The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1918-12-28
British Scouts in the War

True to It's expressive motto OF
"Be Prepared" the Boy Scout
movement in Great Britain has at
tanned it's apotheosis in the great
war. 1t was the happiest of inspi-
rations for the authorities to uti-
lie the scouts for the purpose of
giving the "All Clear" signal after
air-raids on our coasts and cities.
Although Sir Robert Baden-Powell
first conceived the scout idea as
far back as 1884, he did not put 1t
in practice until 1S99-1900 (when
he raised corps of boys during
the siege of Mafeking), and ten
years later he left the army in or
der to devote all his time and en-
ergies to the movement.
The war has indeed proved both
the supreme test and the supreme
justification of the scout move
ment. In peace time it was re-
garded by good many people as
the benevolent fad of a few well-in-
tentioned philanthropists. Today
the scout uniform is recognized by
the government as that of "a public
service" and no one who knows
anything of what the scouts are
doing will challenge their right to
such recognition. I'm this time of
national emergency" declared Sir
r. BadenPowell, at the outbreak
of the war, comes the opportunity
for the scouts organization to
show that it can be Of material
service to the country" He spoke
truly. British scouts have never
had such chance as this to show
Of what metal they are made, and
their record in the war is one of
which their founder may well be
proud
In 1917. when the last census"
OF Boy Scouts was taken, they
numbered 164,055 scouts and offic-
ers in the United Kingdom and
overseas dominions. and quite half
a million in other countries. They
know no class distinctions. and
they have their own Ten Command
ments, viz, Honor, Loyalty. Help
fulness, Friendship. Courtesy. Kind
ness to Animals, Obedience. Cheer
fulness, Thrift and Purity. They
also undertake to do a good turn
to someone else" every day.
Coming to individual instances
tn which the scout has shown the
metal of which he is made, 1t must
not be forgotten that the heroic
Jack Cornwell, whose splendid
death in the deathless epic of the
battle Of Jutland won for him the
posthumous award OF the Victoria
Cross. started life as a scout. He
was one of the many who had
grown up from scouting" to play
bigger part. Among heroes OF
the air service one who will long be
remembered by Boy Scouts is Sec
ond 1t. John Young, an old mem
Der of the Streatham Troop. who
met his death in July, 1917, during
an air raid on London. Writing to
Youngs father. his officer said !:
"He was horribly outnumbered."
There were twenty-five ma.
chimes. Each machine had four
guns. Each gun was firing about
400 rounds per minute. Your son
never hesitated in the slightest /:
he flew on until, as l should imag.
inc. he must have been riddled with
bullets. I cannot speak
too highly of his magnificent be.
havior" Again. the gallant 1t
Craig of the Royal Scouts Fusiliers
who won his V. C. In France by su.
perintending the removal of our
wounded and dead under a ter.
rifle fire, was a scout in the Fifth
Perthshire Troop. When the hos.
pital ship Britannia was brutally
sunk off Greece there were sixteen
scouts on board. all of whom. we
are happy to record. survived the
ordeal. Led and encouraged by
Patrol Leader Edward Ireland OF
the 22d Liverpool Troop. these
plucky sixteen attended to the
working of the lifts which brought
a thousand persons from below to
the upper deck. Two Of the boys
eventually had to save themselves
by swimming.
OF their multifarious duties
which are by-products of the war
scouts are active in collecting in
gradients for making munitions. in