SCOUT NOTES

Evening Post, Volume CVIII, Issue 152, 24 December 1929, Page 4

SCOUT NOTES

By "8.A.M."

Scouting is woodcraft, and those members of tho jamboree party who were fortunate in having had the privilege of attending the greatest gathering of boyhood the -world has seen have returned with the groat realisation that true scouting is to be done outdoors, and if in their work of scouting they can,-In this glorious country of ours, present this aspect to the boys of New Zealand, it will be tremendously worth while. Long, long ago man lived in the woods. In those days, as now, Nature was either kind and friendly or hard and relentless. To those who knew, it gave life, but to the ignorant or careless it sent death, suddenly through a wild beast, or slowly through starvation. It was then that man learned how to live, to know where to sleep safely, what animals he could kill hy strength, and what he must kill by cunning. He learned how to see the signs of their passings and their habits of life, and how to track them. He learned the birds and their habits. Through these things he was acquainted with the goings on about him, as you and I learn from the daily newspaper. He came to know what the weather was to be by the clouds, the sunrise, the feel of the air, the moisture on the grass. Sometimes Nature waß smiling, and he got his food and clothes easily. At other times she frowned and he had to fight bitterly, go hungry, and even starve. Through this adversity he found a way to save the meat for a later day, and discovered what foods there were to be had in time of famine. He learned to see, to hear, to act quickly, so that after a while his body came to respond to his mind instantly. He discovered that he could increase his power by sharp sticks and a stone, and through these eventually developed an axe and a knife. He discovered in some mysterious Way how to make fire. Somehow or other he found iron and discovered how to make tools of it. Then he ' could cut down the trees, split logs, and do a hundred other things he had never dreamed of before, and do each more easily than in the old way. These things increased his safety and gave him comfort. With the fire came the grouping of families around a common centre. He learned that several men hunting, working, or fighting together had. greater strength and ability than the same number of men; singly. Thus he came to see the value c. team play. To him the ways of the woods and how to live in them constitut-1 ed the science of living. It is only when we get away from modern conveniences, as when we go camping, that we get an idea of what it is to be self-reliant. No matter how much a boy knows from books, no matter how many fine and fancy things he can do, he is not really educated, he cannot really live, unless he has eyes than can see, ears that can hear, a hand that can think, a body trained and fortified, a mind wise and quick to act, a knowledge of the things above and about him, and an ability to play the team game. To him who learns its meaning comes the joy of living, the ability to achieve, and the desire to serve. The glory of the sunrise, the message of the trees, the sunlight on the rippling lake, the Btory of the noise in the bushes, the call of the bird, the joy of handicraft, the sense of power in working with others, these are but part of the woodcrafter's life; To him the trees at a dis- 1 tance shout their names, and part of a bird melody tells of the song. The wise man said long ago "there is no royal road to learning," no short cut. The one and only way is to use your eyes, your ears, your hands, your, minds. What you see or hear, seek till you find the answer. The courage to try to do a thing before you know how, and the patience to keep on trying after you have found out that you don't know, and the perseverance to renew the trial as many times as necessary until you do know how, are the three conditions of physical skill, mental power, moral virtue, or personal excellence. In the olden days the boy learned from his father how to hunt and how to live, and the message to the boys of to-day is that the road to fun and health and happiness is through scoutcraft. ] Mr. F. W. Vosseler, Commissioner for i Wellington North, conducted an Ipise ceremony at Wadestown last Saturday night, when Mr. S. G. Jones, scoutmaster; Mr. P. G. Bloodworth, A.S.M.; and Miss A. D, N. Hodgkins, cub-mistress, were invested.

A hearty invitation is extended to. all Scouts, Cubs, and Rovers to- be present at the monster Girl Guide rally to be held at Newtown Park on Saturday, 11th January. This function will be a fitting finale to the Girl Guide Dominion camp to be held at the Trentham racecourse during the holiday period. Scouts in uniform will be admitted free.

The breaking-up ceremony of the Wellington Jewish Boy Scouts was held on Thursday, 19th December, in the form of a combined parents' and boys' pound night. Dr. Levy presided, and on behalf of the eonynittee welcomed the visitors. There were present Sir Alfred Robin, Miss Robin, the Rev. C. H. Pitkowsky, Messrs. "Vosseler, J. I. Goldsmith, E. S. Baldwin, C. J. B. Norwood, and Carr. A wire of regret at being unable to attend, was received from the Chief Justice, and regrets at non attendance were expressed on behalf of the Mayor (Mr. Troup), Sir Alexander Roberts, Messrs. Amos, J, E. L. Baldwin, and Armour. Dr. Levy voiced the thanks of the committee for the splendid work achieved by A.D.S.M. Middleton and Rover Scout Mathie in the short space of four weeks, which is all the time that the Jewish Troop has been in existence. On behalf of the committee, Mr. Middleton was presented with a box of cigarettes, and Mr. Mathie with a pipe, a small mark of appreciation of the wonderful work done by them. The opening item was a haka by tho Troop, followed by the investiture of twelve Scouts and six Cubs. The twelve Teuderfoot Scouts newly invested were B. .Solomon, A. Gotlieb, P. Metz, M. Gotlieb, L. Levy, J. Treister, C. Myers, D. Morris, E. Greenbeig, S. Ruben, M. Ruben, and L. Goldsmith. The six Cubs to attain the Tenderpad Badge were H. Vau Staveren, G. Gotlieb, S. Cohen, H. Black, L. Smith, and S. Smith. Sir Alfred Robin followed up the investiture with a wonderful talk to the Scouts, Cubs, and the committee. Then followed the Grand Howl by the young Cubs, and they certainly did themselves well. Ten boys recited the Boy Scout Laws in rotation, followed by another set doing semaphore signalling. This was in turn followed by a first aid demonstration. Messrs. Goldsmith and Norwood spoke on behalf of the Boys' Committee of the Rotary Club, voicing their pleasure at being present, and at the wonderful display provided by these young lads after so short a time. Itemi on the piano and recitations were contributed by various boys. In all a most enjoyable evening's entertainment was presented, which promises very well indeed for the future of the Troop. The boys finished up the entertainment with cheers for Sir Alfred Eobin, Mr. Vosseler, their instructors, the visitors, and last, but not least, the committee.