El Paso herald. (El Paso, Tex.) 1901-1931, 1912-08-06

is conducted after the routine laid
down in the Scout manual In most
of the larger cities there is local
council which makes Itself response
bic for the equipment and direction
/ Of these camps. In some instances the
( boys themselves raise the money for
| the expenses Of their camp and then
go out under the direction of a com
I petent scout master In others the or
J ganizatiOn assumes all responsibility
/ Tor the running expenses and the boys
pay weekly board varying from IS to
! IS. In these camps the boys have the
! opportunity to train for advancement
/ in grade as well as for the numerous
| merit badges.
There is a military precision in the
| camp routine which appeals to every
/ Scout The first call comes at $780,
| when every scout is expected to turn
out for his bath in the stream or lake
| nearby Breakfast comes at seven
and in most camps il has been pre-
/ pared by the boys themselves. who
include certain amounts of camp cook
! ing in each class of scout work. After
| breakfast the bedding must be aireC
and all parts OF the camp put IN or
( der. When this work is to be done
BY the campers, relays are appointed
for the different tasks, such as the
/ dish washing. disposal Of camp refuse
and other tasks. The camp should be
in perfect order by nine o'clock, when
| the scouting games and practice begin.
Usually the swimming comes IN the
morning Dinner comes at one o'clock.
after which a talk on some form of
camp craft usually is given by the
leader
Much Work in Camp.
There is so much to be done in the
camp, so many things TO be learned,
so many forms Of exercise to take,
that little time is wasted during the
day, although a period of rest usually
is imposed in the afternoon But the
of rest There are the heavy ath-
letics calling into play every muscle of
the body. followed perhaps by a slow
walk in observation Of the plants and
trees, knowledge Of which is required
for their coveted promotion They
may study birds and perhaps hunt
them with camera, but the true scout
would scorn to inlure them or even
frighten them needlessly. Then there
is signalling to be done by means Of
the Scout sign language. There are
objects for the benefit of the scouts
who follow. For every nOur of the
day there IS some special diversion or
occupation calculated to stimulate
some faculty of the body and mind.
supper comes at seven o'clock and
after this the best Of all the day-the
campfire Every boy finds keen pleas
ure in the campfire councils during
which the days work is compared, the
scout songs sung and some good StO-
ries told. Perhaps the lessons in pa
triotism and citizenship, if begun round
the campfire by a clever scout master,
viii have a value and interest added to
them which impress the boys more
deeply than by other means Some
times the program is varied by a real I
war dance to the music of the Scout
war song and a rally which, although
seeming gibberish to the initiated. !
possess a subtle fascination for the
boys who sing them Perhaps a party
of scouts are qualifying for a merit in
elementary astronomy as seen with the
bright night may withdraw this party
from the campfire for an hour or two
the Great Bear and other familiar fig
ures to be seen on a starry night I
Perhaps when this party returns TO the |
campfire its members will be refreshed !
with a treat Of freshly roasted corn /
prepared camp fashion by the other |
scouts during their absence.
Must Know Many Things.
Camp craft in full requires a knoWl- /
edge OF many things The first is the !
selection of a location and then the /
pitching Of a tent. It may include the I
manufacturing of the tent from pat /
terms and descriptions given in the I
camp manual. It includes the building
OF camp fire. not always an easy i
matter, especially in rainy weather, |
and the extinguishing of the fire in 4
a manner to prevent forest fires. In /
addition il must provide knowledge J
Of camp cookery and the amount OF F.
food required for a given number for !
q day and for week. besides dish I
washing and the keeping of all cook I
ing utensils In proper order. Then I
the relocation of oneself II lost. the
forecasting Of the weather by the OBJ
servatiOn OF the Sky, the sun and the
direction of the wind and countless
other bits OF information well under
stood by the indian but requiring to
be learned by mis- little white brother.
FOR the boys who are not able TO
spend their time IN camp for con-
tinuOus period hiking trips are ar
ranged which perhaps may include one
or two nights sleeping in the open
ND ~ car rfT ire Na1.
ers OF the Scout movement find that
in some respects the hiking expeditions
have advantages over the located camp
and lucky is the boy who combines
both during his summer vacation In
the change OF scenery Of the hike the
boys have a chance to make all Of the
observations of camp life, such as the
measuring OF the height and distances
of trees, tree climbing and telling, /
swimming and stalking and in addi-
tion have a variety of locations from
which to make their observations
These hikes are planned carefully by
the leader care being made to keep
near the woods and avoid the villages
and towns.
Last year a party Of Boy Scouts COW
cred a hike of 700 miles in the north
west Twenty boys from one New
York camp liked across the state to
visit the boys at another camp Dur
Ing the present season the increased
number of camps have rendered such
exchanges OF cOurteSleS more frequent
There is considerable correspondence
between the scout troops Of the differ
ent cities and hikes from one camp to
another are frequent In one New
York camp hiking has become so pop
ular that, while the camp has only ac-
for 20 boys. it has had
an average of 80 enrolled during the
season, one-third of the party being
engaged successfully in hiking trips
of several days duration.
DOinnE Much Good.
Aside from the activities for their
own pleasure and welfare, there seems
TO be no limit TO the work which is
being accomplished by the Boy Scouts
for the public good, so that already
the scout movement has proved of civic
value throughout the country. The
tate forest commissioner Of Pennsyl-
vania has given testimony to the aid
rendered by the scouts of that state
in fighting the chestnut blight. and
the forestry department of New Hamp-
shire acknowledges their aid in fight
ing the forest fires in that state. Since ,
fire fighting is one OF the activities I
for which merit badges are awarded. it J
Is believed that the scouts will soon :
become recognized as a valuable aid in
overcoming the fires in the great
northwestern forests.
In Washington, D. C, the Boy Scouts
are giving active help in the antidirt
campaign which has been in progress.