THE TRAINING OF BOY SCOUT OFFICERS.
[To THE EDITOR or THE " SPECTATOR.") SIR, —The Spectator has always been in sympathy with the Boy Scout movement, and now that a general interest in the work is being aroused by the appeal of the Prince of Wales, may I be allowed to say something on the subject of the training of Scoutmasters? There is in full working order a training centre at Gillwell Park which already is producing remarkable results. But first let me say that there is no "new departure " of any kind. What is taught is the Scout spirit as laid down in Sir Robert Baden-Powell's book Scouting for Boys. How, it may well be asked, is the spirit of a book taught? The answer is that somehow it is done by the Camp Chief, Captain Gidney, and his assistant, Mr. Chapman. The training courses are varied and suit different groups of learners, but the normal course is a camp of ten days. At this camp one finds oneself one of a company of twenty-four, among whom may be quite young assistant Scoutmasters, elderly commissioners, clergy- men, doctors, and Majors with the D.S.O. But this makes no difference, as the first thing that happens is that all are told to take the badges of rank out of their hats, and put on the shoulder knot of the Patrol to which they are allotted. Then you discover that you are no longer an officer, but just a Boy Scout, and that Captain Gidney is your Scoutmaster. It is a busy life, for not only are there lectures, demonstrations, and practices throughout the day which have to be entered in a notebook, to be shown to the authorities, but each Patrol of eight Scouts has to do its own cooking and keep its tent and part of the camp in Scoutlike order. So there are no idle moments, though every action is done to an accompaniment of good fellowship which never ceases. If you are a member of the Cuckoo Patrol you of course determine that they shall be the beat, no matter what the Owls and Woodpigeons may do. The aim of every one going to Gillwell is not only to qualify for the Wood Badge, but to do so with distinction and thus become a Deputy Camp Chief, with the right to teach in his own locality. After the first day's work one's depth of ignor- ance is so apparent that the higher qualification is regretfully looked upon as out of the question. The next day goes all hope of the Wood Badge, but by this time the spirit of the place has so completely taken possession of one that the consolation arises that nothing can take away the remembrance of a time of extra- ordinary joy and exaltation. We feel that whatever happens we can with pride describe ourselves in the future, after the manner of the Babus, as 'failed Gillwell." For the present the intense desire that your Patrol shall be the best is enough; so the Scout spirit has come. How has it arrived so quickly to a group of people who a day or two before were unknown to each other? The medium used to convey the essential essence is Woodcraft, for here we are being turned into backwoods- men. How to make yourself happy and comfortable in the wild, how to read footprints of men and animals, how to fell trees, and how to grind your axes and how to find your way about by day or night, and especially how to plan and lay out a camp. Of course, all the teaching is given in a way that makes it suitable for being used for training boys afterwards. and a good deal of time is spent in learning things directly with that object, and many are the games played with this pur-
pose. I must not forget to mention the very important part the council fire played. Every evening after work was done the Scouts assembled round the blaze which flamed up in the centre of the camping ground. This ground consists of several acres of smooth grass surrounded by wonderful trees, and is a place of extraordinary beauty, and the memory of that glowing fire
and blue smoke, as the sunset died out behind the rows of stately trees, is a treasured possession. Here was shown the best way to conduct that significant ceremony of the Scout— making his promise on his honour to be loyal to God and the King, to do good turns to other people, and to obey the Scout law. Those who for some reason or other had not yet made this promise are not likely to forget their investiture at Gill- well. At the end of the camp, to test how far we had become good backwoodsmen, we were turned out one morning with packs on our backs and with sealed orders, and told not to return for twenty-four hours. The three happy Patrols started out into Epping Forest with food, mans, and compasses, for to find your way there is not easy, although it is near London. This " hike," to use the American word for a tramping camp, tested many things and consolidated others, and among these not least the friendships formed at Gillwell. I think, looking back, the most remarkable thing was the way in which the Scout spirit grew and flourished, as was seen in such small things as when someone in the tent would ask, " Can any of you lend me a collar-stud? " or a knife or a stamp, as the case might be; then was competition keen as to who could produce the desired object first. Actually we were taught woodcraft, but something greater came to us—it was the touch of the Scout spirit to be handed on in the local training centres which next summer will be started in different parts of the country. All there will be directly inspired from Gillwell, and presided over by the Deputy Camp Chiefs trained there. For their guidance the teaching has been tabulated, and it is to be hoped that they may be able in some small degree to reproduce the wonderful atmosphere of Gillwell.—I am, Sir,
[We are greatly obliged to " Scoutmaster " for giving pub- licity to what should be much better known, and that is the Scouts' Staff College at Gillwell, for such in fact it is. Gillwell is a charming villa of the 1800 period regenerated with taste and in a practical way, set at the edge of Epping Forest, and equipped with groves and meadows which seem to have been designed for camps of instruction in woodcraft and the sister arts. We are particularly delighted to think that the Scout officer, who is after all the silent tortoise on which the 300,000 boy-power Scout elephant stands, at last gets a show, and one so worthy of him. Every one pats the Boy Scout on the back, a; is right and proper, but we must not in praising the ele- phant's strength and efficiency forget the tortoise. Far more devotion, hard work, and real self-sacrifice go to make the Scout officer than is generally recognized. Most Scout officers are earning their daily bread, and this means devoting most of their spare time and almost all their holidays to Scout duties, the major part of which is not picturesque adventure, but hard grind. All honour, then, to the man who gave Gillwell and the men who run it ! They are supreme at their job. There is no need for more words where Captain Gidney is concerned.— En. Spectator.]
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