How a boy becomes a scout
A boy becomes a scout either by going up
from the Cub Scout pack or by joining a scout troop at any time between the
ages of 11 and 16. He need not have been a cub to become a scout. A cub scout
already knows quite a lot about scouting and probably has gained the link
Badge. This means be completed most of the requirements of the scout
Badge—which involves having a general knowledge of the scout movement and the
development of world-wide scouting, taking part in a patrol or troop activity
out of doors, and understanding and accepting the scouts promise and law. So
the Cub Scout already knows his scout leader, patrol leader and the other
scouts, and has had a glimpse of what they do. He then remakes his promise at a
short, simple, sincere ceremony.
The ‘direct entrant’ (a boy who has not been
a cub scout) attends a few troops and/or patrol meeting and sees for himself
what the great game of scouting is all about. Once he decides that scouting is
for him and has grained the scout Badge, he is invested.
There are thousands of scout troops
throughout the country, so it is more than likely that is one within reach of
every boy. If he does not know a scout or leader in a group he (or his parents)
can either ask the local youth services officer or write to the secretary at
scout headquarters who will give him the name and address of the local troop.
The scout promise and the scout law
On the top side of this page you can read the scout
promise and scout law. They are very important, not only because of what they
say and mean but also because all scouting is based upon them Remember, the
only condition for a boy becoming a scout is that he must make the law.
Honour and trust are closely linked. A
person’s honour is the standard by which he lives his life, and is worth only
the value he himself gives it. A promise is an agreement to do (or not to do)
something. As far as scouting is concerned the promise is a promise for life.
The scout promise and law have three particularly notable features. First,
keeping the promise is the scout’s own responsibility: scouting trust the
individual. Second, the scout law is positive: each part is a statement of what
a scout is. Third, They both set down ideals which, because no-one is prefect’,
everyone falls short of at one time or another. However, a scout promise to do
his best to keep both the promise and law, and this is a lifelong challenge . .
. and, of course, only he will know what he is doing his very best.
Every scout in the world makes a similar
promise and lives by a similar law. The ‘world Brotherhood of scouts’ is a
matter of fact, of which the law and the promise are cornerstones. The actual
words might vary between one country and another, but their meaning and spirit
are the same.
