SCOUT NOTES

Evening Post, Volume CXXI, Issue 142, 17 June 1936, Page 16

SCOUT NOTES

$1 - . (By "Sahi.") , § .;• I ventur#"tdi think that $($e man who loves his work, who is-content to begin at the lowest rung of the ladder, in order to master all the minutest details of his particular • trade or prof whqse. work is dearer to him than either his wages j or his dinner,'is bound to be rewarded, bound to succeed in whatever calling of life he may be. It is the half-hearted worker who fails; it is the scamp worker who ; sticks in thejut.—M. Corelli." ; The fortnightly of Catholic troops has ceased and in its stead there will be a monthly Scouters* social. The first of these socials will be held at 74 Manner*Sfreei| turdaft July A, at 8 pjii. A* Invitation is extended to Scouters of all area, troops to come along; and enjoy a pleasant -evening. — Hovers are- asked to -nbte -that the ■ annual "Ro-Ra" will be held in the Mokoia Hall on Saturday, July 4, at 7.45 p.m. The Dominion Headquarters Commissioner for Rovers will be visiting Wellington at' the weekend, July 11-12, when a moot will be held at Lowry Bay by the combined Rovers of Palmerston, Masterton, Lower Hutt, and ■ Wellington; A r circular givirig details ♦is being sent to all Hovef crews. . The winners of this" Hoskins' Shield this year will be the Catholic troop that obtains the highest aggregate . points in the ..respective district com-, petitions. It is expected that all troops will enter. ' Last Saturday week the Island Bay *■ Baptist Group Held an 'evening, at •'which ■ there' was a''goOd''atteindahce Of parents and friends; both.' Scouts -and Cubs were also present. After the District Commissioner for Wellington South (Mr. Sadler) had been- received . with the Grand Howl and Dominion * Haka, the boys, gave an . exhibition of their work in troop .and. pack. Mr. Sadler then took' the opportunity of presenting Mr. K. Andrew with his Dominion warrant by, Ipise. ceremony,, and Mr. A. Howari with his provisional . warrant, both in.the rank-of assistant .Scoutmaster. A -happy ; campfire was officially opened by the District Commissioner, and about twenty'.minutes. ' were spent in singing. Supper brought a very pleasant everting to a close. - On Wednesday, June 10, St. Joseph's Group held its annual meeting, there :-being a very fine number of parents and .friends present. The meeting was a most encouraging one, a strong group committee being elected for the next ■year.' An interesting and instructive "stunt" was successfully staged last Wednes- " day evening by the Ist Roserteath Troop, and is passed- on to other Scouters for what it is worth. Early in the evening, a suspicious-looking "character" arrived at. the Den, and, , announcing his name as Mr. Jones, asked to look around the Den. . It was later discovered that the Scoutmaster's watch, which had b£en placed on the bench, was niissing, and a Scout had observed Mr.: Jones slinking out of the Den a minute previously. A hunt then began with*'torches, and some of-the; -Scouts were juste in -time, to- see, Mr. Jones leave on a fast motor-cycle.? An urgent call was then put through to ' the "police," l who gave instructions to -' obtain a full" description -of the sus'picious character from everyone' pre- - sent and '.to ■ handthems to "the 1 police officer on arrival.' ,Although at first two of the • Scouts . thought it might . b» a trick, .the. seriousness and realism ' of the matter was soon apparent to all, and when later the sanie Mr. Jones returned and handed back the watch, there was a deep silence, and the contused expression on the Scouts' faces was an entertainment in itself. Great laughter, explanations, and a criticism of the Scouts' descriptions concluded .the stunt, which will long be remembered. . .The District Ck?mitLlssio)ier. Ifor South visited, the St. Francis de Sales Group last Friday,; a pound hight; There was a good attendance of .Cubs and Scouts, with several members of the group committee also present. After the ' '•Commiastaitti'; Ka# bm 'greeted with ; toe Grand Howl and Dominion Haka by the Cubs and ScoutS respectively, two officers were presented with their warrants—Mr. K. Fennessy with his Assistant Scoutmaster's warrant by Ipise ceremony, and Miss P. Nolan with her Provisional Assistant Cubmaster's warrant. .The boys afterwards carried on with their usiial work. Supper concluded theeveninir. The following is by Mr. J. S.v Wilson, . Camp Chief, GMwell, and is taken' from the ..latest "Boy Scouts' Year Book":— . ........ .. "Experience is the best teacher, but ' a Scouter limits!. his'training as a Scouter tor the actual practice of Scotit-. in* itself he-is iearnirig at :the expense of those whom he .leads. Any possible damage can, however, be minimised if a Scouter sets out along the Scout trail together with his boys, giving " them to understand- that 7 he is learning with them. " They- in 1 their 'turn, will be keen to-teach, and will realise that - to their Scouter, Scouting- is also a ..game and an adventure. But if a Scouter is to be a real leader it is necessary for . him to be able to point the way td his followers. This implies' that he must set about the task of - leanungabout Scouting and about in other ways besides the ■i Actual. practice • of. these.; two • arts. "The game of 'Scouting for. Boys' is a favourite and true description,of the Scout method. A man, or woman too, '■ is all the better for some training be- - tore he goes on to the field of play. ; "here are the rules to study, the aims of the game to understand, the methods . of play to leani.. Jie needSsto study his fellow-players—in this case both Scouters and Scouts—and to find out which particular methods of plav suit them _- best and what contribution he himself can make to the, success of the game. He can also benefit by studying the " p ]ay of others, by reading descriptions > of the game, and by -strengthening his own weak'points. - - . "A man who has not previously been .. .a Scout will rieedto learn some of the ...technique of Scouting, because it is necessary; to.have.some,proficiency in Scout activities ij|i order to, be,a,Scout Leader. A man who has had previous Scout traimng as a boy will hot need to leant so much about the technique of Scouting, but he will have to look at it from a different, and a wider angle, and learn, something of the art of leadership. : • "bi Scouter's training should go on right through the whole of his Scout life. In the beginning he needs to get a, correct and complete grasp of the aims; principles, and methods of Scouting and to understaadt'lttnethihg of boy nature generally/ Arjld improves and progresses sahe comes to 'realise that it is necessary forhim* to keep on learn* In the.-mfdst' of ,iiisi practice in Scouting, all the time he is Tunning ! a Pack or Troop,, piloting a Rover Crew, or administering a-distridt or even larger area; heluarto rfemember that "S"* & up-to-date ana hia leadership opersondl and inspiring, ' ;"The_ start of 'Scouting, while enthusiasm is at white.heat, is]efcsy; it is later, when the first enthusiasm dies down,,that the real test .of'tije Scouter comes. He; ha> to.~introduce variety into his.work; he has toKSseep those whom he is leadlhg interested; he has to know more about' each individual one of his followers; he J)4s to be more proficient Scouti&g because more is required of -hint. His own mitiative must.be kept ally*. C(i it is the Scouter'a. Scouting to his Scputs; he must study it and know it thoroughly 'himself to do this. His training piust never be cut and dried or hackneyed: One of the most important- aims of all 'the training of Scouters is to'.stimulate the Scouters lhiagiiiation andWve him sufficjent confldence to explore the future for himself, but with his Scouts."