Fantasy Football Challenge - Football Fanatics Library

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Fantasy Football Challenge presents
Young Knights of the Empire

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* * * * * OUR BUTTONHOLE BADGE. I expect most Scouts have found, like I have done, that wherever you go in the streets, or in a strange town, or far out in the country, you come across a boy wearing a buttonhole badge. As you get nearer you see that it is the well-known three-pointed badge of the Scouts. You make the salute sign, shake hands with left hands, and there you are, in company with a friend and brother, who a minute before was a total stranger to you. * * * * * CHILIAN SCOUTS. Our World-roving Commissioner--for we have one who travels about to all countries now--was once in Chile, which, as you know, is a long, narrow strip of country in South America, three thousand miles long, and not one hundred miles wide, packed in between the Andes Mountains and the Pacific Ocean. The Boy Scouts of Chile are among the best in the world. They have done a lot of tramping-camps and other expeditions. Finally, their Government arranged a cruise for them on board a man-of-war, and they lived for over a week on the ship, about two hundred of them, learning swimming, boating, navigation, engine-room work; in fact, all the duties of Sea Scouts. These boys all had to pay their messing and other expenses, so it was only the richer ones that were able to go; but since then they have arranged to go another cruise, and each of the richer ones is going to take a poorer Scout with him as his guest, and will pay his expenses for him. That's what I like to see, and it tells me more than any other reports that the Chilian Scouts have got the right spirit in them. A lad from Brixham, in Devonshire, went out to take up some work in Chile. He was a Boy Scout, and continued while away to wear his buttonhole badge. One day, when he was out in the back parts of that out-of-the-way country, a Chilian boy came up to him, gave the Scout salute, and pointing to his badge, said: "You Boy Scout? Me Scout too!" and he took him home to tea, and looked after him, and thus they became good friends. So you see the use of being a Scout and of wearing your badge. Even in everyday life at home it is also a good thing to do, because you may often have a chance of doing a good turn to a stranger Boy Scout if he could only recognise that you were a scout. I suppose there is not a day passes without my coming across a Scout, in plain clothes, wearing his buttonhole badge and so I am able to spot him and to have a chat with him. Whereas, if he had not had his badge on, I should probably never have noticed him. Also, it is a sign to outsiders. People have got to know now how useful the Scouts are, and they are often anxious to get hold of one to help them in some difficulty. Well, if they see a boy coming along with the badge on, they know that he is a Scout, though not in uniform, and they are able to ask him to do them the good turn. So wear your buttonhole badge for the sake of other people. POLITENESS LAW 5. A SCOUT IS COURTEOUS. _A Scout should be polite to all--but especially to women and children, old people and invalids, cripples, etc. And he must not take any reward for being helpful or courteous._ Courteousness is much the same sort of thing as Chivalry, which is closely allied to Honour. Both were practised in the old days by the Knight's, who went about risking their lives in order to defend and help the weaker people, women and children, against bullies and marauders. Why did they do this? It did not bring them money, for it would be a disgrace to a Knight to accept any reward for doing a good turn. It only brought them danger of wounds or death. It was an adventure. They were good sportsmen and manly fellows. Their conscience told them that it was right for the strong and plucky man to protect those who were weaker than himself. They were not obliged to do it by the law of the land, but there was a stronger law which appealed to them--and that was their own sense of Honour which led them to be chivalrous men. Honour was the _spirit_ that moved them; Chivalry was the putting into practice what their Honour bade them do. The ordinary boy has no chivalry--at least, he has got it all right

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