THE BOY SCOUTS.

Wanganui Herald, Volume LIII, Issue 15976, 19 November 1919, Page 14

THE BOY SCOUTS.

AN. ENJOYABLE EVENING. The Wanganui East troop were the guests of the Wanganui 5 Christ Church troop at their monthly round night last week. There were about 30 lads present. A very enjoyable evening was passed.- Wrestling, lazy stick, and other trials of strength were the main, features. After supper recitations and songs, eta, were given by some of the lads. In closing the evening the Rev. Thompson addressed the boys. He said he had. enjoyed the evening immensely. He then called for three cheers for the officers of the two troops (C.S.&L Laurie ard Edmondson), who had done a tremendous lot of work in the past in connection with the troops, and he had not doubt were ready yet to do more. C.S.M. Laurie and S.M. Edmondson responded. After three cheers for both the visitors and the home lads a happy evening finished with It'he singing of “God Save the King.” BOY SCOUT HEROES. The following details relative to the splendid behaviour of Greek Boy Scouts at Aidin, in the province of Smyrna, has made a deep impression at Athena (says a London Times message). Turkish irregulars recently occupied Aidin for two days, and hastened to arrest about 40 native Boy Scouts, being determined to wreak vengeance for the services the, boys had rendered to the Greek troops. They marched them out, and then asked one of them to insult Greece and M. Venizelos. The brave boy made a playful grimace, whereupon he was murdered 'The same request was made to a second, with the same result. Then the whole batch were asked to denounce their own country, but the boys, after a brief and tragic silence, replied by singing the Greek National Anthem, and were promptly massacred, A REAL SURPRISE. While the Wanganui East troop were receiving a course of signalling from S.M. Edmondson word was received that hostile scouts were stealthily advancing towards their headquarters. An ambush was at Once laid, while several Scouts with the Scoutmavster made detour and got behind the attackers, who proved to be the Christ Church troop, under C.S.M. Laurie, and the Aramoho troop under S.M. Shelley. P.L. Reid (Wanganui East troop), while taking orders to the ambushing party, was captured and promptly “trussed up.” Owing to this capture, the ambushing party received no orders from their Scoutmaster, and were forced to retire to the headquarters, where they prepared for a siege. Scoutmaster Edmondson, while trying, to get in touch with the besieged, fell into the hapda of Scoutmaster Laurie, and was forceH to relinquish command. At this juncture P. L. Reid escaped. The attackers borrowed (?) a ladder and entered Hie Wanganui East stronghold (through the window), and a stiff fight c-nsucd, but the V anganui East boys being without a leader were forced to surrender and they too were “trussed up.” With the Scoutmaster and the, ambushing party in their hands, the attackers' then turned their attention to the three remaining Scouts who were still at large. They were eventually located" and “treed,” but after a hand-to-hand encounter in the treetops they were forced to the ground and captured bv the attackers waiting below. After much handshaking and congratulating, the troops retired to tea, all the wounded hoping to recover to participate in other surprises in ihe future.

01' INTEREST TO SCOUTS. The chief commissioner has received a lengthy communication from Sir Cecil Moon, his personal representative on the Imperial Council in London, anent his interview' with Sir Robert Baden-Powell with reference to various matters concerning this Dominion. Sit Cecil writes, inter alia: “He (Sir Robert) is firmly convinced that the movement in New' Zealand is ably and' successfully conducted by you, and that anything ho might do to weaken your authority would be a sad mistake. . . . Sir Robert is of opinion that it is a mistake to institute any more decorations than are absolutely necessary, as it is inclined to make boys medal and badge hunters. While on this subject the King’s standard cropped up, and he suggested that it would lie well to make the test less one of badges and to give si node troops a chance to That is precisely what we do in tiiisfDominion. In England and elsewhere on the contrary, a liroop is defined as three patrols—yet a company of 90 or 100 boys is still called a troop. With us three patrols or 24 boys make a troop. And if there be 96 boys in a company we call them 4 troops or a company, thus bringing our organisa,lion into line with that of the Home Laud. Sir Cecil says that Sir Robert relinquishes any objection to the Junior Scouts (Bull pup; scheme,' though ho prefers the Wolf Cubs for England. Sir Robert does not like any military terms in connection with the movement, such as district commander, and would prefer, say, district commissioner, but it must be borne in mind that these term a were used by us in 1909, and approved in writino - by Sir Robert himself. It is also, a Tact that in the English girl movement) the leader is called a captain and her assistant a lieutenant, while in the Girl J’cace Scout movexnent ours are called Scoutmistrcss and assistant Scoutmistrcss. The duties of a district commander and those of a commissioner are so different in New Zealand that to apply tlm term commissioner to both would cause confusion. Moreover, the term district commander carries with it no military significance in this comitry, not even Sif much as the term “Scout.”