Many persons who are pale and seedy, are often made so by living in rooms where the windows are seldom opened and the air is full of unwholesome gases or germs. Open your windows every day to let the foul air out.
Food
A good many illnesses come from over-eating or eating the wrong kind of food.
A Scout must know how to keep himself light and active. Once he has got the right kind of muscles, he can remain fit without further special exercising of those muscles, provided that he eats the right kind of food.
In the siege of Mafeking, when we were put on short rations, those of the garrison who were accustomed to eat little at their meals, did not suffer like some people, who had been accustomed to stuff themselves well in peace time and who became weak and irritable. Our food there towards the end was limited to a hunk of pounded-up oats, about the size of a penny bun, which was our whole bread supply for the day, and about a pound of meat and two pints of “sowens”, a kind of stuff like paper-hangers’ paste that had gone wrong.
The cheapest foods are dried peas, flour, oatmeal, potatoes, rice, macaroni, hominy, and cheese. Other good foods are fruits, vegetables, fish, eggs, nuts, and milk, and one can live on these perfectly well with little or no meat.
If you have lots of fresh air, food keeps you healthy. If, on the other hand, you are sitting indoors all day, much food makes you fat and sleepy. In either case you are better for eating moderately. Still, growing boys should not starve themselves but, at the same time, they need not be like that little hog at the school feast, who when asked, “Can’t you eat any more?” replied, “Yes, I could eat more, but I’ve no room to swallow it.”
A great weakness nowadays is the amount of medicine which fellows dose themselves with when there is no reason for taking any medicine at all.
The best medicine is open air and exercise and a big cup of water in the early morning if you are constipated, and a pint of hot water on going to bed.
Clothing
A Scout’s clothing should be of wool as much as possible, because it dries easily. Cotton next to the skin is not good unless you change it as soon as it gets wet—it is so likely to give you a chill.
One great point that a Scout should take care about, to ensure his endurance and being able to go on the march for a long time, is his shoes or boots. I like shoes better than boots, because they let more air in for the feet.
A Scout who gets sore feet with much walking becomes useless.
You should, therefore, take great care to have good, well-fitting, roomy boots, and fairly stout ones, and as like the natural shape of your bare feet as possible, with a straight edge on the inside. Keep your boots soft with lots of grease, mutton fat, dubbin, saddle soap or castor oil.
If feet are allowed to get wet, from perspiration or from outside moisture, the skin is softened, and very soon gets blistered and rubbed raw where there is a little pressure of the boot.
Therefore, the feet should be kept as dry as possible. To do this it is necessary to wear good woollen socks. If a man wears thin cotton or silk socks, you can tell at once that he is no walker. A fellow who goes on a long walking trip for the first time is called a
“Tenderfoot,” because he generally gets sore feet until by experience he learns how to keep his feet in good order.
If your feet always perspire a good deal, it is a useful thing to powder them with powder made of boric acid, starch, and oxide of zinc in equal parts. This powder should be rubbed in between the toes, to prevent soft corns forming there. Your feet can be
hardened to some extent by soaking them in alum and Water, or salt and water. Wash the feet every day.
TROOP MOVEMENTS AND FORMATIONS
Troop Movements
Scouts should know how to move quickly in Troop and Patrol group from one point to another in good order.
When done right, practice in quick and orderly movement sets them up, and makes them smart and quick. It strengthens the muscles which support the body, and by keeping the body upright the lungs and heart get plenty of room to work, and the inside organs are kept in the proper position for proper digestion of food.
A slouching position. on the other hand, depresses all the other organs, and prevents them doing their work properly, so that a man in that position is generally weak and often ill.
Growing lads are very apt to slouch, and should therefore do all they can to get out of the habit by plenty of physical exercises and drill.
‘S’ stands for Sloucher, and ‘‘I”
stands for you, if you are upright.
Ask yourself the question. ‘Am I
‘S’, or am I ‘ I’?”
Stand upright when you are standing, and when you are sitting down sit upright, with your back well into the back part of the chair. Alertness of the body, whether you are moving, standing, or sitting, means alertness of mind, and it is a paying thing to have, because many an employer will select an alert looking boy for work and pass over a sloucher. When you have to stoop over writing at a table, or even tying ‘a boot-lace, do not round your back, but tuck in the small of your back, which helps to strengthen your body.
On the word “Alert” or “Attention”, the Scout stands upright looking straight to his front, with both feet together, hands hanging naturally at the sides, fingers straight.
On the word “Easy” or “At ease,” he brings the left foot away six inches to the left, and clasps his hands behind his back. He is permitted to turn his head about. At the word “Sit easy,” he squats down on the ground in any position he likes. “Sit easy” should usually be given whenever you don’t want the boys to be at the “Alert,” provided that the ground is dry.
When you sit in a chair, sit upright and don’t let your body slide down into the “S” shape.
“Quick march”—boys move off with the left foot leading at a smart pace, swinging the arms freely, as this gives good exercise to the body and muscles and inside organs.
“Double”—boys run at a jog-trot with short, easy steps, hands swinging loosely, not tucked up at the side.
“Scout Pace”—the boys march at the quick march for twenty paces, then double twenty paces, and so on, alternately running and walking, until the word is given “Quick march” or’ ‘Halt.”
“Right turn”—each boy turns to the right.
“Follow your leader,” “Leader right turn”—the leading man turns to his right, the remainder move up to the place where he turned, and then follow after him.
“Front form line” (when “Following the leader”)—those in rear run up and form in line alongside the leader on his left.
Troop Formations
Line (means parties side by side) —Each Patrol has its Scouts in line, Patrol Leader on the right, Second on the left, the others in their order from right to left, Scoutmaster in front of center.