The daily worker. [volume] (Chicago, Ill.) 1924-1958, 1928-02-04
BOY SCOUTS ACT
AS PUPPETS OF
AMERICAN empire
Exposed as Enemy of
Young Workers
By IRVING M. CLAIM.

BY IRVING Nj. CLAIM.
VARL LIEBKNECHT was correct
IA when he said ''The boy scouts
utilize the youthful love of freedom
in order to lead the youth into sla-
very, in order to keep the youth slaves
under the heel of their oppressors."
In this sentence Liebknecht fully ex-
presses the character of the boy
scouts. Their various activities serves
but one aim-to transform the ma
tural free spirit of youth into an ar
tificial jingoistic one, to make the
workers and farmers children faith
full servants of the ruling class.
Getting Them Young.
The rulers of the American Empire
realize too well the importance OF
winning the youth. They spare no
efforts to carry thru the slogan of
Theodore Roosevelt eff you are going
to do anything for the average man,
you have got to begin before he is
a man. The chances of success lies
in working with the boy not with the
man." When they say thru the boy
scout leaders: "The boy of today is
the man of tomorrow--work with
hinp, or, "One million boys become
voters every year"-they grasp the
significance of spreading the capt.
talist propaganda during the early
years. Not only that but millions of
youth and child workers must be
made obedient and content with their
present enslavers.
Appreciate Boy Scouts.
That the captains of industry" ap
preciate this role of the boy scouts
can be seen from the following state
ment made by Lewis B. Gawtry, vice
president of the Consolidated Gas
Company of New York: "The expert
ence of this company in having
troop of boy scouts composed of the
junior employees, the average age of
the present troop is being II years,
has been most satisfactory. The troop
has been in existence five years and
during that period has included nearly
300 boys in its membership. We firmly
endorse the idea of a troop of boy
scouts in industrial and business in
stitutions. We believe that the value
of each young employee who goes
thru this training has been materially
increased" doth report of boy
scouts). In other words Cavity tes-
titles that by belonging and being
trained in boy scout troop, the
young workers materially increase
their value to the bosses, by becom-
ing more willing slaves, faster work
ers, etc.
Acceptable to Bosses.
The suggestion of Gawtry to es-
tablish boy scout troops in industrial
and business institutions is, of course,
quite acceptable to the masters. In
mines, mills and factories these
troops are eagerly being organized.
The leaders of the boy scouts are
damn frank on this matter. Colin H.
Livingstone, first president and at
present honorary vice president of
the boy scouts, in his opening address
at the 5th annual meeting Of the ma
tional council, openly stated "You
can realize what that will mean to
factory towns like Pittsburgh, and
the towns of New England, and at
Chicago, Gary and places OF that kind,
where large percentage of the men
are employed in the mills"
Loyalty to Bosses.
Naive people may not understand
why the American boy scouts left out
from their second law the point about
being loyal to the employers, which
is to be found in the second law Of
the British boy scouts. The British
End law frankly says: ga scout is
loyal to the king, his country, his
officers, his parents, his employers
tour emphasis) and to those under
him" This law is commonly accepted
as being also the one of the American
boy scouts. The leaders of the
American boy scouts were clever
enough not to say this in such clear
way, so that the young workers who
feel the lash of the employers every
day may be deluded. But they say the
very same thing in a more round
about way in the End law: "a scout
is loyal. He is loyal to all TO whom