The Chief Scout Talks

Taranaki Daily News, 30 August 1930, Page 9 (Supplement)

The Chief Scout Talks

A SCOUT SMILES AND WHISTLES.

(By Li. Gen. Lord Baden-Powe;! of Gilwell.) When I was encamped with my Troop of Scouts at Hnmshaugh, in Northumberland, in the very early days of the Boy Scout movement, a gentleman living in the neighbourhood invited us to come to visit the castle in which he lived. It was a beautiful old tower, left much in the state in which it was when it formed one of the Border Defences against Scotland. On the top was the fighting platform, from which the archers fired their bolts and arrows and the gunners fired their culverins. On the story below were the

rooms in which the family lived, and below these again were the guard-rooms of the men-at-arms. On the ground floor was the cattle stable, into which the herds were driven for security when the enemy were around. The portcullis which closed the gateway was still in existence, hauled up and down by means, of ropes over pulleys, of which the levers were worked on the floor .above.

In later and more peaceful times, that is in the reign of James 1, a house was built on to the "tower to give room to the inhabitants. In the hall of this house was a noble fireplace, above which there was an elaborate overmantel of carved oak illustrating the seven Ohris-

tian, virtues. These were little statues representing Fortitude, Benevolence-* Faith, etc. etc, ''They were all th® qualities which & good Christian should possess and carry into practice. SOMETHING WAS MISSING. • But 1 felt, after looking at them, that there was still one virtue missing, and I suggested to the boys that they might carry out all these seven good qualities of a Christian without doing it to th© best effect. You might carry it out as an order to be kind, to be chivalrous, to be helpful, and so on, but if you only did it because it was an order and therefore did it grumpily, half df its value was lost. The important point i»_ that when yon know what is the right' thing (o do, you should jump to it and do it cheerily with a smile. Therefore I thought that we Scoutsmight add one more to the seven Chris* tian virtues, namely Cheerfulness. There is another good reason for be*, ing cheerful. Have you ever noticed, as you walk along the street, how very few people look really, happy? They are going .dong often with down-cast eyes, and nearly always with a dejected- serious countenance and if one comes along who looks at you smilingly it i» a great relief and makes .you feel a big bit- happier yourself. And there is a reason why a Scout should go about with-a smile on, because 'it makes other people happy. You may not always feel cheerful yourself, but you should not show this, as it will make other people feel glum too. If you make yourself look cheerful you will gradually find that you troubled or anxious ‘oT in pain, force are becoming brighter. If you - are yourself to do it and you will find to your, surprise that your trouble is not so great as you thought it was. ■; EVERYONE BUCKED UP. I have known men in action get veryj anxious when great danger overshadow* ed them, but if one began, to laugh and to talk cheerily or to whistle, the cloud passed by and everybody bucked up and was ready to face the situation. Remember this—and I have found it come true in hundreds of different kinds of cases. A difficulty ceases to be a difficulty directly you smile at and tackle it. That is’why it is one of the most important duties of Scouts - and Guides, and one of their ten Laws, that they should smile and whistle cP sing when in difficulties, “If your face wants to smile —let it. If it doesn’t want to smile —make it.”