The Celina Democrat. (Celina, O. [Ohio]) 1895-1921, 1914-10-16
PART BOY SCOUTS OF WORLD WILL
PLAY IN GREAT EUROPEAN CONFLICT
Much Interest Is Evidenced Concerning Possible Action of About
Three Hundred Thousand of These Youthful Warriors
They May Become Valuable Aids to the Embatted Ma
tOnS From Many Points of View

the latter nation they have been de
tailed to guard bridges and. on occa
sions, aid the police in preserving or
der.
! Everything in the Boy Scouts train
ing appears to have fitted him fol
war. lie can march, find his way
through dense woods, signal to his
comrades either by the telegraph OF
the signal flag, pitch a camp and gen
orally rely upon himself. He can
swim. shoot and run probably with
more swiftness than a heavier and old.
| er soldier.
No less an authority than Ludwig
S. Dale of New York city, one of the
national authorities on the movement
and a close friend of Baden-Poweu
has declared that in time of war the
Boy Scouts drill work and training
in signaling would fit them for mill.
tary service
OF the Boy Scouts in Europe, Eng
land has more than any of her sis
ter nations. Her organization is 200.
600 strong Germany comes next with
an organization of $4,000, drilled in
the same way, although they go by
the name of "Pathinders." Austria.
Hungary has $1,000 scouts, and her
enemy, France, has 5000. Russian
Poland alone has 5000 scouts, the
total number in the empire not being
known. Servia has 1000 scouts.
Scandinavia, which, of course, is not
in the war, has 10000 Boy Scouts
The remainder of the European ma.
tions have about $4,000 scouts.
About six years ago Sir Robert Ba-
den-Powell, the English mlitarist,
upon learning that out OF Englands
100000 boys few more than a quar-
ter of million were enabled to have
proper care and training, began to
think seriously of trying to be of aid.
Mere money had been tried before
in various "uplift" endeavors. There
must be something new. Thompson
Seton, the writer Of animals haunts
and habits, had seen the necessity for
the same thing in America and he
mad been experimenting. He had |
called the groups of lads he had gath |
cred together and trained in woods .
lore The Woodcraft Indians" Dan
Beard, then an editor, evolved an
other society called THE Sons of /
Daniel Boone afterward The Boy
Pioneers of America"
1t is really difficult to pin the badge
Of honor for first thinking of the
scheme upon any one man, but it was
IeneTal Baden-Powell who, with fine
experience as a constructionist, set
bout the practical plans of the Boy
scout movement.
He had shortly before the organiza-
ion was conceived, published a text
'ook on the subject of scouting for
oldiers. This book was utilized by
arious boys clubs and private schools
With a surprising degree Of interest,
o its author was encouraged to de-
ise some wide-reaching plan for all
oys, whether belonging to clubs, go
lg to private schools or living in
he top OF a tenement or on some lone
Y farm. The general, a colonel of
be Boer war, under Lord Edward Ce-
il, then got together some English
toys In Surrey. He told them some
hing of what the boys in Mafeking,
.frica, had done during the struggle
the Transvaal, how Lord Cecil had
alked to them Of scout tactics, drilled
hem, and, giving them uniforms, made
hem, the proud messengers of the
andful Of weary men on the long ad-
ance line of Mafeking.
The general needn't have told his
oung audience how eager for duty
lese reliefs of their fathers and eld-
r brothers the British boys on the
eldt were, as they rode on bicycles
'om fort to fort with messages, acted
S orderlies, and never once shirked
le dangers of real firing line in a {
eal war The boys, as they listened {
the story of 80 and the African /