SCOUTING

Timaru Herald, Volume CXLIV, Issue 20984, 12 March 1938, Page 17

SCOUTING

By

“Red Plume”

He’s not very helpful, Mabel. Says he’ll tow us to Valparaiso if that’s any good to us.”

SCOUTERS’ ASSOCIATION At a well attended meeting of Scouters last week, it was unanimously decided to form an association with the objects of fostering the movement and to obtain more cohesion between the various Groups. Meeting are io be held bi-monthly and all Scouters are asked to attend. It was decided that all Groups should support the District financially and to this end it was agreed that each section of a Group should pay one shilling and each warranted Scouter one shilling. This would help keep things going until the end of the financial year, which, we have had word form Headquarters, will be June 30. BRUSH UP YOUR ROPEWORK! (By "Rama") Ropework, that is, Knotting, Lashing, Splicing and Whipping, is the foundation of most gadgets and every Scout should endeavour to become efficient at this very useful activity. It means endless' practice to become -a “top-hand” with ropes. Always use rope, not ordinary string. Nothing spoils the look of an otherwise good job more than untidy ends of rope hanging about. Every Scout is supposed to know how to whip the end of a rope before he is invested. Remember that whipping should be used to prevent rope fraying, not to cure it. One often sees what should be a six foot lashing with at least a foot of frayed strands. So first of all brush up yoqr whipping. The six Tenderfoot knots should present no difficulty, yet I frequently come across Scouts who have apparently forgotten their knots. Let's get this straight! You must know how to tie, and understand the uses of, the Reef, Sheet-bend, Clove-hitch, Round Turn

and two half-hitches, Sheepshank and Bowline. When you can tie these knots and hitches at any time, blindfolded, in the dark, or with your hands behind your back you will really begin to have some idea of knots. Begin. I say, because there are scores of ways in which you can tie’ almost any knot and you should not rest until you are proficient. Lashings are the next things you should learn about. Although one can perhaps do a fairly satisfactory lashing alone it is far better to work in pairs, then while one is making the necessary turns in the right places the other can tighten each turn and stop it from slipping. Scouters are reminded that this week end will see the Christchurch Scouters here in Timaru. This was decided on when we were in Tinwald last month and we hope that Scouters have kept this date in mind. WHO’S WHO HIGHFIELD GROUP The Highfield Troop was started in 1922 and met for some time in St. John’s Church, Highfield. After several changes of Scouters and change ot meeting places from St. John’s to St. Paul’s Schoolrooms the present Scouter took over control of the Troop. This was at the beginning of 1931 and the Troop was without a “home.” After some searching around, quarters were found underneath a carpenter's workshop in Rathmore St. Lots of work gradually improved these quarters and when finally the binding came on the market it was bought by the Committee. The result is that now the Group owns the freehold cf the building and section and is even now adding an additional room for the Rovers use. The Cub Pack was formed in 1927 and the Rover Crew in 1932. The numbers on the rolls are Scouts 40, Cubs 24, Rovers 12, Scouters 5. The Rover Crew meet on Monday evenings and most of their time is being spent on their new den which they hope to have completed by Easter. The Cub Pack meet on Wednesdays at 6.39 p.m. under Miss K. Lennon (Cubmaster) and Misses T. Neilson and C. Johnson (Assistant Cubmasters) . The Scouts, owing to their number are divided into two tribes and meet on Thursday and Friday evenings at 7 pm. Assistant Scoutmaster D. Andrews is in charge of the Thursday (Arawa) tribe with C. Johns as assistant. The Friday (Tainui) tribe is run by Group Scoutmaster E. Manthorp, with F. Coales and F. Brosnahan as assistants. The Group is what is termed an Open one, that is, it is open to boys of any religious denomination and the Scouters are always ready to welcome hew boys. The Committee have the welfare of the boys very much at heart, as can be seen by the way they have organised the financial side of the Group’s activities and looked after the safeguarding of the Group’s “Home.” The ownership of the pen, Rathmore Str?et, has meant quite a lot to local Scouting as it has meant that there has always been a place available for meetings and training courses. Even qt the time of writing word has come of a party of Dunedin Scouters who have spent the week end in the Den, in fact it is becoming quite the thing for travelling Scouts and Scouters to avail themselves of the ever open door of the Highfield Scout Den.

THE ROVER MOOT The secretaries have been busy lately answering many enquiries regarding the Moot and a circular has been sept out with some of the details enclosed. Arrangements are being kept well in hand and we are looking forward to having a bumper crowd at the Showgrounds during the Easter holidays. LISTEN-IN In these days of wirelesses we all listen-to. Cubs should train themselves to listen all day long—not to the wireless, but to use their ears all the time and to train them to pick up the differences between sounds, no matter how small they are. If you are going to make good trackers when you become Scouts you must be able to hear well and to understand what the sounds mean, at night as well as by day. Try sometimes to do things in the dark or when you are blindfolded. You will feel rather helpless at first, but practice will make things easier. Keep still for a whole minute with your eyes shut and then put down the things you have heard. If you can do it with a’ friend so much the better. You will be able to compare notes afterwards and see what each of you have missed.—" The Scout.” “A SCOUT IS A FRIEND TO ALL” The Arabs of the desert are some of the finest Scouts in the world, not only because they are brave and manly fellows who can shift for themselves, but also because they are gentlemen at heart, kind to strangers, and men of honour.

When you come to an Arab's encampment he does not ask whether

you are rich or lowly bom. Once you are within the neighbourhood of his: tent he expects you to be his guest, and while you are with him he will do everything that he can to protect you from your enemies. These kindly people, w’ho always live to tents, have a habit of using very long tent ropes for the support of their tents, and these stretch out some distance on to the plain around their encampment. 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 guest. He expects you to stay with him for about five days, during which time he feeds you, houses you, and protects you, and he expects no kind of payment when you depart. One of his first acts when you come into his camp is to offer you water. This is partly in order that you may refresh yourself, but it is also a secret sign, meaning that he will not betray you. It is considered bad form to decline hospitality offered in this way, 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 host.

The Arabs have a saying: “None but the base and ungrateful refuses generosity”; but this does not mean that he will take a reward for being kind to you. To offer a tip is to Insult him, and I hope that Boy Scouts will take it in the same light. If you pitch your tent near that of an Arab and become good friends with him, he will alter his tent pegs so that they come within the line of your own. and the tent ropes cross each other. This, again, is a secret sign, which means that he and those who live in his tent are for ever friends with you and any who are living with you. Arabs are honourable fellows, and may be trusted to stick to such an understanding. It is a curious thing that animals and children both seem to recognise a good man when they meet him, and are at once friendly with him; and I have always found that the bravest men are in their turn kind tq them. Animals are weaker folk tfian ourselves in the matter of mind and understanding, but they can be very affectionate and faithful where they have learnt that the human being, though strong enough to hurt them, is kipd and gentle. They are quick to show that they appreciate such kindness. Your know how your own dog half curls himself round with waggling his tail, and grins with pleasure when he sees you; and also how your horse nuzzles you all over to find the sugar that he knows you are going to give him. So give animals all the kindness you can and make their lives happy. Many boys are Inclined to be cruel, simply because they don’t think—they are not yet manly enough. But a Scout who is manly and chivalrous towards people will at all times be the same towards animals.

THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK: There lives more faith in honest doubt, believe me, than in half the creeds.—Tennyson.