Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-03-25
THEIR SKILL
Roundup Of the Boy Scouts
at the Arcade.
FRIENDS THRONG THE HALL
Youngsters Give Entertaining DEM
onstration of Their Proficiency in
Woodcraft and Dexterity.
FRIENDS THRONG THE HALL

W00dcraft and UeXter1ty.
Washington's Boy Scouts were turned
loose in the Arcade skating rink at 14th
and Park road last night and entertained
a throng Of a little less than 1000 Of their
| friends and relatives by an exhibition OF
what they have been learning in the way
| Of woodcraft and handling themselves in
the open. They entertained their friends
| all right. but the way they entertained
their friends was not circumstance to
the way they entertained themselves and
one another. Take 200 aggressively
healthy youngsters from 10 to 16 and
give them something they want to do in
the way of working Off excess animal
spirits and the result is all that could
be desired from the viewpoint Of the
spectacular.
The Boy Scout Movement.
The scout movement has spread all over
the English-speaking world. Baden
Powell, Dan Baird and Ernest Seton
Thompson have headed the movement.
Their idea is to teach the boys what
they ought to know about taking care of
themselves in the woods, and the boys
have taken to the instruction because it
IS the sort Of thing that boys like. and
while the result Is useful and healthy
development. the work is really play. and
the underlying principle Is to teach the
boys at once self-reliance. obedience to
discipline and consideration for the weaker
and the elder.
The movement is strong in Washington.
There were troops of scouts from the
Y NJ c. A.. the ungraded schools, Peck
Chapel, Noel House, Brookland, Falis
Church, Friendship, Clarendon and Fort
Myer. Each of these troops Is under
|scoutmaster. old enough to see the serious
side of the business and young enough TO
enter into the spirit of the thing: the
troops are divided into patrols. with
Indian and animal names, and there is
rivalry between the patrols Of the same
trops as there is between the troops
themselves.
Music was furnished by the Engineer
Band. the NJ. F. c. Drum Corps was
was needed and the bugle calls were
blown by Charles Fadley Of the Falls
Church troop, one Of the members of the
scouts.
Entertainers and Entertained.
But the boys were the entertainers and
the entertained. The scouts have uni
form of khaki with campaign hats, but
the mere presence or lack of a uniform
cut no ice. There were boys in half uni
forms and no uniforms at all. All had
soft hats of some sort and some had
golf caps. Most Of them had red bandan-
mas looped cowboy fashion around the
necks and all had six-foot slaves, canes
or clubs with which they applauded
whenever their alligator satchel lungs
seemed inadequate for the oecas. on. Some
Of the nicknames that were shouted back
and forth at the boys end Of the hall
were unique IL not descriptive. There was
kangaroo" 'Beefsteak," Hop Sing,
''Ornery" and a few others difficult to To-
cate.
One of the practical exhibitions that
the boys gave as q body was modifying.
the Glove hitch. fisherman's hitch, the
running moose and the square knot all be-
ing demonstrated. This is one Of the SIM
pie things that the boys are taught and
which not every man knows just when
he wants to use it.
There were spear fights between the
and the object Of the contest being for
one boy standing on q soap box to push
another of a similar box a little less
than a spears length away.
the scouts sprinted into the arena in run
ming tights, selected their uniforms from
a confused pile on The floor and dressed
from their shoes up. The best time made
was ia IuIuutcS.
Making Fire Without Matches.
One of the most interesting competi-
tons was hre-ighting without matches.
The boys had bow drills of their own
manufacture and working them on a piece
Of wood. got first sparks in the light
powder the drill had made and then
nursed this into a flame. The winner of
the competition was Julian Hovey. leader
of the Beaver Patrol IN the Y. NJ. c. A.
troop. He got sparks from his drill in
Z minutes and in IL minutes had nursed
them into a blaze. Then his fellow
scouts yelled and applauded some.
The boys had been trained in various
sorts Of signaling, and gave samples Of
conversation. "wig-wagging" with the
regular signal flags. talk ng with the arm
semaphore system. and Scouts Hovey and
Fellows Of the Young Mems Christian
Association troop held quite CONVERSE
ton In the Indian sign language, the sem
fences being translated by megaphone to
the audience. Others who took part in
the signaling exhibition were Patrol
Walter Copperthite, Harry Johnson, War
rem Birge and Guy Mankin.
Another troop of the scouts from the
Young Mems Christian Association built
human pyramids under the direction of
H. w. Long, the physical director. Then
they had q tent-pitching competition, in
which the patrol from Peck Chapel Troop
got up its tent in $50. while the Young
Mems Christian Association Troop beat
II out by striking tent in 2.15.
The boys gave exhibitions Of bridge
building. first aid to the injured, message
carrying and other accomplishments. and
then settled down to wat n the moving
pictures and lantern slides displayed by
Harry Baremore Angus. the Peck Chapel
scoutmaster.
UNDER OBSERVATION.