The Democratic advocate. [volume] (Westminster, Md.) 1865-1972, 1917-03-23
ANNIVERSARY
OF BOY SCOUTS.
WAS ORGANIZED In MARCH; 1915
DIR. c. E. FORELINES IS SCOUT MAST
ER-HAS 63 MEMBERS - PLAN
MING OVER NIGHT HIKES.

boy Scouts OF westminster. OIdI IluS
with about % scouts the number has
been increased to about 63.
Some time in February, 1914, the
Scout Commissioner of Maryland at
that time Mr.. Eddy, visited this town
and gave a lecture on the Boy Scout
movement in the Opera House and in
the High School Assembly Hall for
the purpose of starting a troop in this
city. Miss Mary B. Shellman, DR..
Henry M. Fitzhugh, DR., c. E. Forlines
and others interested in this nation
wide movement appealed to the citi-
zens of Westminster and succeeded
in getting a small body of men to
serve as an advisory council.
Under the leadership of Scout
master DR.. c. f. Forlines and AS
sistant Scoutmaster w. Augustus
Shriver, Jr., and H. I-atimer Elder
dice, Jr., the boys who joined this
troop took an active interest in this
movement from the first. This same
year the boys camped for eight days
on the headwaters of the Potomac
River near the town of MarloWe, w.
Va. This was enjoyed by the boys
and caused a still more active inter-
est in Scouting.
In 1915 the boys camped at Buck
eystOwn, Md, On the Monocacy River,
and were very nicely entertained by
the people of BuckeystoWn The
latter part of the same year the
movement had increased to such an
extent that it became necessary to
start second troop with W. Angus
tus Shriver, Jr., as ScOutmaster and
Philip d. Myers, Glenn f. Miller and
Carroll c.. Crawford as Assistant
Scoutmasters and new Assistant
Scoutmasters were appointed for the
first troop. These were Thomas K
Shaw, Jr., Alfred Nelson Myers and
George w. Arnold.
The past year the Scouts and also
the band spent one week in camp at
iTaneytown, Md, during the Granger's
Fair. This last year so much atten-
ton has been given to the Band that
Scouting was not advanced so much
as in the previous years but the work
is now going on, and the motto for
this next year is Every member a
First Glass Scout by 1918" The
boys are planning some overnight
hikes and general outdoor Scouting
for this summer. The camping place
has not yet been decided upon but it
is thought that they will go to Buck
eystoWn, Md, again. where they will
always be welcome
/ The combined troops register four
merit badge Scouts, 16 first class
scouts, 10 second class scouts and %
tenderfOOt scouts. and at the present
time two applicants for membership.
Both troops meet on the first and
third Fridays of each month for
business and the second and fourth
Fridays of each month for general
! scouting. Weekly hikes are taken by
the boys so as to make them familiar
with the birds, trees and nature in
general
DR.. G. z. Forlines, who is a great
enthusiast on the subject of birds and
nature, teaches the scouts many
things about the fields and woods.
Too much cannot be said about the
attention, time, self-sacrifice, and
hard work that Scout Commissioner
Forlines has given to this work and
also the attention that he has given
to the Band. 1t has been very hard
to attract the attention from the
Band to Scouting again but by patient
untiring effort he has succeeded in
doing this. His duties at the Seminary
require a great deal of his time but
he is always willing to give his spare
moments for the advancement of this
work and TO help the boys in every
way possible.
Each troop is divided into four pa
trolls, registering eight scouts each,
one of whom is the patrol leader, and
one assistant patrol leader. Each
troop has also its senior patrol lead
er and scout scribe.
A little over year ago the scouts
! held an oyster supper for the purpose
of raising money to buy instruments
for use in a band, which was started
under the direction of Prof Charles
j. Peltz, formerly of the Marine Band
at Washington, and with Scout Com
missioner DR.. c. E. Forlines as finan-
cial manager. Forty boys from the
two troops now compose this organ
lzatiOn. This band is not the soul of
scouting in Westminster as MANY of
our citizens think it is, but is intend
| ed to be stimulus to the movement
and to advance the cause of scouting
1t is only a minor institution when
compared with the scout movement in
this city. The band has been very
successful. For the past year it has
had many engagements in Carroll
county and elsewhere. Particularly
noteworthy was the part it took in
the fight against the saloon in Car
roll county this past year. The
band played at many street meetings
and made one tour of the county in
this campaign.
The boys are always ready to par
ticipate in any event that is for the
good of the community.
Friday night, March 18th, the ad-
visory council of the boy scouts of
this city, held their monthly meeting
and found it necessary to make plans
for the starting of a third troop in this
city, appointing Alfred Nelson Myers
as scoutmaster, and David Smith as
assistant scout master. They also
found it necessary to pass law say
ing, That all scouts found guilty of
using tobacco in any form will be
required to hand over their scout
badge and give up membership in the
troop to which they belong"
Do not judge this organization by
it's weakest members, but by the best
scouts and those that do their good
turn daily. These are the ones to
Judge this organization by and be-
cause the things that scouts do for the
good of the community are not al
ways made public do not think that