weather safely1 but
 the third got carried on to a small    
rocky islet and was wrecked1 though her 
crew managed to get ashore on to the    
rocks4  ,then it was that five brave    
fishermen on the island of ,pharay1     
seeing their plight1 put off in a rough1
 home-made boat to try to rescue them2  
but the wind and sea were so high1 and a
 snowstorm was driving against them to  
such an extent1 that they could not get 
along1 and were beaten back1 after two  
toughly fought attempts4  ,but they     
would not be defeated1 and at last1 by  
sheer pluck and determination1 these    
hardy fellows got their boat across the 
channel at the third attempt1 and       
dragged the shipwrecked men one by one  
through the water into their boat2 and  
eventually1 after going through the     
greatest danger of being swamped1 they  
got them all safely ashore on ,pharay4  

,this was a true example of ,scouts     
,being ,prepared to risk their lives to 
save fellow creatures4  ,these five     
heroes arrived at ,balmoral while ,i was
 there1 as the guest of ,king ,edward1  
by whom they were received4 ,he had the 
story of their heroism read over1 and he
 then congratulated them on their       
bravery1 and himself hung the medal for 
saving life at sea on the breast of each
 and shook hands with him4 ,that was his
 official reward to them1 but privately 
also he gave each man a personal        
friendly reminder in the shape of a good
 pipe and some tobacco1 which he chose  
himself for them4         99       99   
99       99       99  ,a ,,brave ,,sea  
,,scout4  ,the lads of the training ship
 ,mercury were manning one of the boats 
to go ashore4 ,there was a heavy wind   
blowing--it was still dark--when one of 
the boys1 named ,newitt1 fell into the  
water and was swept away by the tide4   
,two of his messmates at once dived in  
to his rescue4 ,one of these1 ,yateman1 

was quickly picked up by the ship's boat
 in mistake for the drowning lad4 ,but  
the other boy1 ,driver1 a ,patrol       
,leader belonging to the #hth           
,southampton 7,mercury7 ,troop1         
succeeded in getting hold of ,newitt and
 swam towards the pier with him4  ,but  
,driver was hampered with the suit of   
oilskins which he was wearing1 and in   
battling with tide and wind1 he himself 
was nearly drowned1 although he was a   
good swimmer4  ,a boat which put out    
from the pier got to him just in time to
 save him1 and he was pulled on board in
 an unconscious condition1 from which he
 did not recover for nearly two hours4  
,the poor fellow1 ,newitt1 had slipped  
from his grasp and was drowned4  ,still1
 ,driver had done all that he possibly  
could4 ,he had not thought of the danger
 to himself1 but on the first alarm had1
 with the true spirit of the ,scout1 at 
once sprung to the assistance of his    
comrade in distress1 and for this he was
 awarded the ,bronze ,cross1 the        

,scouts' highest award for gallantry4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,,sea ,,scouts4  ,i began my ,scouting  
first of all as a ,sea ,scout1 before ,i
 ever went into the ,army and before ,i 
ever saw the backwoods in ,canada or    
,india4 ,and ,i am very glad that ,i    
did1 for as a ,sea ,scout1 ,i learnt how
 to swim1 and ,i should have cut a poor 
figure as a soldier1 or as a hunter1 or 
as a ,scout1 if ,i had not been able to 
do that4  ,but besides swimming1 there  
are so many things that one learns while
 a ,sea ,scout which come in useful     
afterwards1 whatever line of life you   
may take up4  ,for instance1 ,i learnt  
how to tie knots1 and unless a fellow   
can do that he is a duffer2 ,i learnt   
how to handle and manage a boat by      
myself1 how to right her when upset1 and
 how to get in and out of her when      
bathing4  ,i learnt how to steer and    
manage a large sailing boat1 taking my  
watch alone at night2 how to read the   
stars and charts2 and how to take the   

responsibility for navigating and not   
running her on to the rocks4  ,as a ,sea
 ,scout you get mighty hungry1 so in    
order to feed yourself when on the water
 you have to be able to catch fish and  
to clean them1 and to cook them for     
yourself4 ,all this means that you have 
to be what a sailor is generally known  
as1 a handyman4  ,then the life is so   
jolly1 free1 and breezy2 there is lots  
of hard work at times1 and difficulties 
and dangers to overcome1 but also lots  
of enjoyable sunny cruising into strange
 places with good comrades around you4  
,fellows boxed up in a ship together    
naturally become the best of friends and
 comrades if they are naturally good    
chaps with good tempers2 if they are    
not--well--then ,i would rather not be  
in that ship1 thank you6  ,sailors are  
always manly fellows1 and know how to   
give and take1 and they manage to keep  
their tempers when small things go      
wrong4         99       99       99     
99       99  ,,generals ,,who ,,were    

,,sailors4  ,two of our greatest        
generals to-day began their careers as  
sailors4  ,field-,marshal ,sir ,evelyn  
,wood won his ,victoria ,cross as a     
midshipman in the ,royal ,navy while    
serving in the ,crimea4 ,field-,marshal 
,viscount ,french1 late                 
,commander-in-,chief of our ,forces in  
,france and ,flanders1 was a sailor     
before he joined the ,army1 and so was  
,sir ,hamilton ,goold-,adams1 who       
commanded the ,town ,guard so well in   
,mafeking4  ,i have always found that a 
,boy ,scout who has been a ,sea ,scout  
as well as a ,backwoods ,scout makes    
much the best all-round ,scout in the   
end4 ,so ,i can well advise ,scouts to  
have a taste of both4  ,a patrol or     
troop can easily take up ,sea ,scouting 
for one season if they like1 just as a  
change4 ,but1 of course1 it means that  
each one of them must learn swimming    
first1 if he is not already a swimmer1  
and must know his knots really well1 for
 actual use1 and not merely for passing 

test examinations4  ,it is well worth   
the trouble1 for ,sea ,scouting1 with   
its adventures and its games1 is full of
 enjoyment and fun4         99       99 
99       99       99  ,,when ,,sea      
,,scouting ,,helped ,,me4  ,when ,i was 
last in ,canada ,i had to do a lot of my
 travelling by canoe1 because the       
forests there are almost impassable with
 their thick undergrowth and boggy soil4
  ,there are lakes and streams          
everywhere1 so it is comparatively easy 
to go by water4 ,but there are plenty of
 adventures to be met with by the way1  
in the shape of snags and rocks and     
rapids1 and out on the lakes gales      
spring up1 with a heavy sea1 in a very  
short time4 ,so a fellow has to know how
 to manage a boat and how to face risks 
if he is going to get on at all1 and it 
is just as well that he should be able  
to swim1 as otherwise he is not likely  
to arrive at the end of his trip in the 
way he had intended6  ,illustration3 ,a 
,,sea ,,scout ,well1 ,jim and ,ben and  

,i were paddling in our birch bark canoe
 across a good-sized lake where there   
were a lot of small islands1 when       
suddenly we scrunched on to a submerged 
rock1 which brought us to a full stop   
and bulged in the bottom of our vessel1 
so that the water began to run in and   
flood the floor4  ,so the canoe was     
quickly turned1 and away we paddled as  
hard as we could for the nearest island1
 and just reached it in time to scramble
 ashore before our boat began to sink4  
,we quickly pulled her up on the rocks1 
got our baggage out1 and rolled her     
over1 so that the water could run out   
and we could get at the hole to repair  
it4 ,this was done in quite a neat way4 
,ben and ,i scraped away with our knives
 some of the gum or natural pitch with  
which the seams of the canoe were       
caulked4 ,jim meantime had made a little
 fire with driftwood4 ,then ,ben took a 
bit of rag1 which he had used as a      
bandage for a wounded hand1 and         
stretched it over the hole in the boat1 

and fixed it there with little bits of  
gum1 which he melted down with a red-hot
 stick taken from the fire4  ,in this   
way he made a watertight patch over the 
leak in a very few minutes1 and we soon 
had the canoe afloat again4 ,we loaded  
her up1 and within ten minutes of the   
disaster we were on our way again as    
happily as ever1 but we kept a sharper  
look-out than we had done before for    
snags and rocks just below the surface  
of the water4         99       99       
99       99       99  ,,the ,,sea       
,,scouts ,,in ,,war4  ,thanks to so     
large a number of ,scouts having taken  
up the training as ,sea ,scouts we were 
able to supply about #adjj useful and   
efficient fellows to act as ,coastguards
 directly the war broke out4 ,this      
enabled a large number of the regular   
,coastguards to be sent to man the      
,fleet4  ,since then1 the ,admiralty    
have been so satisfied with the good    
work done by the ,sea ,scouts1 who have 
been guarding our coasts from the       

extreme north of ,scotland down to the  
,land's ,end in ,cornwall1 that they    
have asked for more of them1 and we now 
have about #bjjj employed on this duty  
and as signallers on board              
mine-sweepers1 coaling and supply ships4
  ,the ,sea ,scouts have won for        
themselves a very good name by ,being   
,prepared before war broke out4         
,,how ,,to ,,become ,a ,,backwoodsman   
,any fellow who means to be a           
backwoodsman1 whether it is for pleasure
 or for work1 should first of all get   
some practice at it at home4  ,for eight
 years of my life ,i hardly ever slept  
in a house and ,i thoroughly enjoyed it4
 ,but to enjoy it you must know how to  
make yourself comfortable in camp4      
99       99       99       99       99  
,,tents4  ,the first thing to consider  
is what kind of substitute for a house  
you are going to have to protect you    
from bad weather4 ,this depends a good  
deal on what kind of country you are in4
 ,in a forest you can1 of course1 get   

plenty of timber out of which to build  
huts1 but it is not much use being able 
to build a log-hut and then to find     
yourself in the open desert of the      
,sahara4  ,the best all-round kind of   
camp-house is1 of course1 a tent4 ,i had
 what is called a ,cabul tent--a small  
square erection1 seven feet long by     
seven feet wide1 which can be opened or 
closed at either end1 and has a double  
roof4 ,i lived in this through the      
winter in ,afghanistan1 through snow and
 blizzard1 in the greatest comfort4 ,at 
one end ,i built a brick fireplace and  
chimney2 and ,i built a low wall1 two   
feet high1 round the outside2 this kept 
out all draughts and prevented snow from
 melting into the tent4 ,and ,i lived   
there as cosily and comfortably as in a 
house4  ,in that same tent ,i afterwards
 lived in the blazing heat of the plains
 of ,india4 ,instead of the fireplace at
 the end to keep it hot1 ,i had a great 
mat of ,khuskhu's fibre stretched on a  
frame and kept always wet to keep it    

cool2 the hot wind blowing through this 
was at once cooled1 and kept the tent   
delightfully cold and fresh inside1 and 
the double roof  prevented the sun from 
baking it4 ,and ,i had a punkah1 or     
swinging fan1 slung from the ridge-pole1
 and worked by a native from outside4   
,it was a sturdy little tent1 too1 and  
no gale could ever manage to blow it    
down4 ,so you see it did equally well   
for every kind of climate and weather4  
,another form of tent which ,i used in  
,mafeking and ,south ,africa1 and still 
use for sleeping out in1 in ,england1 is
 one which you would hardly call a tent4
 ,it is really a slungcot1 with a       
movable canvas roof to it4 ,it is called
 the ,ashanti ,hammock4  ,illustration3 
,a ,,bivouac ,,shelter4  ,it packs up   
quite small1 and is put up in a few     
minutes4 ,requires no pegs4 ,keeps you  
off the wet ground4 ,and when the gale  
comes and all the tents in camp blow    
down1 you lie there swinging gently in  
the breeze1 the envy of all the rest4   

,it also forms an excellent stretcher if
 you are ill and have to be carried2 and
 if you die it also makes a very        
satisfactory coffin1 being laced over   
you as you lie in it4 ,very complete1   
isn't it8  ,illustration3 ,,the         
,,ashanti ,,hammock4  ,there are tents  
of every sort and kind to be got1 from a
 single-man tent up to a hospital tent  
for thirty beds4 ,and there are also    
many kinds of camps there is a standing 
camp1 where you remain in the same spot 
for weeks at a time1 or a tramping camp1
 where you move on every day to a new   
place1 and boating camp1 where also you 
move but can carry your tent in your    
boat4 ,but it is rather necessary to    
know which kind of camp you are making  
before you can tell which kind of tent  
you need4  ,as ,i have said in ,scouting
 for ,boys3 ,for a standing camp 'bell' 
tents are useful1 or huts can be made4  
,bell tents can be hired in almost any  
town for a few shillings per week1 or   
you can buy a second-hand one in good   

condition for about #b ,pounds4  ,you   
could probably let it out on hire to    
other patrols when not using it         
yourself1 and so get back your money on 
it4 ,a bell tent1 just holds a patrol   
nicely4  ,scouts' 'patrol' tents also do
 very well for camp1 but you need a     
second set of staves or poles for       
rigging them if you want to leave the   
camp standing while you are out         
scouting4  ,you can make your own tents 
during the winter months--and this1     
perhaps2 is the best way of all1 as it  
comes cheapest in the end4 ,and if1     
while you are about it1 you make one or 
two extra ones1 you may be able to sell 
them at a good profit4  ,a lean-to tent 
is used by many backwoodsmen4 ,it can be
 made with the ,scouts' patrol tent on  
the same principle as the lean-to       
shelter described in ,scouting for      
,boys4  ,if pitched with its back to the
 wind1 with a good fire in front1 it can
 be made a most luxurious bedroom on    
cold night4 ,the roof catches all the   

warmth and glow of the fire1 and you lie
 there warm in your blankets1 yet       
breathing the fresh air of the forest or
 veldt and gazing at the stars4 ,there  
is nothing better on earth4         99  
99       99       99       99  ,,the    
,,tramp ,,tent4  ,we will begin with the
 simplest and cheapest4 ,here is a      
one-man tramp tent1 which is used by a  
certain class of gipsy in ,scotland4    
,illustration3 ,,construction ,,of      
,,tramp-,,tent4 ,you want six hazel     
sticks1 all exactly alike1 about #c ft4 
#f in4 long1 just sufficiently pliant to
 bend over near the top1 but not so thin
 as to be wobbly4  ,each should be      
sharpened at the butt1 and marked with a
 nick ten inches from the point to show 
how far to drive it into the ground4    
,the points should be slightly charred  
in the fire to harden them4  ,then you  
want a sheet of light canvas1 or        
waterproofed linen1 to form your tent1  
six feet square1 with eyelets or loops  
along the sides4  ,illustration3        

,,one-,,man ,,tramp-,,tent ,,complete4  
,plant your sticks firmly in the ground1
 in two rows1 two feet apart from each  
other4 ,bend the tops inwards to form an
 archway4 ,over these arches spread your
 canvas to form a kind of tunnel tent1  
and peg down the loops to the ground4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,bivouac ,,tent4  ,this is1      
perhaps1 an equally simple tent4 ,the   
roof1 or fly1 can be #f ft4 by #f ft4   
,two poles1 #c ft4 #f in41 should be    
planted firmly-at least six inches in   
the ground4  ,a stout ridge-rope should 
be stretched tightly between them1 and  
tied at the top of each1 and then       
securely fixed to a tent peg well driven
 into the ground in front of each end of
 the tent4  ,illustration3 ,,bivouac    
,,tent4  ,the edges of the fly all round
 should have large metal eyelets1 by    
which the sides of the tent can be      
pegged to the ground1 and flaps can be  
laced on at the ends to give protection 
against wind and rain1 etc4  ,instead of

 using pegs at the sides1 it is equally 
good to lace the edge along a stout log1
 or to a rope stretched tight1 or a     
pole1 and well anchored in the ground4  
,then you have the patrol tent of       
canvas1 as described in ,scouting for   
,boys1 which is carried in pieces1 which
 lace together1 and1 with the staves of 
the patrol as supports1 form the tent   
for six or eight boys4 ,these are very  
easy to make in a couple of evenings4   
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,cabul ,,tent4  ,the ,cabul tent1
 mentioned previously1 was the kind that
 we used in the war in ,afghanistan4    
,cabul is the chief town of that        
country4  ,these tents are equally      
comfortable in snow and rain1 or in the 
baking heat of the plains of ,india4    
,illustration3 ,,cabul ,,tent ,,complete
 ,it has an extra roof to keep out the  
sun or heavy rain4 ,a tent like this1   
with two roofs1 is called a double-fly  
tent4 ,it is1 of course1 heavier and    
more expensive than a single-fly1 but it

 is also more comfortable4         99   
99       99       99       99  ,,cabul  
,,tent ,,poles4  ,the horizontal        
ridge-pole1 #e ft4 #i in4 long1 has an  
iron eyelet at each end ,the outer fly  
rests on this4 ,the loops of the inner  
fly also hang from it to hold up the    
inner roof4  ,illustration3 ,,inner     
,,fly ,,of ,,cabul ,,tent               
,illustration3 ,,outer ,,fly ,,of       
,,cabul ,,tent  ,illustration3 ,,cabul  
,,tent-,,poles4  ,the upright poles are 
six feet high2 each of these is fitted  
with an iron cap and spike at the top to
 fit the eyelets of the ridge-pole4     
,each is also fitted with a circular    
wooden disc at one foot from the top2   
this supports the inner fly1 the upper  
part of each pole having been passed    
through the hole at either end of the   
inner fly-roof4         99       99     
99       99       99  ,,tent ,,making4  
,before starting to make your tent1 you 
should1 in the first place1 have a good 
look at ready-made tents1 and see       

exactly how they are made-especially at 
the edges4  ,illustration3 ,,trees      
,,instead ,,of ,,tent ,,poles4  ,you    
should always make a model of the tent  
you propose to construct1 first with    
paper1 to scale1 so as to get the proper
 dimensions1 and then with linen1 with  
string and poles complete1 to see how to
 cut it out in the right sizes4         
,afterwards1 you can proceed to make the
 real1 article4  ,this1 again1 is best  
done by cutting it out in newspapers    
pasted together and spread out on the   
floor4 ,these paper cuttings then serve 
as patterns1 on which you can cut your  
canvas without wasting any of it4       
99       99       99       99       99  
,,the ,,material4  ,the kind of stuff to
 use for tent making depends a good deal
 on how much you can afford for         
material1 and what work you want the    
tent for4  ,thus1 if you want a very    
light tent for carrying on your back or 
bicycle1 and have plenty of money1 a    
silk tent at #ds4 a yard is very nice2  

but probably you would like one of      
cheaper material1 and fairly light and  
strong4  ,lawn1 made of ,egyptian       
cotton1 calico sheeting1 or brown calico
 makes a very satisfactory tent at an   
outlay of #ajs4 or so for the whole     
thing complete4         99       99     
99       99       99  ,,sewing4  ,after 
having purchased your stuff1 and cut it 
out according to the paper pattern1 pin 
it1 or tack it1 all together1 and see   
how it fits4  ,then stitch the seams    
together1 using cotton1 not thick       
thread4  ,illustration3 ,,steep ,,sides 
,,too ,,wide4  ,seams should be         
double-stitched-that is1 the edges of   
the two pieces of canvas should overlap1
 and each be stitched to the other      
piece4 ,at all points where a strain is 
likely to come on the canvas-namely1 at 
the corners and at places where eyelets 
for ropes have to come1 it is best to   
have a strengthening patch of canvas    
sewn over the other canvas4  ,then wide1
 stout tape should be sewn along the    

edge of the canvas wherever there is to 
be any strain on it1 such as eyelet     
holes for ropes1 or hooks and eyes1 or  
strings for closing the ends of the     
tent1 etc4  ,often in woods you can find
 two trees standing1 say1 eight feet    
apart4 ,if you have a six-foot tent1 you
 can use these for tent poles by tying  
7lashing is the word used by sailors and
 ,scouts7 each end of the ridge of the  
tent to a tree4  ,this can be more      
easily done if your ridge is            
strengthened with a tape sewn inside it1
 and made into a loop at each end4 ,it  
is always as well to make these loops on
 your tents1 as they come in useful in  
other ways4  ,a strip of canvas is often
 stitched on to the foot of the tent1 as
 shown in the picture1 either to hold it
 down with pegs or stones1 or to be     
turned inwards underneath your ground   
sheet to prevent draughts coming in     
under the wall4  ,a tent should not be  
made wider than its height1 because the 
roof will not be steep enough to run the

 rain off quickly1 and so will let it   
through more easily4         99       99
       99       99       99  ,,tent     
,,poles4  ,the poles should not be made 
of any weak wood liable to split or     
break1 but of tough elm1 hickory1 ash1  
or bamboo4  ,for small tents of about   
five feet high they need be only one to 
one-and-a-half inches thick4  ,for heavy
 tents of over ten feet long and over   
six feet high1 they have to be at least 
two inches thick4 ,bamboos are generally
 tougher than wood1 so need not be quite
 so stout4         99       99       99 
99       99  ,,tent ,,pegs4  ,tent pegs 
may be easily made of wood1 but should  
be of a tough kind that does not split  
easily4 ,they are generally made in the 
shape shown below1 about ten inches     
long4  ,you can also get them of iron1  
but these1 though they do not break1 do 
not hold quite so well in the ground1   
and are heavy to carry4 ,aluminium ones 
are lighter1 expensive1 and inclined to 
bend4  ,then you can use stones or logs 

instead of pegs1 and what ,i like best  
of all is half a dozen canvas bags      
filled with earth or stones and buried  
in the ground as anchors4 ,these can be 
used equally well in sandy1 muddy1 or   
stony ground1 where ordinary pegs would 
never hold4  ,these bags are easily made
 during your winter evenings1 and can be
 used for carrying your kit from camp to
 camp4 ,they also make useful buckets   
and washing basins4 ,they should be made
 of stout duck or canvas4  ,the top edge
 of this canvas should be folded over   
and stitched in order to give strength4 
,the handles are made of half-inch rope1
 passed through brass eyelets1 let into 
the canvas below the stitching8 the ends
 of the rope being knotted inside4  ,in 
cutting out you must allow an extra inch
 for turning in at the edges and joining
 to the other pieces4  ,supposing that  
you have not the time or means for      
getting tents and that you are going    
into camp where there are plenty of     
trees1 and you have got the right to use

 them1 then some of the following tips  
may be of use to you4  ,illustration3   
,,correct ,,tent ,,pegs4 ,illustration3 
,a ,,handy ,,bag4  ,a bivouac shelter1  
as described in ,scouting for ,boys1 is 
the simplest and best form of hut1 and  
is easily made in an hour4 ,two upright 
stakes are driven firmly into the       
ground1 with a ridge pole placed in     
position along the tops4 ,against this a
 number of poles should be made to lean 
from the windward aide1 with cross-bars 
to support the branches1 reeds1 sods1 or
 twigs1 or whatever is to form your     
roofing material4  ,for a single man    
this shelter can be made quite small1   
i4e41 about #c ft4 high in front1 and #c
 ft4 wide and #f ft4 long4         99   
99       99       99       99           
,,framework4  ,you build your fire about
 #d ft4 in front of this1 and lie in it 
alongside your fire4  ,if the shack is  
for more than one man1 you build it #e  
ft4 or #f ft4 high in front1 and #e ft4 
deep1 so that several fellows can lie   

alongside each other1 feet to the fire4 
,when you start to thatch your          
framework1 begin at the bottom and lay  
your roofing material on in layers1 one 
above the other in the way that slates  
are put on a roof4 ,in this way you may 
make it watertight4         99       99 
99       99       99  ,,thatching4  ,for
 thatching you can use thick spruce     
branches1 or grass1 reeds1 sods1 slabs  
of wood or bark 7called shingles71 or   
small twigs of heather closely woven in4
  ,it is generally advisable to lay a   
few branches and stout poles over the   
thatch when finished in order to keep it
 on if a gale springs up4               
,illustration3 ,,framework4  ,if you    
want to build a complete hut1 you can   
make a lean-to from each side on the    
same ridge-pole2 but the single lean-to1
 with its fire in front of it1 is quite 
good enough for most people4  ,another  
way to build a shelter hut is to lean a 
ridge-pole or backbone from the ground  
into the fork of a small tree about #e  

ft4 above the ground1 the butt of the   
pole being about #d ft4 to windward of  
the tree4 ,then put up a few side poles 
leaning against this1 and roof over in  
the same way as for a lean-to4 ,build   
your fire just in front of this1 and you
 will have a very safe and cosy little  
house4  ,illustration3 ,,thatching4  ,in
 country where there are no trees to    
make poles with1 like parts of ,south   
,africa1 where there is only a lot of   
small thorn bush and long grass1 you can
 make scherms1 or loose thorn bushes    
piled in a heap and made into a small   
horse-shoe1 arched over1 back to wind1  
and covered or roughly thatched with    
grass4  ,these1 with a fire in front1   
make very good shelter against cold wind
 or against sun1 and1 if covered with a 
canvas waggon-sail or tarpaulin1 make a 
good enough protection against rain and 
against very hot sun4 ,a scherm can be  
made with heather or gorse--only look   
out for its catching fire6              
,illustration3 ,a ,,shelter ,,hut4      

,remember that to make a tent or hut    
cool in hot sun put on more roof--put   
blankets over the top of your tent1 and 
bank up the sides near the ground4 ,but 
if you want to make your tent or hut    
warm1 take care to thicken the walls at 
the foot to prevent draughts coming in  
along the floor4  ,also never forget    
that your floor is on raised ground1 not
 in a hollow that will become a pool in 
wet weather4         99       99        
99       99       99  ,,camp            
,,furniture4  ,having made your tent or 
hut1 you will find it a good comfort in 
a standing camp to have a table4  ,this 
you can well make in winter evenings    
before the camping season1 and while you
 are at it making one for yourself2 you 
may just as well make two or three more 
to sell to other people1 and so add     
money to your camping fund4  ,the table 
should be separate from its legs1 so    
that it can be packed easily in the     
cart4  ,if stakes can be got at camp1   
you would drive four of these into the  

ground with a maul 7big mallet71 making 
them exactly the same height1 and lay   
your table top on these4  ,to make your 
table top1 bits of board or old packing 
cases can be planed smooth1 and trimmed1
 and screwed together by cross-battens  
underneath to form a tabletop of the    
size required2 #cd in4 by #dj in4 is a  
useful and portable size4               
,illustration3 ,,table ,,when           
,,finished4  ,a pair of folding trestle 
legs can then be made for the table4    
,these are two frames1 one just narrow  
enough to go inside the other1 but both 
of the same length4  ,a ,,camp ,,stool  
can be made in much the same way1 with a
 strip of canvas or carpet or several   
strings of webbing nailed across1 from  
the top of one trestle to the other1 the
 trestles1 of course1 being quite small4
  ,illustration3 ,,under ,,side ,,of    
,,table ,,top4  ,,candlesticks1 ,forks1 
,tongs1 and other small articles of camp
 furniture are shown in ,scouting for   
,boys1 and can easily be made in the    

winter evenings4 ,if neatly done they   
also command a good sale at bazaars4    
,,camp ,,beds are also described in     
,scouting for ,boys1 and straw mats for 
making these may very well be woven in  
winter evenings1 and1 with plenty of    
time for making them1 can be really well
 made4 ,when finished1 they can be      
rolled up and packed away until required
 for camp4  ,the fellow who owns one of 
these in camp can enjoy life under      
canvas about four times as much as the  
fellow who tries to make himself        
comfortable on a hard1 stony bit of     
ground4 ,i think you never find out how 
full of corners you are till you try    
sleeping on a hard bit of ground4  ,of  
course8 every ,scout knows that the     
worst corner in him is his hip-bone1 and
 if you have got to sleep on hard ground
 the secret of comfort is to scoop out a
 little hole1 about the size of a       
tea-cup1 where your hip-bone will rest4 
,it makes all the difference to your    
comfort at night4  ,your night's rest is

 an important thing a fellow who does   
not get a good sleep at night soon      
knocks up1 and cannot get through a     
day's work like the one who sleeps in   
comfort4  ,illustration3 ,,trestle      
,,legs4  ,so my advice is1 make a good  
thick straw-mattress for yourself during
 the winter ready for camp4  ,another   
good way of giving yourself a           
comfortable bed is to make a big bag of 
canvas or stout linen2 #f ft4 long and  
#c ft4 wide4  ,this will do to roll up  
your kit in for travelling2 and when you
 are in camp you can stuff it with      
straw1 or leaves1 or bracken1 etc41 and 
use it as a nice soft mattress4  ,a     
,,pillow is also a useful thing for     
giving you comfort in camp4 ,for this   
you only want a strong pillow-case      
7which also you can make for yourself in
 the winter74 ,this will serve as your  
clothes-bag by day and your pillow by   
night1 your clothes1 if neatly rolled   
and packed in it1 serving as the        
stuffing4  ,i have often used my boots  

as a pillow1 rolled up in a coat so that
 they don't slip apart1 and for a long  
time ,i used a ,zulu pillow1 which is a 
little wooden stand on which you rest   
your neck2 it sounds uncomfortable1 but 
it is not so--when you're used to it6   
,a ,scout has to ,be ,prepared to turn  
out at any moment in the night4 ,he     
ought1 therefore1 to have his important 
clothes laid handy1 so that he can get  
into them at once in the dark4          
,illustration3 ,a ,,zulu ,,pillow4  ,on 
service1 of course1 a ,scout sleeps with
 shoes on1 so that he can turn out at   
any moment4  ,i remember on one occasion
 some of my men gave up obeying this    
rule1 and thought it more comfortable to
 take their boots off4  ,so one night ,i
 had the alarm given that the enemy were
 near1 and ordered the men to double out
 at once to a spot a short distance     
outside the camp4  ,the ground was      
covered with prickly grass and          
camel-thorn4 ,how those fellows hopped  
and skipped to get to the place4 ,but   

they took care not to go to bed         
barefooted again4         99       99   
99       99       99  ,,hut ,,building4 
,in places where you can get the use of 
a wood for your camp1 it saves the cost 
of a tent if you can make yourself a    
hut4  ,the important point in making a  
hut is to thatch it so closely and well 
with heather1 straw1 or twigs of fir1   
etc41 that it is watertight4  ,the      
double lean-to1 already described1 makes
 the simplest form of hut--and if you   
like to make it more roomy1 you can dig 
out the floor a couple of feet4 ,but    
this is always a messy proceeding1 and  
unhealthy1 as upturned earth is very    
liable to give fever4  ,in addition to  
the articles of camp equipment which are
 mentioned in ,scouting for ,boys as    
being easily made by the ,scout himself1
 there are several others which can be  
made during the long winter evenings1   
and these will be of great use to you   
when you go into camp in the summer1 or 
they can be sold to other fellows       

wanting such things4  ,the following is 
taken1 from ,mr4 ,h4 ,kephart's ,book of
 ,camping3         99       99       99 
99       99  ,,horn ,,drinking ,,cups4  
,get a cow's horn from a friendly       
butcher1 a little over a foot long4     
,measure with a stick how far up it is  
hollow4 ,then1 saw off the tip just     
below where it becomes solid1 except a  
strip of the solid part1 which should be
 left attached to the hollow part1 about
 an inch wide and five inches long1     
quarter of an inch thick2 this strip    
will form the handle of the cup4        
,illustration3 ,a ,,horn ,,drinking     
,,cup         99       99       99      
99       99  ,,the ,,axe4  ,of course a 
backwoodsman has to be pretty useful    
with his axe2 and to become a good      
axeman a fellow must know1 firstly1 how 
the thing ought to be done1 and1        
secondly1 he must then have lots of     
practice in doing it before he can be   
considered any good4  ,bad workmen      
complain of their tools1 but before     

starting to work be sure that your tool 
is a good one4  ,your axe should be a   
felling axe1 of which the head will     
weigh nearly three pounds4 ,see that the
 handle or helve is perfectly straight  
and true in line with the head and the  
edge4 ,to do this look along the helve  
with the edge of the head turned        
upwards4 ,if the edge is not true to the
 bevel1 your cuts will go all astray4   
,then see that your axe is sharp--really
 sharp1 not merely with a good edge on  
it4 ,a slightly blunt axe is no more    
good for cutting down a tree than a very
 blunt knife is for cutting a pencil4   
,you should know how to sharpen it on a 
grindstone1 learn this now1 while you   
are in civilisation1 where grindstones  
can be found and there are men to show  
you4  ,when out in camp in ,india1 for  
pig sticking 7that is hunting wild boar 
with spears7 we found how very necessary
 it was to keep our spears as sharp as a
 razor1 and every time we killed a boar 
we would sharpen up our spear-heads     

again ready for the next fight4  ,we    
could not carry grindstones about with  
us1 but we carried a small fine file1   
with which we were able to touch up the 
edge2 and that is what many an old      
backwoodsman does for his axe1 he       
carries a small file with him4  ,there  
is a saying with these men that you may 
lend your last dollar to a friend1 but  
never lend him your axe--unless you know
 that he is a good axeman and will not  
blunt it4  ,the tenderfoot will go      
banging about with an axe1 chopping at  
roots and branches on the ground1 and   
blunting the axe at every stroke on     
earth and stones2 and when his arms     
tire1 if he has not meanwhile chopped   
his own foot1 he will throw the axe     
down1 leaving it lying all anyhow on the
 ground1 probably where it will catch   
and cut the toe of someone moving about 
after dark4  ,when you want to leave    
your axe1 strike straight down with it  
into a tree stump1 and leave it sticking
 there till required again1         99  

99       99       99       99  ,,using  
,,the ,,axe4  ,in using an axe1 the     
tenderfoot generally tries to cover his 
bad aim by the extra strength of his    
blows4 ,if an old hand is looking on he 
is smiling to himself and thinking how  
blown and what a backache he got himself
 the first time that he did it4  ,don't 
try to put force into the blow2 merely  
be careful about aiming it so that it   
falls exactly where you want it1 the    
swing and weight of the axe itself do   
the rest4  ,a good axeman uses his axe  
equally well left-handed or right4 ,it  
is all a matter of practice1 and most   
valuable4         99       99       99  
99       99  ,,felling ,a ,,tree4  ,the 
way to cut down a tree is to cut first a
 big chunk out of the side to which you 
want the tree to fall1 and then to cut  
into the opposite side to fell it4      
,begin your ,notch #a1 or the kerf1 as  
it is called1 by chopping two marks1 the
 upper one1 ,a1 at a distance above the 
other1 ,b1 equal to half the thickness  

of the tree4  ,illustration3 ,,the      
,,kerf4  ,then cut alternately1 first a 
horizontal cut at ,b1 then a sideways1  
downward cut at ,a1 and jerk out the    
chunk between the two2 go on doing this 
till you get to the centre of the tree4 
,the reason for making ,a and ,b so far 
apart is that if you begin with too     
narrow a kerf your axe gets wedged in   
the cut more easily4         99       99
       99       99       99  ,,cutting  
,,the ,,kerf4  ,when you have cut your  
kerf half through the tree1 you then    
fell the tree by cutting in on the      
opposite side1 only about three inches  
above the level of ,b1         99       
99       99       99       99  ,,things 
,,to ,,look ,,out ,,for4  ,before       
starting to fell your tree1 first clear 
away all small branches and bushes which
 might interfere with the swing of your 
axe1 and therefore spoil your aim4      
,also clear away any brambles or        
undergrowth that might trip you at the  
critical moment4  ,cut out chunks when  

you are at it1 not a lot of little      
chips1 which are signs to anyone coming 
there later that a tenderfoot has been  
at work4 ,it is all a matter of aiming  
your stroke well4  ,aim your kerf so    
that the tree will fall clear of other  
trees1 and not get hung up in their     
branches4  ,illustration3 ,,the ,,tree  
,,ready ,,to ,,fall  ,then1 when your   
tree falls1 look out for the butt4 ,this
 often jumps back from the stump2 never 
stand directly behind it2 many a        
tenderfoot has been killed that way4    
,when the stem cracks and the tree      
begins to topple over1 move forward in  
the direction of the fall1 and1 at the  
same time outwards1 away from the butt4 
99       99       99       99       99  
,,fire-,,lighting4  ,as a backwoodsman  
you must1 of course1 be able to cook    
your own food--you can't lug your mother
 about with you to do it6  ,but you     
cannot cook food straight off without   
ever having learnt how2 and so ,i advise
 every ,scout to set to work and learn  

this during the winter months1 before   
the camping season comes on4  ,you can  
do a good deal by helping in the        
kitchen1 and seeing how the food is got 
ready4 ,also get a baker to show you how
 to mix dough and to bake bread4  ,but  
it is no use merely to be shown how it  
should be done2 the thing is to do it   
yourself4 ,you will make a few mistakes 
at first4 ,your dough will come out like
 custard1 and your porridge will be     
burnt1 and milk smoked1 but after one or
 two trials you will soon find yourself 
able to cook quite well4  ,the first    
thing that is necessary for cooking1    
even if it is only to boil a billy of   
tea1 is to have a fire1 and tenderfoot  
makes a pretty hash of lighting a fire  
until he knows how4  ,illustration3     
,,fire ,,ready ,,for ,,lighting4  ,begin
 in a small way by putting first some   
dry kindling or small splinters and     
shavings1 dry grass1 or a little paper1 
anything that will easily take fire1 and
 over that stack a lot of small dry     

sticks1 standing on end and leaning     
together1 or leaning against a log on   
the windward side of it4  ,remember1 dry
 sticks are very different from sticks  
when it comes to lighting a fire4  ,dry 
sticks are seldom found on the ground1  
they are generally best got from a tree4
 ,find a tree with a dead branch or two1
 break these off1 and you will have dry 
sticks4 ,for kindling1 a number of      
sticks partly split or splintered with  
your knife are useful4  ,do you know    
what punk is8  ,well1 punk1 or tinder1  
is what a good many backwoodsmen carry  
about with them for lighting their      
fires4  ,it can be a small bit of cotton
 waste soaked in petrol or spirits1 or  
very dry1 baked fungus1 or bark fibre1  
or anything that will catch fire from   
the slightest spark4  ,then1 if you have
 no matches1 you can strike a spark with
 a flint and steel 7the back of your    
knife on a stone will do it71 and so set
 light to your punk4  ,or you can do it 
with a magnifying glass if there is a   

good sun shining1 by making the sunlight
 pass through the glass on to a small   
amount of punk1 and in a few seconds it 
will set it smouldering2 and you must   
then gently blow it up into a glow1 and 
finally into a flame1 with which you can
 light the kindling4  ,indians and      
savages1 who have neither matches nor   
burning-glasses1 get fire by rubbing    
wood together4  ,the easiest way is by  
putting a slat of dry wood on the ground
 and boring a hole through it with a    
stick of dry wood1 twirling the stick by
 means of a bow string4  ,the friction  
of the two woods causes the kind of     
sawdust which comes from the hole to get
 red-hot1 and if a little punk is then  
placed on it and blown into1 it brings a
 flame4  ,so soon as you have got your  
small kindling fire alight1 add bigger  
dry sticks1 upright and leaning         
together1 until you can get a really    
strong fire going1 when logs can be     
added4  ,but for a cooking fire1 use    
plenty of sticks at first1 as they make 

the hot ashes and embers which are most 
necessary for cooking4         99       
99       99       99       99  ,,tips   
,,for ,,the ,,camping ,,season4  ,if you
 make your own sleeping bag out of      
canvas or sacking1 remember two points3 
first1 to have its flaps about a yard   
longer than yourself1 so that you can   
get well into it in case of rain1 and   
secondly3 that to keep warm and dry you 
want more thickness underneath than     
above you4  ,illustration3 ,a           
,,comfortable ,,sleeping ,,bag4  ,the   
best way is to have a double sheet under
 you1 or1 in other words1 make your     
sleeping bag a double one2 you can then 
fill the lower part with straw1 and     
sleep yourself in the upper compartment4
  ,the object of having long flaps is   
seen in the illustration4 ,the lower one
 can be rolled with your spare clothes  
inside it to form your pillow1 while the
 upper one can be supported by a        
crossbar to form a little roof over your
 head4 ,in a sleeping bag of this kind1 

if waterproof1 you can sleep out without
 a tent at all4         99       99     
99       99       99  ,,how ,,to ,,make 
,a ,,camp ,,bed4  ,a very simple and    
comfortable form of camp bed-and one    
which you can easily rig up and use in  
your home1 or at an inn1 if a bedstead  
is not available-is this3 ,make a hasty 
stretcher with two staves and a sack1   
and lay the ends of the staves on a     
couple of logs1 stones1 or boxes4       
,illustration3 ,,ready ,,for ,,use4     
,keep the staves apart by crossbars1 and
 you have a most comfortable bed4 ,but  
don't forget to put plenty of blankets1 
and some thick paper1 if you are short  
of blankets underneath you4  ,this bed  
is the best possible one to use when you
 have to camp on damp ground4         99
       99       99       99       99    
,,how ,a ,,tenderfoot ,,sits ,,down4    
,in camp you can generally tell a       
tenderfoot from an old scout from the   
way in which he sits down4              
,illustration3 ,,the ,,wrong ,,way4  ,a 

tenderfoot sits right down on the       
ground1 but the old hand1 knowing that  
this is very likely to give you chill   
and bring on fever1 rheumatism1 or other
 ailments1 either squats on his heel1 or
 on both heels--which comes all the more
 easy if you put a stone under each heel
 as a support1 or if you have your back 
against a tree4  ,illustration3 ,,the   
,,right ,,way4  ,when an old scout sits 
on the ground1 he always takes care     
either to sit on his hat1 or on a bundle
 of dry heather1 or something that will 
keep him off the actual ground4         
,illustration3 ,,how ,,an ,,old ,,hand  
,,sits ,,down4  ,two ex-,boy ,scouts1   
now officers in the ,army1 sent me a    
contribution to our funds lately1 as a  
thanks offering for all the campaigning 
dodges which they had learnt as ,scouts 
and which had been most helpful to them 
on active service4  ,so practise all you
 can of these tips which ,i have given3 
you never know when they may not come in
 useful to you4     ,,training ,,and    

,,tracking  ,,zulu ,,training4  ,the    
native boys of the ,zulu and ,swazi     
tribes learn to be ,scouts before they  
are allowed to be considered men1 and   
they do it in this way3  ,when a boy is 
about fifteen or sixteen1 he is taken by
 the men of his village1 stripped of all
 clothes1 and painted white from head to
 foot1 and he is given a shield and one 
assegai or small spear1 and he is turned
 out of the village and told that he    
will be killed if anyone catches him    
while he is still painted white4  ,so   
the boy has to go off into the jungle   
and mountains and hide himself from     
other men until the white paint wears   
off1 and this generally takes about a   
month2 so that all this time he has to  
look after himself and stalk game with  
his one assegai1 and kill it and cut it 
up2 he has to light his fire by means of
 rubbing sticks together in order to    
cook his meat2 he has to make the skin  
of the animal into a covering for       
himself2 and he has to know what kinds  

of wild roots1 berries1 and leaves are  
good for food as vegetables4  ,if he is 
not able to do these things he dies of  
starvation1 or is killed by wild        
animals4  ,if he succeeds in keeping    
himself alive1 and is able to find his  
way back to his village1 he returns when
 the white paint has worn off1 and is   
then received with great rejoicings by  
his friends and relatives1 and is       
allowed to become a soldier of the      
tribe1 since he has shown that he is    
able to look after himself4         99  
99       99       99       99           
,,tracking ,,by ,,touch4  ,general      
,dodge1 of the ,american ,army1         
describes how he once had to pursue a   
party of ,red ,indians who had been     
murdering some people4  ,the murderers  
had nearly a week's start1 and had gone 
away on horseback4 ,rut ,general ,dodge 
got a splendid tracking-scout named     
,espinosa to help him4 ,the ,indians    
were all riding unshod horses except    
one1 and after ,espinosa had been       

tracking them for many miles he suddenly
 got off his horse and pulled four      
horseshoes out of a hidden crevice in   
the rocks4 ,the ,indian had evidently   
pulled them off so that they should not 
leave a track4  ,for six days they      
pursued the band1 and for a great part  
of the time there was no sign visible to
 an ordinary eye1 and after going for   
#aej miles they eventually overtook and 
captured the whole party4 ,but it was   
all entirely due to ,espinosa's good    
tracking4  ,on another occasion some    
,american troops were following up a    
number of ,indians1 who had been raiding
 and murdering whites1 and they had some
 other ,red ,indian scouts to assist    
them in tracking4  ,in order to make a  
successful attack1 they marched by      
night1 and the trackers found the way in
 the darkness by feeling the tracks of  
the enemy with their hands1 and they    
went at a fairly good pace for many     
miles1 merely touching the track with   
their fingers2 but suddenly they halted 

and reported that the track they had    
been following had been crossed by a    
fresh track1 and on the commanding      
officer going up1 he found the ,indians 
still holding the track with their      
hands1 so that there should be no       
mistake4  ,a light was brought1 and it  
was found that the new track was that of
 a bear which had walked across the     
trail of the enemy6 ,so the march       
continued without further incident1 and 
the enemy were surprised1 and caught in 
the early hours of the morning4  ,i     
myself led a column through an intricate
 part of the ,matopo ,mountains in      
,rhodesia by night to attack the enemy's
 stronghold1 which ,i had reconnoitred  
the previous day4 ,i found the way by   
feeling my own tracks1 sometimes with my
 hands and sometimes through the soles  
of my shoes1 which had worn very thin2  
and ,i never had any difficulty in      
finding the line4  ,tracking1 or        
following up tracks1 is called by       
different names in different countries4 

,thus1 in ,south ,africa you would talk 
only of spooring1 that is1 following up 
the spoor2 in ,india it would be        
following the pugs1 or pugging2 in      
,america it is trailing4         99     
99       99       99       99  ,,jackal 
,,catching4  ,in ,india ,i have seen a  
certain tribe of gipsies who eat        
jackals4 ,now1 a jackal is one of the   
most suspicious animals that lives1 and 
is very difficult to catch in a trap1   
but these gipsies catch them by calling 
them in this way3 ,several men with dogs
 hide themselves in the grass and bushes
 round a small field4 ,in the middle of 
this open place one gipsy imitates the  
call of the jackals calling to each     
other2 he gets louder and louder till   
they seem to come together2 then they   
begin to growl and finally tackle each  
other with violent snapping1 snarling1  
and yelling1 and at the same time he    
shakes a bundle of dried leaves1 which  
sounds like the animals dashing about   
among grass and reeds4  ,then he flings 

himself down on the ground1 and throws  
up dust in the air1 so that he is       
completely hidden in it1 still growling 
and fighting4  ,if any jackal is within 
sound of this1 he comes tearing out of  
the jungle1 and dashes into the dust to 
join in the fight4 ,when he finds a man 
there1 he comes out again in a hurry1   
but meantime the dogs have been loosed  
from all sides1 and they quickly catch  
him and kill him4  ,mr4 ,william ,long1 
in his very interesting book called     
,beasts of the ,field1 describes how he 
once called a moose4 ,the moose is a    
very huge kind of stag1 with an ugly1   
bulging kind of nose4 ,he lives in the  
forests of ,north ,america and ,canada1 
and is very hard to get near2 and is    
pretty dangerous when he is angry4  ,mr4
 ,long was in a canoe fishing when he   
heard a moose bull calling in the       
forest--so just for fun he went ashore  
and cut a strip of bark off a birch tree
 and rolled it up so as to make a kind  
of megaphone1 ,with this he proceeded to

 imitate the roaring grunt of the bull  
moose4 ,the effect was tremendous2 the  
old moose came tearing down1 and even   
came into the water and tried to get at 
him--and it was only by hard paddling   
that in the end he got away4            
,,conclusion  ,well1 good-bye1 my       
reader4 ,i hope you will have got half  
the enjoyment out of reading these yarns
 that ,i have had in spinning them to   
you4  ,will you try to remember some of 
the ideas which they bring to your      
mind-most especially those ten ,scout   
,laws with which ,i began the book4  ,i 
repeat them as a reminder for you4      
,learn them by heart-each one to a      
finger4   ,,the ,,scout ,,law4   #a4 ,a 
,scout's ,honour is to be ,trusted4  #b4
 ,a ,scout is ,loyal4  #c4 ,a ,scout is 
,useful to ,others4  #d4 ,a ,scout is a 
,friend to all4  #e4 ,a ,scout is       
,courteous4  #f4 ,a ,scout is a ,friend 
to ,animals  #g4 ,a ,scout ,obeys       
,orders4  #h4 ,a ,scout ,smiles and     
,whistles when in ,trouble4  #i4 ,a     

,scout is ,thrifty4  #aj4 ,a ,scout is  
,clean in ,thought1 ,word1 and ,deed4   
,will you try to remember these and     
carry them out in your daily life8 ,by  
doing so you will be a true ,young      
,knight of the ,empire4     ,,index   ,a
  ,algeria1 ,a trip to--   ,algiers1    
,interesting things in   ,arab market1  
,an   ,arab politeness   ,arab's        
,candles   ,boar-hunting   ,camping     
among the mountains of the ,desert      
,carthage-,ancient and ,modern   ,cold  
winds   ,constantine1 ,celebrated       
,french regiment at   ,good turn to a   
donkey1 ,a   ,historical memories of the
 place   ,history of ,ancient ,roman    
occupation   ,hot springs of ,hammam    
,mousketine1 ,the   ,mountain of salt   
in1 ,a   ,mountain range between        
,algeria and the ,sahara   ,spahis1 ,the
   ,truffle-hunting   ,tunis and its    
souks ,axe1 ,take care of your  ,b      
,belgian ,boy ,scouts  ,c  ,camp bed1   
,to make a ,camping season tips         
,cheerfulness--   ,ancient exhortation  

to   ,british ,army's example at the    
,front   ,don't stand with your back to 
the sun   ,earl ,roberts1 example of    
,under difficulties   ,whistling good1  
but not if it causes annoyance ,chilian 
,boy ,scouts ,cleanliness--   ,bodily   
,consumption1 ,wage war against by      
,drinking against the law of   ,in      
thought1 word1 and deed   ,manliness    
demands   ,smoking as a boy offends     
,spitting offends the law of  ,d        
,danish ,boy ,scouts ,dutch ,boy ,scouts
  ,f  ,fire-lighting ,friendliness--    
,arab hospitality   ,buttonhole badge   
worn by all ,scouts a token of          
,chilian ,scouts help ,british visitors 
,shown to all   ,swastika an emblem know
 in all lands   ,treating natives for   
minor ill  ,h  ,honour--   ,examples of 
the sense of   ,your word is your bond  
,horn drinking cups   ,k  ,kindness to  
animals--   ,bird migration             
,bird-nesting1 humanely   ,good and     
brave men show   ,instances of   ,lord  
,nelson on a bull-fight   ,nesting-box  

for birds1 ,to make a   ,studying wild  
beasts  ,l  ,loyalty--   ,balaclava     
,charge an instance of   ,conquests     
achieved through loyalty to leaders     
,instance of1 at the ,front   ,to ,king 
and ,country   ,to parents and friends  
,m  ,malta--   ,home of ,scouts1 ,the   
,knights of ,st4 ,john of ,jerusalem in4
 ,the4   ,maltese placed themselves     
under ,great ,britain's ,protectorate   
,maltese ,cross and its meaning1 ,the   
,maltese ,boy ,scouts  ,n  ,naples--    
,scouts in   ,vesuvius overshadows      
,neapolitan ,boy ,scouts ,norway1       
,camping in--   ,automatic              
toasting-fork1 ,an   ,bivouac hut1      
,easily-made   ,boat voyage1 ,a   ,camp 
bedroom1 ,a   ,camp fire and kitchen    
,cleaning and cooking your fish         
,driving   ,fishermen's knots           
,fly-fishing   ,norwegian fences        
,norwegians are kind to animals         
,picturesque experiences   ,repairing a 
rod   ,rowing boats   ,stalking         
,trout-fishing ,norwegian ,boy ,scouts  

,o  ,obedience--   ,british discipline1 
,examples of   ,silence as discipline   
,to parents and ,scoutmasters ,orient   
,line ,steamship1 ,our life on an  ,p   
,politeness--   ,ancient ,knights' ,oath
 of ,chivalry1 ,the   ,courtesy to ail1 
especially the old and ailing   ,scouts 
of the ,desert show courtesy   ,true    
gentleman1 ,the test of a ,pompeii1     
,history of ,ancient  ,r  ,roberts1     
,k4,g41 ,v4,c41 ,field-,marshal ,earl1  
,lessons from the life of  ,s  ,sea     
,scouting--   ,brave ,boy ,sea ,scout1  
,a   ,chief ,scout tells when it helped 
him   ,drake1 ,career of ,sir ,francis  
,dutch and ,english ,admirals of #bej   
years ago   ,fishermen heroes           
,generals who were sailors              
,lifeboatmen   ,nelson1 ,career of ,lord
   ,sailor heroes   ,seamanship1 ,games 
to teach1   ,use of1 in war1            
,usefulness of1 at all times1 ,sicily-- 
,carts in1   ,history of1   ,taormina1  
,whispering caves in1 ,sitting1 ,the art
 of1 ,strathcona1 ,lord1 ,lessons from  

the life of1 ,swedish ,boy ,scouts1  ,t 
,tents1 ,how to build--   ,ashanti      
shelter1 ,the1   ,bivouac shelter1 ,a1  
,bivouac tent1 ,a1   ,cabul tent1       
,camp furniture for1   ,making of1 and  
materials to use1   ,one-man tramp tent1
 ,the1   ,shelter hut1 ,a1    ,tramp    
tent1 ,the1 ,thrift--   ,examples of men
 who became great through1   ,john      
,pound's example of1   ,manliness of1   
,two rules for earning a fortune1       
,training and tracking--                
,jackal-catching1   ,moose-hunting1     
,red ,indians track by touch1           
,zulu-training1 ,tree-felling1 ,the art 
of1  ,u  ,usefulness--   ,badges to be  
won by1   ,good turns1   ,helpfulness to
 others1   ,helping the police1         
,instances of1   ,peace ,scout in       
,labrador1 ,a1   ,tracking exercise1