SCOUT NOTES

Evening Post, Volume CXXV, Issue 81, 6 April 1938, Page 22

SCOUT NOTES

(By "Rama.")

■ Nine patrols have entered for the campcraft competition to be held at Easter. These patrols are from the following troops:—Johnsonville, Wadestown (2). St. Joseph's, Trinity Methodist, St. Hilda, Lyall Bay Baptist (2), and Island Bay Baptist. Wellington South are to be congratulated on the number of entries from their district. Entries are still open for the tests for the Healthyman Badge. It will probably be the beginning of May before the talks and tests are given and held. It is hoped that every oportumty will be taken before the weather gets too cold for Scouts to pass for the Swimmer Badge. For examination arrangements refer to Metropolitan Headquarters if in doubt. The Metropolitan Badge Commissioner, "Rama," is glad to see Scouts who want information about badges, etc., at Metropolitan Headquarters, Room 10, 3rd. Floor Sussex Chambers, Panama Street, during the following hours:—Monday to Friday, 12.45 till 1.45 p.m., and on Fridays, 4 till 5.15 p.m. also. Don't hesitate to call in. Metropolitan Headquarters exists to help Scouts as well as officers. Roseneath Pack. The Ist Roseneath Cub Pack celebrated its eighth birthday on Tuesday evening last week with a parents' evening. There were games for Cubs and parents, the Jungle Dance of Tabaqui was performed and there was a camp fire. Service Stars were presented by "Kirn," and Proficiency Stars by "Rama." Supper concluded a very happy evening. It was good to see so large an attendance of parents and friends. Wadestown Troop. The Wadestown Troop was visited by two District Commissioners at its evening meeting last week. It was very satisfactory to find the excellent work which is being done by this troop on real Scouting lines, with plenty of outdoor activities. Tests for Athlete Badge. Last Saturday afternoon the first tests for the Athlete Badge since the inaugurating of the new Metropolitan Badge Examination Organisation were held. Mr. Ken Peterson was examiner, assisted by members of the Ist Kelburn Rover Crew. The weather was rather warm for athletics, "but the nine Scouts present put in some excellent work. Only two Scouts succeeded in passing all tests, but three others failed only in one test, and they will, no doubt, pass in this at the next Field Day. The two Scouts who won the badge were Vie. Nunn and Frank Hemsl6y, both of Ist Karori Troop. These two Scouts put up an excellent porformance in all tests and well merit congratulations. The date of the next tests will probably be Saturday, May 7, but this will be confirmed or otherwise in next week's Scout notes. New entries will be accepted, and those who failed in oiie or two tests last Saturday may have-another try. Entries must be at Metropolitan Headquarters by 5 p.m. on Friday, April 29. ■The attention of Scoutmasters and Scouts is drawn to the fact that the conditions of the badge include demonstrations of sitting, standing, walking, and running, evidence of regular exercise and tests in running, jumping, throwing, and Scout pace. All these have to be passed.. It is a test of allround fitness, not of specialisation in any one direction. In nearly every case last Saturday the Scout pace tests were done very much' too fast. This probably signifies that the Scouts have not had enough practice in this subject since passing it for 2nd Class, and so fail to allow for increased speed owing .to greater length of legs as they get older. Scout pace is a valuable test, and Scouts should have frequent practices in it after they have passed for 2nd Class, as well as before. It is hoped that many more entries will be put in for this very important badge. Observation and Deduction. In an address at Oxford the Chief Scout prefaced his remarks with the following story:— "A party of savants and explorers who were carrying out a scientific expedition into the interior of Australia very nearly came to a tragic end in the great Thirstland. That they came out again alive was due to the powers of observation, deduction, and ingenuity displayed by a little savage girl of fourteen. Helf-perished with thirst, they were searching the plains for a drop of water, when the girl noticed some ants creeping up the stem of a tree and making their way into a small hole in the bark. She at once inferred that they were going there for some purpose, and, passing a twig into the hole, she discovered that water was contained in the tree trunk. She thereupon stripped the bark from some green twigs so that -they formed a succession of small tubes which she 'fitted one within the other, and, passing the end of this tube down through, the hole into the tree, she provided an instrument by which each one of the party was able to suck up his fill of water, and the expedition was saved." , As-the Chief Scout went on to say, it was not the knowledge of Greek or of higher mathematics or of science which the members of this expedition possessed that - saved them, but the natural knowledge of one who had been brought up to some of the essentials of life. The outstanding quality of an educated "man, which gives him a decided advantage over his less fortunate brethen, is his ability to observe, comprehend, and analyse. Whatever the situation that confronts him, he should be able to observe its main features almost instinctively and to realise the bearing they have on the situation; that is, to comprehend, and to weigh these main features up in his mind, and so analyse them that he is in a position to suggest the remedy and the various steps which will lead to a solution of that particular situation, even although he-has not the technical or professional knowledge to undertake the execution of those steps himself. Sometimes we wonder how it is that a politician, when his party is in power, can be considered fit to undertake the discharge of duties as the head of an important Government department. It is because he has a trained mind, and so can turn to any problem and by study comprehend and analyse it. If a man lacks this ability, it will prove almost impossible for him to rise to a position of trust and responsibility. But this ability can be acquired, and Scouting does offer countless opportunities for its acquisition, and that is why it has now been recognised as a valuable ad j uncj; to our existing scheme of education. "By the term 'Scouting' is meant the work and attributes of backwoodsmen, explorers, and frontiersmen." The real backwoodsman —not the penny-dreadful counterfeit —is the hero of every boy. His life and doings supply examples which will be of value and use in the everyday life of modern civilisation. The education of the Australian and Indian tracker, of the African hunter, of the Canadian trapper, contains .points which are invaluable to their more civilised brethren, even in cities and slums. XJnrivallcd Education. There is not better education than observation, deduction, memory, and ingenuity, and it is one which every boy will gladly carry out for himself, if only he is- put in the way of doing so. The practice of observation and deduction, the development of memory in respect of small details and signs, the ingenuity developed in their application, lead to a closer and more effective study of life as a whole and of nature in particular, with the result that even the poorest or the least promising 'roy can benefit physically, morally, and spiritually.

Tracking is undoubtedly a most powerful aid in the development of the powers of both observation and deduction. It teaches the Scout to use his eyes and his brains. With the former he notices every little sign and mark, on the ground or elsewhere, and with the latter he tries to discover what these signs and marks mean. Who was it? What did he do? Where did he go? It is a regular puzzle. The Scout is on his mettle. Is he going to solve this puzzle or is he going to be defeated? That will largely depend on the previous training and on the amount of practice he has had. It is not as easy as a cross-word puzzle, for many of the clues are missing, and others that are there are most misleading. But, win or lose, it is a good game and well worth the time spent on it.