KANDERSTEG

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 97, 21 October 1926, Page 5

KANDERSTEG

SWISS HEADQUARTERS

SCOUTS AND GUIDES

SCHOOL OF GOODWILL AND , PEACE.

(Frt« 0«r Own CanMpoiitfwt.) . LONDON, Bth Septembor. Lord Hampton. (Chief Commissioner) and Admiral E. K. Loring (Commissioner for Sea Scouts) were,two of the six British .. .delegates to attend the fourth International Scout Conference at Kandersteg, and they have returned to London delighted with the spirit which characterised the conference. : Sir E. Baden-Powell writes, in "The Times," about the capacious chalet in Switzerland which has been acquired by the International Association of Boy Scouts for use as a hostel for Scouts of all nations visiting Switzerland. After a year of experiment this new school has "had its official opening. The Chief Scout writes of the chalet, truly Swiss in- type, standing amid beautiful scenery on the bank of the Kander. Originally built for housing the workmen engaged in making the Loetschenberg tunnel, it has accommodation for over 200 boys. The surrounding mountains give "them opportunity for every kind •f climbing, Thanks to the recommendation of the League of Nations the Scouts of most European countries receive special facilities for travelling, sb that, in spite of the prevailing low rates of .exchange and high railway fares, no fewer than ten different nations have made use of the hostel during the past year with a total representation of some 1400 boys. That this institution gives health, adventure, and enjoyment to a large number of growing lads goes without saying, but its wider purpose promises still greater results in the direction of bringing these future citizens of the different countries together into personal touch and mutual comradeship. There is no more compelling'means- of promoting comradeship than the harnessing of several nationalities on the same rope; for a. mountain climb. . In the grounds of this hostel there is -being held a camp of instruction for officers of the movement, at whichsome forty-two Scoutmasters of fifteen different nations are going through a course of training at the hands of British Instructors. In the few years of 'its existence the school, whose head-, quarters are at Gillwell, in Epping Forest, has trained officers from no fewer than twenty-four foreign nations and twenty-five British Dominions and dependencies. Thus the true ideals and methods of scouting are now being grasped and practised on" an identical basis in all countries. - A WOULD BROTHEBHOOD. ,> Sir Robert explains the ideal, briefly, as being to develop a "happy, healthy, helpful citizenhood," forming a world brotherhood. The. method is self-educa-tion through play and activities. A further practical step towards interna-tional-friendship consists in the interchange of visits between the boys of different countries. - This season some 5000 British Scouts, in small detachments, have been visiting and camping with their brother Scouts in various ■ parts'of- Europe and the foreign Scouts aHt continually repaying these visits or visiting each other. Though the moral and intellectual value of these visits to the individual boy is self-evident, -the future political possibilities of the seed thus sown cannot well be estimated. -:fiut one may at least indulge in hop<H, and one has just how all the • more reason to hop*,: since the leaders of the"Jm6veinent, from f'thirty-two different countries, have just concluded their biennial conference at Kandersteg. In addition to the consideration and discussion of various items of principle and detail M>f the Scout organisation and training, they have developed valuable ideas in regard to its international development. . 'c ' "OIVE AND TAKE!' IDEALS. ; _ The League of Nations attached sufficient importance to the conference to depute three of its members Id attend. .At Copenhagen, in 1924; when the League was also represented,- one' of its members went out of his way to remark that.the spirit which ho found prevailing, throughout.the discussions supplied exactly flio essential foundation on which international relationships must be built. Without,it treaties and agreement^ and" even the League itself, would have, little power to ensure peace. ;In tho. course of the Leaders' Conferciujrquestions, delicate from the point of View of religion or of international politics, came up for discussion, ■"but fn each case were rapidly solved, thanks to the generous spirit evoked by the prevailing sense of brotherhood. One particularly notable instance occurred when tho relative position of minority? nations was in. question and 'on what seemed likely to be an irreconcilable pointl between two of the countries represented. But a quiet talk between the respective delegates in this atmosphere of even temper, open heartedness, and broad vision brought about a ready solution of the difficulty. It was. ,a remarkable example of putting into practice the give-and-take ideals professed by the Scouts' fraternity. . THE SPIRIT OF YOUTH. '' The constitution of the conference wasf remarkable for the youthfulness, at any rate in spirit, of its members,'' says Sir Robert. "The spirit of youth was there, a spirit which, one ventures to think is essential to elaborating ideas for the education of youth. That -same spirit was particularly in cvi- . dence at the camp fires each night, and these, , perhaps,, as . much as' »ny items of the routine .of the congress, brought men together and conduced to the rapid development of .camaraderie between them. Another valuable step in this direction was the dedication of alternate days to recreation and excursions to the neighbouring • mountains. There ia little doubt . that more is done outside than within the sessions in the promotion of mutual friendship through comparing notes and .sharing experiences together.' . "During the course of the conference ; lome Qf the, members were able to gain -an insight into a valuable by-product of Scout work by visiting the great tuberculosis institution at Leysin, where between two and three thousand young .patients from all countries are receiving treatment. The ■ crippled boys are formed into a troop tff Scouts, and though in many cases unable to move from their beds they are able to york and qualify for modified Scout badges of proficiency. The ulterior effect of this is that their'mental attitude *s altered, and they gain a new outlook on life, an ambition to'work for, and a cheering interest in, the brotherhood. The director of the institute is enthusiastic in his praise of scouting for cripples. "The recent appreciative address by ■President Coolidge on tho Boy Scouts has now been echoed by an equally encouraging pronouncement on the part of Herr Haberlin, the president of the Swiss Federal Confederation. His address asd reception of the delegates at Intcrlaken gave them a new realisation of the value and possibilities of their work." " . ' , COOPERATION. The Boy Scouts and Girl Guides Movement to-day number over 2,000,000 boys and girls. Almost every country (writes Sir Robert) is at the present time suffering from internal, social, or political troubles. These are largely

the outcome of the contest of Eelfish interests of sect against sect or class against class. Suspicion/jealousy, and fear prevail. Authorities agree in saying that when these are eradicated and replaced by goodwill and coo-peration, all will be well. It is to this end, therefore,, that the efforts of the Scout Movement are mainly directed. But thanks to the fact that other nations have so eagerly adopted scouting, and on so faithful a footing, the movo is found capable of extension beyond the limits of any particular country, and able, through its brotherhood, to bring that same spirit to bear in place of illwill -and suspicion between nations. Such a step must necessarily be a matter of education, thus the higher aim of the federated Scout Movement is to form a School of Peace and Goodwill upon Earth. "THE TIMES" GOODWILL. If nothing more came out of Kandersteg than a new morality in the fields of: sport, especially international sport, it would be no small gain. There are arenas which would be all the healthier for the wholesome influence of Scout law (states "The Times"). Though they seldom dare to be vocal, there are undeniably enemies of • the Boy Scout Movement, men who by practice and preaching in the affairs of adult citizenship are animated by motives which are the very opposite of those embodied in Scout law. They are the class-haters and the revolution-mongers, of whom no country is free. The Scout Movement is avowedly directed to counteract these forces of evil. . . To thousands of fathers and mothers, who are anxious for the wellbeing out of school of beyond home of their growing boys and girls—for the Girls' Brigade must not be forgotten—the training, occupation, and interests given to their children by scouting must have come as an enormous relief. They theu^elves knew nothing like it when (they were young. While there has •been a progressive improvement in school life, it has not on the whole been accompanied by an equal improvement in" out-6f-school life; and for this the educational authorities are hardly to blame. But modern schooling does leave a gap to be filled up, a gap which may be all the more glaring because of the excellence of the schools. To fill it, for the less-favoured majority, there is nothing except' Sir Robert Baden Powell's organisation— I "Through play."' It is to be hoped ! that as the numbers of Scouts grow there will not be failing material of the right type for their masters. It is here that young fellows of the more fortunate classes can. do a great deal of usefnl work.