we started from.
Using Climbing Ropes
Scouts working on a mountain ought to practise the art of roping themselves together, as mountaineers do on icy slopes.
When roped together each man has about fourteen feet between himself and the next man. The rope is fastened round his waist, by a loop, with the knot on his left side. A loop takes up about 4 ft. 6 in. of rope, and should be a bowline at the ends of the rope, and a manharness knot for
central men on the rope.
Each man has to keep well back of the man in front of him, so that the rope is tight all the time. Then if one falls or slips, the others lean away from him with all their weight, and hold him up till he regains his footing.
Patrolling
Scouts go about Scouting as a Patrol or in pairs, or sometimes singly.
When patrolling, the Scouts of a Patrol seldom move close together. They spread out to see more country. Also, in this way, they will not all get caught if cut off or ambushed by the “enemy”.
A Patrol of six Scouts best moves in the shape of a kite with the Patrol Leader in the centre. No. 2 Scout is in front, Nos. 5 and 4 to the right and left, No. 3 to the rear, and No. 6 with the leader (No. 1) in the centre.
If there are eight in the Patrol, the Patrol Leader takes the Tenderfoot with him, No. 2 takes No. 6, and No. 3 takes No. 7.
Patrols going over open country where they are likely to be seen by enemies or animals should get across it as quickly as possible, by moving at Scout’s Pace, walking and running alternately for short spells of fifty paces from one point of cover to another. As soon as they are hidden in cover they can rest and look round before making the next move.
If you are the leading Scout and get out of sight ahead of your Patrol, you can bend branches of bushes or of reeds and grass every few yards, making the heads point forward to show your path. In this way the Patrol or anyone coming after you can easily follow and can judge from the freshness of the grass pretty well how long ago you passed. Besides, you can always find your way back again. Or you can make marks in the sand, or lay stones, or show which way you have gone by the signs which I have given you in Yarn No. 4.
Night Work
Scouts must be able to find their way equally well by night or by day. But unless they practise it frequently, they are very apt to lose themselves by night. Distances seem greater and landmarks are hard to see. Also you are apt to make more noise than by day, by accidentally treading on dry sticks or kicking stones.
If you are watching for an enemy at night, you have to trust much more to your ears than to your eyes. Your nose will also help you, for a Scout is well-practised at smelling out things. A man who has not damaged his sense of smell by smoking can often smell an enemy a good distance away. I have done it many times myself.
When patrolling at night, Scouts keep closer together than by day, and in very dark places, such as woods, they keep touch with each other in single file by each catching hold of the end of the next Scout’s staff.
When working singly in the dark, the Scout staff is most useful for feeling the way and pushing aside branches.
Scouts working apart from each other at night keep up communication by occasionally giving the call of their Patrol animal.
All Scouts should know how to guide themselves by the stars.
Finding the Way
Among the Red Indian scouts, the man who was good at finding his way in a strange country was termed a “pathfinder”. It was a great honour to be called by that name.
Many a “tenderfoot” has become lost in the veldt or forest, and has never been seen again, because he knew no scouting, nor had what is called “eye for the country”.
In one case a man got off a coach, which was driving through Matabeleland, while the mules were being changed, and walked off a few yards into the bush. When the coach was ready to start the drivers called for him in every direction, then searched for him. They followed the man’s
tracks as far as they could, in the very difficult soil of that country, but could not find him. At last, the coach, unable to wait any longer, continued its journey, after someone else had taken over the search.
Several weeks afterwards, the man was discovered, dead, nearly fifteen miles from where he had left the coach.
Don’t Get Lost
It often happens that when you are tramping alone through the bush, you become careless in noticing in what direction you are moving. You frequently change direction to get round a fallen tree, or over a rock or other obstacle and, having passed it, do not take up exactly the correct
direction again. A man’s inclination somehow is to keep edging to his right, and the consequence is that when you think you are going straight, you are really not doing so at all. Unless you watch the sun, or your compass, or your landmarks, you are very apt to find yourself going round in a big circle.
In such a case a “tenderfoot”, when he suddenly finds he has lost his bearings, at once loses his head and gets excited. He probably begins to run, when the right thing to do is to force yourself to keep cool and give yourself something useful to do—that is, to track your own footprints back again; or, if you fail in this, to collect firewood for making signal fires to direct those who will be looking for you.
The main point is not to get lost in the first instance.
Notice the Directions
When you start out for a walk or on patrolling, note the direction, by the compass. Also notice which direction the wind is blowing; this is a great help, especially if you have no compass, or if the sun is not shining.
Every old scout notices which way the wind is blowing when he turns out in the morning.
To find the way the wind is blowing when there is only very light air, throw up little bits of dry grass. Or hold up a handful of light dust and let it fall. Or wet your thumb and let the wind blow on it; the cold side of it will then tell you from which direction the wind comes.
Using Landmarks
Then you should notice all important landmarks for finding your way.
In the country the landmarks may be hills or prominent towers, steeples, curious trees, rocks, gates, mounds, bridges— any points, in fact, by which you could find your way back again, or by which you could instruct someone else to follow the same route. If you remember your landmarks going out you can always find your way back by them; but you should take care occasionally to look back at them after passing them, so that you can recognize them for your return journey.
The same holds good when you arrive in a strange town by train. The moment you step out from the station notice where the sun is, or which way the smoke is blowing. Also notice your landmarks—which is this case would be prominent buildings, churches, factory chimneys, names of streets and shops—so that when you have gone down several streets you can turn round an d find your way back to the station without difficulty. It is wonderfully easy when you have practised it a little, yet many people get lost when they have turned a few corners in a town they do not know.