The Game of Scouting (1958)
It was in 1907 that Baden-Powell held an experimental camp on Brownsea Island to test his ideas which he incorporated in his book "Scouting for Boys," and it was in 1908 that the book first appeared to fire the imagination of boys and unintentionally start a movement which spread in a few years to all corners of the earth. Today there are eight million Scouts in over one hundred countries of the world, and the number continues to grow.
Scouting grew spontaneously. Baden-Powell intended "Scouting for Boys" to provide programme suggestions and material for existing boys' organisations. But as a result of the book, boys all over the country formed themselves into Scout Patrols and chose Scoutmasters from adults of their acquaintance. In that way the Scout Movement came into being and Baden-Powell became its Chief Scout.
How can we account for this phenomenal spread of the game of Scouting ? What is there about it that attracts like a magnet, boys of all classes, colours, languages and religions ? It is because the whole scheme of Scouting is based on the normal desires of the boy. It provides a natural outlet for his bubbling energy, which is harnessed to good purpose. To the boy, Scouting is fun ; it is a great game played with his comrades, as campers, pioneers and frontiersmen.
The aim of Scouting is to produce better citizens. It provides opportunities for developing those qualities of character which make the good citizen - honour, self-discipline and self-reliance, sense of duty and of respect for others.
How are these opportunities provided ? What is the Scout method of character-training ? Scouting recognises that a boy is capable of following an ideal if it is set before him as a standard of conduct and if he is given the opportunity of expressing those ideals in the form of service to others. So that on becoming a Boy Scout a boy of his own free will makes the Scout Promise. It is this Promise which forms the foundation of the Scout method.
- On my honour, I promise that I will do my best
- To do my duty to God ; and the Queen,
- To help other people at all times,
- To obey the Scout Law.
The Scout Law sets down in plain language the code of conduct which is the basis of good citizenship.
- A Scout's honour is to be trusted.
- A Scout is loyal to the Queen, his Country, his Scouters, his Parents, his Employers
and to those under him.
- A Scout's duty is to be useful and to help others.
- A Scout is a friend to all and a brother to every other Scout, no matter to what
country, class or creed the other may belong.
- A Scout is courteous.
- A Scout is a friend to animals.
- A Scout obeys orders of his Parents, Patrol Leader or Scoutmaster without question.
- A Scout smiles and whistles under all difficulties.
- A Scout is thrifty.
- A Scout is clean in thought, word and deed.
It will be observed that this Law is not a series of prohibitions, but a positive statement of decent behaviour. When a boy becomes a Scout he promises to do his best to live up to this standard. The Law and Promise are not taught so much by word of mouth as by the whole system of training. Boys learn by doing and the activities of Scouting are directed by the spirit of the Law and Promise
The activities of Scouting satisfy the boy's craving for romance and adventure. As far as possible they take place in the open air and include camping, observation, stalking, nature study, etc. He is not taught these things by set lessons or lectures, but his Scouting is part of a great game with all the fun of boy-companionship. He learns to look after himself, to appreciate the wonders of nature and he learns the value of co-operation and companionship.
An important part of the Scout method is the Patrol System. The boys of a Troop are divided into small units or Patrols of six to eight boys under a Patrol Leader, who is given considerable responsibility in training the members of his Patrol. The Patrol Leaders also play a part in the running of the Troop as members of the Court of Honour. This system develops leadership and initiative, satisfies that "gang instinct" among boys and canalises it into socially useful purposes.
Under the badge scheme, a Scout advances from one practical achievement to another by gaining badges. The three efficiency badges develop all-round Scout knowledge. They are Tenderfoot, Second Class and First Class. By the time a Scout reaches First Class standard, he is proficient in a variety of things. He will have a good knowledge and experience of camping ; he will be able to swim and be able to deal with emergencies and accidents. He will have a good knowledge of birds and trees, and his pioneering knowledge will include knotting, lashing and splicing, tree-felling and trimming.
After a Scout has gained his Second Class Badge he may work for a number of Proficiency Badges. Some of these are particularly intended as Public Service training, while others encourage boys to develop a skill or hobby which may or may not prove useful in choosing a livelihood but which certainly provide him with pleasant leisure time-pursuits. Every Scout is encouraged to aim for the Queen's Scout Badge, the summit of Scout Training.
There, briefly, is the game of Scouting. Humanity owes a great deal of gratitude to Baden-Powell, who, as the years dimmed his vigour, never lost the heart and mind of the boy, and who over fifty years ago gave us in the Scout Movement an outlet for youthful energies which have played a noble role in the improvement of the human race.
