chapter eight

.

Automobiling

[Illustration: Wheel insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Automobiling a scout must

1. Demonstrate how to start a motor, explaining what precautions should be taken.

2. Take off and put on pneumatic tires.

3. Know the functions of the clutch, carburetor, valves, magneto, spark plug, differential cam shaft, and different speed gears, and be able to explain difference between a two and four-cycle motor.

4. Know how to put out burning gasoline or oil.

5. Have satisfactorily passed the requirements to receive a license to operate an automobile in the community in which he lives.

Aviation

[Illustration: Biplane insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Aviation a scout must

1. Have a knowledge of the theory of aeroplanes, balloons, and dirigibles.

2. Have made a working model of an {27} aeroplane or dirigible that will fly at least twenty-five yards; and have built a box kite that will fly.

3. Have a knowledge of the engines used for aeroplanes and dirigibles, and be able to describe the various types of aeroplanes and their records.

Bee Farming

[Illustration: Bee insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Bee Farming a scout must

1. Have a practical knowledge of swarming, hiving, hives and general apiculture, including a knowledge of the use of artificial combs.

2. Describe different kinds of honey and tell from what sources gathered.

Blacksmithing

[Illustration: Anvil insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Blacksmithing a scout must

1. Upset and weld a one-inch iron rod.

2. Make a horseshoe.

3. Know how to tire a wheel, use a sledge-hammer and forge, shoe a horse correctly and roughshoe a horse.

4. Be able to temper iron and steel.

Bugling

[Illustration: Bugle insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Bugling a scout must

1. Be able to sound properly on the Bugle the customary United States Army calls.

Business

[Illustration: Quill Pen insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Business a scout must

1. Write a satisfactory business, and a personal letter.

2. State fundamental principles of buying and selling.

3. Know simple bookkeeping.

4. Keep a complete and actual account of personal receipts and expenditures for six months.

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5. State how much money would need to be invested at 5 per cent. to earn his weekly allowance of spending money for a year.

Camping

[Illustration: Tent insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Camping a scout must

1. Have slept in the open or under canvas at different times fifty nights.

2. Have put up a tent alone and ditched it.

3. Have made a bed of wild material and a fire without matches.

4. State how to choose a camp site and how to prepare for rain; how to build a latrine (toilet) and how to dispose of the camp garbage and refuse.

5. Know how to construct a raft.

Carpentry

[Illustration: Wood plane insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Carpentry a scout must

1. Know the proper way to drive, set and clinch a nail.

2. Know the different kinds of chisels, planes and saws, and how to sharpen and use them.

3. Know the use of the rule, square, level, plumb-line and mitre.

4. Know how to use compasses for scribing both regular and irregular lines.

5. Make an article of furniture with three different standard joints or splices, with at least one surface of highly polished hard or decorative wood. All work to be done without assistance.

Chemistry

[Illustration: Chemical retort insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Chemistry a scout must be able to pass the following test:

1. Define physical and chemical change. Which occurs when salt is dissolved in water, milk sours, iron rusts, water boils, iron is magnetized and mercuric oxide is heated above the boiling point of mercury?

2. Give correct tests for oxygen, hydrogen, nitrogen, chlorine, and carbon dioxide gases.

3. Could you use the above gases to extinguish fire? How?

4. Why can baking soda be used to put out a small fire?

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5. Give tests for a chloride, sulphide, sulphate, nitrate, and carbonate.

6. Give the names of three commercial forms of carbon. Tell how each is made and the purpose for which it is used.

7. What compound is formed when carbon is burned in air?

8. Tell process of making lime and mortar from limestone.

9. Why will fresh plaster harden quicker by burning charcoal in an open vessel near it?

Civics

[Illustration: Ax insignia (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Civics a scout must

1. State the principal citizenship requirements of an elector in his state.

2. Know the principal features of the naturalization laws of the United States.

3. Know how President, Vice-President, senators, and congressmen of the United States are elected and their terms of office.

4. Know the number of judges of the Supreme Court of the United States, how appointed, and their term of office.

5. Know the various administrative departments of government, as represented in the President's Cabinet.

6. Know how the governor, lieutenant-governor, senators, representatives, or assemblymen of his state are elected, and their terms of office.

7. Know whether the judges of the principal courts in his state are appointed or elected, and the length of their terms.

8. Know how the principal officers in his town or city are elected and for what terms.

9. Know the duties of the various city departments, such as fire, police, board of health, etc.

10. Draw a map of the town or city in which he lives, giving location of the principal public buildings and points of special interest.

11. Give satisfactory evidence that he is familiar with the {30} provisions and history of the Declaration of Independence, and the Constitution of the United States.

Conservation

[Illustration: Sunset over forest insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Conservation a scout must

1. Be able to recognize in the forest all important commercial trees in his neighborhood; distinguish the lumber from each and tell for what purpose each is best suited; tell the age of old blazes on trees which mark a boundary or trail; recognize the difference in the forest between good and bad logging, giving reasons why one is good and another bad; tell whether a tree is dying from injury by fire, by insects, by disease or by a combination of these causes; know what tools to use, and how to fight fires in hilly or in flat country. Collect the seeds of two commercial trees, clean and store them, and know how and when to plant them.

2. Know the effect upon stream-flow of the destruction of forests at head waters; know what are the four great uses of water in streams; what causes the pollution of streams, and how it can best be stopped; and how, in general, water power is developed.

3. Be able to tell, for a given piece of farm land, whether it is best suited for use as farm or forest, and why; point out examples of erosion, and tell how to stop it; give the reasons why a growing crop pointed out to him is successful or why not; and tell what crops should be grown in his neighborhood and why.

4. Know where the great coal fields are situated and whether the use of coal is increasing, and if so at what rate. Tell what are the great sources of waste of coal, in the mines, and in its use, and how they can be reduced.

5. Know the principal game birds and animals in his neighborhood, the seasons during which they are protected, the methods of protection, and the results. Recognize the track of any two of the following: rabbit, fox, deer, squirrel, wild turkey, ruffed grouse and quail.

Cooking

[Illustration: Cooking pot insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Cooking a scout must

1. Prove his ability to build a fireplace out of stone or sod {31} or logs, light a fire, and cook in the open the following dishes in addition to those required for a first-class scout: Camp stew, two vegetables, omelet, rice pudding; know how to mix dough, and bake bread in an oven; be able to make tea, coffee, and cocoa, carve properly and serve correctly to people at the table.

Craftsmanship

[Illustration: Drafting compass insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Craftsmanship a scout must

1. Build and finish unassisted one of the following articles: a round, square or octagonal tabouret; round or square den or library table; hall or piano bench; rustic arm chair or swing to be hung with chains; or rustic table.

2. He must also make plans or intelligent rough sketch drawing of the piece selected.

Cycling

[Illustration: Wheel insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Cycling a scout must

1. Be able to ride a bicycle fifty miles in ten hours.

2. Repair a puncture.

3. Take apart and clean bicycle and put together again properly.

4. Know how to make reports if sent out scouting on a road.

5. Be able to read a map and report correctly verbal messages.

Dairying

[Illustration: Butter churn insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Dairying a scout must

1. Understand the management of dairy cattle.

2. Be able to milk.

3. Understand the sterilization of milk, and care of dairy utensils and appliances.

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4. Test at least five cows for ten days each, with the Babcock test, and make proper reports.

Electricity

[Illustration: Fist holding lightening insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Electricity a scout must

1. Illustrate the experiment by which the laws of electrical attraction and repulsion are shown.

2. Name three uses of the direct current, and tell how it differs from the alternating current.

3. Make a simple electro-magnet.

4. Have an elementary knowledge of the action of simple battery cells and of the working of electric bells and telephones.

5. Be able to remedy fused wire, and to repair broken electric connections.

6. Construct a machine to make static electricity or a wireless apparatus.

7. Have a knowledge of the method of resuscitation and rescue of a person insensible from shock.

Firemanship

[Illustration: Fire hose nozzle insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Firemanship, a scout must

1. Know how to turn in an alarm for fire.

2. Know how to enter burning buildings.

3. Know how to prevent panics and the spread of fire.

4. Understand the use of hose; unrolling, joining up, connecting two hydrants, use of nozzle, etc.

5. Understand the use of escapes, ladders, and chutes, and know the location of exits in buildings which he frequents.

6. Know how to improvise ropes and nets.

7. Know what to do in case of panic, understand the fireman's lift and drag, and how to work in fumes.

8. Understand the use of fire extinguishers; how to rescue animals; how to save property; how to organize a bucket brigade, and how to aid the police in keeping back crowds.

First Aid

[Illustration: Large "X" insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for First Aid a scout must

1. Be able to demonstrate the Sylvester and Schaefer methods of resuscitation.

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2. Carry a person down a ladder.

3. Bandage head and ankle.

4. Demonstrate treatment of wound of the neck with severe arterial hemorrhage.

5. Treat mangling injury of the leg without severe hemorrhage.

6. Demonstrate treatment for rupture of varicose veins of the leg with severe hemorrhage.

7. Show treatment for bite of finger by mad dog.

8. Demonstrate rescue of person in contact with electric wire.

9. Apply tourniquet to a principal artery.

10. State chief differences between carbolic poisoning and intoxication.

11. Explain what to do for snake bite.

12. Pass first aid test of American Red Cross Society.

First Aid to Animals

[Illustration: Bandaged dog insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for First Aid to Animals a scout must

1. Have a general knowledge of domestic and farm animals.

2. Be able to treat a horse for colic.

3. Describe symptoms and give treatment for the following: wounds, fractures and sprains, exhaustion, choking, lameness.

4. Understand horseshoeing.

Forestry

[Illustration: Pine cone insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Forestry a scout must

1. Be able to identify twenty-five kinds of trees when in leaf, or fifteen kinds of deciduous (broad leaf) trees in winter, and tell some of the uses of each.

2. Identify twelve kinds of shrubs.

3. Collect and identify samples of ten kinds of wood and be able to tell some of their uses.

4. Determine the height, and estimate the amount of timber, approximately, in five trees of different sizes.

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5. State laws for transplanting, grafting, spraying, and protecting trees.

Gardening

[Illustration: Corn cob insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Gardening, a scout must

1. Dig and care for during the season a piece of ground containing not less than 144 square feet.

2. Know the names of a dozen plants pointed out in an ordinary garden.

3. Understand what is meant by pruning, grafting, and manuring.

4. Plant and grow successfully six kinds of vegetables or flowers from seeds or cuttings.

5. Cut grass with scythe under supervision.

Handicraft

[Illustration: Hammer and Screwdriver insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Handicraft a scout must

1. Be able to paint a door.

2. Whitewash a ceiling.

3. Repair gas fittings, sash lines, window and door fastenings.

4. Replace gas mantles, washers, and electric light bulbs.

5. Solder.

6. Hang pictures and curtains.

7. Repair blinds.

8. Fix curtains, portiere rods, blind fixtures.

9. Lay carpets and mend clothing and upholstery.

10. Repair furniture and china.

11. Sharpen knives.

12. Repair gates.

13. Fix screens on windows and doors.

Horsemanship

[Illustration: Horseshoe insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Horsemanship a scout must

1. Demonstrate riding at a walk, trot, and gallop.

2. Know how to saddle and bridle a horse correctly.

3. Know how to water and feed and to what amount, and how to groom a horse properly.

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4. Know how to harness a horse correctly in single or double harness and to drive.

5. Have a knowledge of the power of endurance of horses at work and know the local regulations concerning driving.

6. Know the management and care of horses.

7. Be able to identify unsoundness and blemishes.

8. Know the evils of bearing or check reins and of ill-fitting harness or saddlery.

9. Know two common causes of, and proper remedies for, lameness, and know to whom he should refer cases of cruelty and abuse.

10. Be able to judge as to the weight, height, and age of horses; know three breeds and their general characteristics.

Interpreting

[Illustration: Handshake insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Interpreting, a scout must

1. Be able to carry on a simple conversation.

2. Write a simple letter on subject given by examiners.

3. Read and translate a passage from a book or newspaper, in French, German, English, Italian, or any language that is not of his own country.

Invention

[Illustration: Gear insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Invention a scout must

1. Invent and patent some useful article;

2. Show a working drawing or model of the same.

Leather Working

[Illustration: Awl insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Leather Working a scout must

1. Have a knowledge of tanning and curing.

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2. Be able to sole and heel a pair of boots, sewed or nailed, and generally repair boots and shoes.

3. Be able to dress a saddle, repair traces, stirrup leathers, etc., and know the various parts of harness.

Life Saving

[Illustration: Lifesaving buoy insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Life Saving a scout must

1. Be able to dive into from seven to ten feet of water and bring from bottom to surface a loose bag of sand weighing five pounds.

2. Be able to swim two hundred yards, one hundred yards on back without using the hands, and one hundred yards any other stroke.

3. Swim fifty yards with clothes on (shirt, long trousers, and shoes as minimum).

4. Demonstrate (a) on land--five methods of release; (b) in the water--two methods of release; (c) the Schaefer method of resuscitation (prone pressure).

Machinery

[Illustration: Pipewrench insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Machinery a scout must

1. State the principles underlying the use and construction of the lathe, steam boiler and engine, drill press and planer.

2. Make a small wood or metal model illustrating the principles of either levers, gears, belted pulleys, or block and fall.

Marksmanship

[Illustration: Target insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Marksmanship a scout must

1. Qualify as a marksman in accordance with the regulations of the National Rifle Association.

Masonry

[Illustration: Trowel insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Masonry a scout must

1. Lay a straight wall with a corner.

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2. Make mortar and describe process.

3. Use intelligently a plumb-line, level, and trowel.

4. Build a stone oven.

5. Demonstrate a knowledge of various uses for cement.

6. Build a dry wall.

Mining

[Illustration: Shovel insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Mining a scout must

1. Know and name fifty minerals.

2. Know, name and describe the fourteen great divisions of the earth's crust (according to Geikie).

3. Define watershed, delta, drift, fault, glacier, terrace, stratum, dip; and identify ten different kinds of rock.

4. Describe methods for mine ventilation and safety devices.

Music

[Illustration: Lyre insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Music a. scout must

1. Be able to play a standard musical instrument satisfactorily.

2. Read simple music.

3. Write a satisfactory essay of not less than five hundred words on the history of American music.

Ornithology

[Illustration: Bird insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Ornithology a scout must

1. Have a list of one hundred different kinds of birds personally observed on exploration in the field.

2. Have identified beyond question, by appearance or by note, forty-five different kinds of birds in one day.

3. Have made a good clear photograph of some wild bird, the bird image to be over one half inch in length on the negative.

4. Have secured at least two tenants in bird boxes erected by himself.

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5. Have daily notes on the nesting of a pair of wild birds from the time the first egg is laid until the young have left the nest.

6. Have attracted at least three kinds of birds, exclusive of the English sparrow, to a "lunch counter" which he has supplied.

Painting

[Illustration: Paintbrush insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Painting a scout must

1. Have knowledge of how to combine pigments in order to produce paints in shades and tints of color.

2. Know how to add positive colors to a base of white lead or of white zinc.

3. Understand the mixing of oils; turpentine, etc., to the proper consistency.

4. Paint a porch floor or other surface evenly and without laps.

5. Know how and when to putty up nail holes and uneven surfaces.

6. Present for inspection a panel covered with three coats of paint, which panel must contain a border of molding, the body of the panel to be painted in one color and the molding in another.

Pathfinding

[Illustration: Indianhead insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Pathfinding a scout must

1. Know every lane, by-path, and short cut for a distance of at least two miles in every direction around the local scouts' headquarters in the country.

2. Have a general knowledge of the district within a five mile radius of his local headquarters, so as to be able to guide people at any time, by day or night.

3. Know the general direction and population of the five principal neighboring towns and be able to give strangers correct directions how to reach them.

4. Know in the country in the two mile radius, approximately, the number of horses, cattle, sheep, and pigs owned on the five neighboring farms: or in a town must know in a half-mile radius what livery stables, garages and blacksmiths there are.

5. Know the location of the nearest meat markets, bakeries, groceries, and drug stores.

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6. Know where the nearest police station, hospital, doctor, fire alarm, fire hydrant, telegraph and telephone offices, and railroad stations are.

7. Know something of the history of the place, its principal public buildings, such as town or city hall, post-office, schools, and churches.

8. As much as possible of the above information should be entered on a large scale map.

Personal Health

[Illustration: Heart insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Personal Health a scout must

1. Write a statement on the care of the teeth.

2. State a principle to govern in eating, and state in the order of their importance, five rules to govern the care of his health.

3. Be able to tell the difference in effect of a cold and hot bath.

4. Describe the effect of alcohol and tobacco on the growing boy.

5. Tell how to care for the feet on a march.

6. Describe a good healthful game and state its merit.

7. Describe the effects of walking as an exercise.

8. Tell how athletics may be overdone.

Photography

[Illustration: Camera and tripod insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Photography a scout must

1. Have a knowledge of the theory and use of lenses, of the construction of cameras, and the action of developers.

2. Take, develop, and print twelve separate subjects: three interiors, three portraits, three landscapes, and three instantaneous "action photos."

3. Make a recognizable photograph of any wild bird larger than a robin, while on its nest; or a wild animal in its native haunts; or a fish in the water.

Pioneering

[Illustration: Pickaxe and hatchet insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Pioneering a scout must

1. Fell a nine-inch tree or pole in a prescribed direction neatly and quickly.

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2. Tie six knots of knots quickly.

3. Lash spars properly together for scaffolding.

4. Build a modern bridge or derrick.

5. Make a camp kitchen.

6. Build a shack of one kind or another suitable for three occupants.

Plumbing

[Illustration: Faucet insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Plumbing a scout must

1. Be able to make wiped and brazed joints.

2. Repair a burst pipe.

3. Mend a ball or faucet tap.

4. Understand the ordinary hot and cold water system of a house.

Poultry Farming

[Illustration: Chicken insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Poultry Farming a scout must

1. Have a knowledge of incubators, foster-mothers, sanitary fowl houses, and coops and runs.

2. Understand rearing, feeding, killing, and dressing birds for market.

3. Be able to pack birds and eggs for market.

4. Raise a brood of not less than ten chickens.

5. Report his observation and study of the hen, turkey, duck, and goose.

Printing

[Illustration: Ink roller insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Printing a scout must

1. Know the names of ten different kinds of type and ten sizes of paper.

2. Be able to compose by hand or machines.

3. Understand the use of hand or power printing machines.

4. Print a handbill set up by himself.

5. Be able to read and mark proof correctly.

Public Health

[Illustration: Torch insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Public Health a scout must

1. State what the chief causes of each of the following disease are: tuberculosis, typhoid, malaria.

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2. Draw a diagram showing how the house-fly carries disease.

3. Tell what should be done to a house which has been occupied by a person who has had a contagious disease.

4. Tell how a scout may cooperate with the board of health in preventing disease.

5. Describe the method used in his community in disposing of garbage.

6. Tell how a city should protect its foods; milk, meat, and exposed foods.

7. Tell how to plan the sanitary care of a camp.

8. State the reason why school children should undergo a medical examination.

Scholarship

NOTE: The requirements for the merit badge for Scholarship had not been decided upon when this book was published. Information about same may be secured upon application to National Headquarters.

Sculpture

[Illustration: Bust insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Sculpture a scout must

1. Make a clay model from an antique design.

2. Make a drawing and a model from nature, these models to be faithful to the original and of artistic design.

Seamanship

[Illustration: Anchor insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Seamanship

1. Be able to tie rapidly six different knots.

2. Splice ropes.

3. Use a palm and needle.

4. Fling a rope coil.

5. Be able to row, pole, scull, and steer a boat; also bring a boat properly alongside and make fast.

6. Know how to box the compass, read a chart, and show use of parallel rules and dividers.

7. Be able to state direction by the stars and sun.

8. Swim fifty yards with shoes and clothes on.

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9. Understand the general working of steam and hydraulic winches, and have a knowledge of weather wisdom and of tides.

Signaling

[Illustration: Signal flags insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Signaling a scout must

1. Send and receive a message in two of the following systems of signaling: Semaphore, Morse, or Myer, not fewer than twenty-four letters per minute.

2. Be able to give and read signals by sound.

3. Make correct smoke and fire signals.

Stalking

[Illustration: Leaf insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Stalking a scout must

1. Take a series of twenty photographs of wild animals or birds from life, and develop and print them.

2. Make a group of sixty species of wild flowers, ferns, or grasses, dried and mounted in a book and correctly named.

3. Make colored drawings of twenty flowers, ferns, or grasses, or twelve sketches from life of animals or birds, original sketches as well as the finished pictures to be submitted.

Surveying

[Illustration: Theodolite insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Surveying a scout must

1. Map correctly from the country itself the main features of half a mile of road, with 440 yards each side to a scale of two feet to the mile, and afterward draw same map from memory.

2. Be able to measure the height of a tree, telegraph pole, and church steeple, describing method adopted.

3. Measure width of a river.

4. Estimate distance apart of two objects a known distance away and unapproachable.

5. Be able to measure a gradient.

Swimming

[Illustration: Swimmer insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Swimming a scout must

1. Be able to swim one hundred yards.

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2. Dive properly from the surface of the water.

3. Demonstrate breast, crawl, and side stroke.

4. Swim on the back fifty feet.

Taxidermy

[Illustration: Talon insignia. (tr)]

To obtain a merit badge for Taxidermy a scout must

1. Have a knowledge of the game laws of the state in which he lives.

2. Preserve and mount the skin of a game bird, or animal, killed in season.

3. Mount for a rug the pelt of some fur animal.

Life Scout

[Illustration: Life Scout insignia. (tr)]

The life scout badge will be given to all first-class scouts who have qualified for the following five-merit badges: first aid, athletics, life-saving, personal health, and public health.

Star Scout

[Illustration: Star Scout insignia. (tr)]

The star scout badge will be given to the first-class scout who has qualified for ten merit badges. The ten include the list of badges under life scout.

Eagle Scout

[Illustration: Eagle Scout insignia. (tr)]

Any first-class scout qualifying for twenty-one merit badges will be entitled to wear the highest scout merit badge. This is an eagle's head in silver, and represents the all-round perfect scout.

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Honor Medals

[Illustration: Honor medal insignia. (tr)]

A scout who is awarded any one of the following medals is entitled to wear the same on the left breast:

Bronze medal. Cross in bronze with first-class scout badge superimposed upon it and suspended from a bar by a red ribbon. This is awarded to a scout who has saved life.

Silver Medal. Silver Cross with first-class scout badge superimposed upon it and suspended from bar by blue ribbon. This medal is awarded to a scout who saves life with considerable risk to himself.

Gold Medal. Gold Cross with first-class scout badge superimposed upon it and suspended from bar by white ribbon. This medal is the highest possible award for service and heroism. It may be granted to a scout who has saved life at the greatest possible risk to his own life, and also to anyone who has rendered service of peculiar merit to the Boy Scouts of America.

The Honor Medal is a national honor and is awarded only by the National Council. To make application for one of these badges the facts must first be investigated by the Court of Honor of the Local Council and presented by that body to the Court of Honor of the National Council.

_The Local Court of Honor may at any time invite experts to share in their examinations and recommendations_.

When the National Court of Honor has passed upon the application, the proper medal will be awarded.

Badges of Rank

The following devices are used to distinguish the various ranks of scouts:

Patrol Leader

[Illustration: Patrol leader insignia. (tr)]

Patrol Leader: The patrol leader's arm badge consists of two bars, 1-1/2-inches long and 3/8-inch wide, of white braid worn on the sleeve below the left shoulder. In addition he may {45} wear all oxidized silver tenderfoot, second-class or first-class scout badge according to his rank. The assistant patrol leader wears one bar.

[Illustration: Service Stripe insignia. (tr)]

Service Stripes: For each year of service as a boy scout, he will be entitled to wear a stripe of white braid around the sleeve above the wrist, three stripes being changed for one red one. Five years of scouting would be indicated by one red stripe and two white stripes. The star indicates the position for wearing merit badges.

[Illustration: Scoutmaster insignia. (tr)]

Scout Master: The badge of the scout commissioner, scout master, and assistant scout master is the first-class scout's badge reproduced in blue, green, and red, respectively, and are worn on the sleeve below the left shoulder.

[Illustration: Star insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout: The badge of the Chief Scout is the first-class scout badge with a five-pointed star above it embroidered in silver.

[Illustration: Caduceus (snakes on pole) insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout Surgeon: The badge of the Chief Scout Surgeon is the first-class scout badge with a caduceus above it embroidered in green. (The Chief Scout's staff wear the badge of rank in the same manner as the Chief Scout.)

[Illustration: Crossed hatchets insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout Woodsman: The badge of the Chief Scout Woodsman is the first-class scout badge with two crossed axes above it embroidered in green.

[Illustration: Leaf insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout Stalker: The badge of the Chief Scout Stalker is the first-class scout badge with an oak leaf above it embroidered in blue.

[Illustration: Tongues of fire insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout Director of Health: The badge of the Chief Scout Director of Health is the first-class scout badge with {46} tongues of fire above it embroidered in red.

[Illustration: Moccasin insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout Camp Master: The badge of the Chief Scout Camp Master is the first-class scout badge with a moccasin above it embroidered in green:

[Illustration: Winged foot insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout of Athletics: The badge of the Chief Scout Director of Athletics is the first-class scout badge with a winged Mercury foot above it embroidered in green.

Chief Scout Director of Chivalry: The badge of the Chief Scout Director of Chivalry is the first-class scout badge with the scout sign above it embroidered in gold.

[Illustration: American Flag insignia. (tr)]

Chief Scout Citizen: The badge of the Chief Scout Citizen is the first-class scout badge with the United States flag above it in silver.

Appropriate badges for national and local councilmen may be secured from the National Headquarters.

Equipment

_It should be clearly understood by all interested in the Scout Movement that it is not necessary for a boy to have a uniform or any other special equipment to carry out the scout program. There are a great many troops in the country which have made successful progress without any equipment whatever_.

However, for the convenience of boys who wish to secure a uniform or other equipment, the National Council has made arrangements with certain manufacturers to furnish such parts of the equipment as may be desired by the boys. Such arrangements have been made with these manufacturers only after a great number of representative firms have been given an opportunity to submit samples and prices; the prices quoted to be uniform throughout the country. These manufacturers {47} are given the privilege of using for a limited period an imprint of the official badge as an indication that the Committee on Equipment is willing to recommend the use of that particular article. The official badge is fully protected by the U. S. Patent Laws and anyone using it without expressed authority from National Headquarters is subject to prosecution at law.

Considerable difficulty has been experienced in the selection of the material used in making coats, breeches, and shirts. The material used in the boy scout coat, breeches, and shirt has been submitted to a thirty-day sun test, the acid and strength test and is guaranteed to be a fast color and durable. To show the result of the selection made, the manufacturer of these articles has been given the privilege of using the imprint of the official seal and the right to use the official buttons. We recommend the purchase of the articles having this imprint through any local dealer or through National Headquarters. However, where a local council exists, buttons will be supplied on order of the Executive Committee for use on such uniforms as the Committee may desire to have made locally. In communities where no local council has been formed, they may be supplied on order of a registered scout master. Prices of the buttons per set for coat is 15 cents and per set for shirt 10 cents.

Every effort is made to have all parts of the uniform and equipment available to scouts through local dealers. If such arrangements have not been made in a community, the National Headquarters will be glad to help in making such an arrangement. Many scout masters prefer to order uniforms and other supplies direct from National Headquarters. In order to cover the expense involved in handling these supplies, the manufacturers have agreed to allow National Headquarters the same trade discount allowed to local dealers. Trade through National Headquarters if sufficiently large will help to meet a part of the current expenses of the National Organization. Any combination desired may be made from this list. A fairly complete equipment may be secured at the very nominal sum of $2.15. For instance, the Summer equipment which consists of: Hat, 50 cents; Shirt, 75 cents; Shorts, 50 cents; Belt, 40 cents.

Where it is desired to equip the members of the troop with a standard uniform the following equipment is suggested: Hat, Shirt, Coat, Breeches or Knickerbockers, Belt, Leggings or Stockings, shoes, Haversack.

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Other combinations may be made according to the resources of the boys forming the troop.

However, it is recommended that each troop decide upon a definite combination to be worn by its members so that all of the scouts in the troop may dress alike. Each boy should pay for his own supplies and equipment. Soliciting donations for this purpose should be prohibited.

A complete list of all supplies and equipment with full information about places where same can be secured is given in the appendix of this book.

KNOTS EVERY SCOUT SHOULD KNOW

_By Samuel A. Moffat, Boy Scouts of America_

Every scout knows what rope is. From the earliest moment of his play life he has used it in connection with most of his games. In camp life and on hikes he will be called upon to use it again and again. It is therefore not essential to describe here the formation of rope; its various sizes and strength. The important thing to know is how to use it to the best advantage. To do this an intelligent understanding of the different knots and how to tie them is essential. Every day sailors, explorers, mechanics, and mountain-climbers risk their lives on the knots that they tie. Thousands of lives have been sacrificed to ill-made knots. The scout therefore should be prepared in an emergency, or when necessity demands, to tie the right knot in the right way.

There are three qualities to a good knot: 1. Rapidity with which it can be tied. 2. Its ability to hold fast when pulled tight, and 3. The readiness with which it can be undone.

The following knots, recommended to scouts, are the most serviceable because they meet the above requirements and will be of great help in scoutcraft. If the tenderfoot will follow closely the various steps indicated in the diagrams, he will have little difficulty in reproducing them at pleasure.

In practising knot-tying a short piece of hemp rope may be used. To protect the ends from fraying a scout should know how to "whip" them. The commonest method of "whipping" is as follows:

[Illustration: Whipping.]

Lay the end of a piece of twine along the end of the rope. {49} Hold it to the rope with the thumb of your left hand while you wind the standing part around it and the rope until the end of the twine has been covered. Then with the other end of the twine lay a loop back on the end of the rope and continue winding the twine upon this second end until all is taken up. The end is then pulled back tight and cut off close to the rope.

For the sake of clearness a scout must constantly keep in mind these three principal parts of the rope:

[Illustration: Rope loop. (tr)]

1. _The Standing Part_--The long unused portion of the rope on which he works;

2. _The Bight_--The loop formed whenever the rope is turned back upon itself; and,

3. _The End_--The part he uses in leading. Before proceeding with the tenderfoot requirements, a scout should first learn the two primary knots: the overhand and figure-of-eight knots.

[Illustration: Overhand knot.]

_The Overhand Knot_.

Start with the position shown in the preceding diagram. Back the end around the standing part and up through the bight and draw tight.

[Illustration: Figure eight knot.]

_The Figure of Eight Knot_. Make a bight as before. Then lead the end around back of the standing part and down through the bight.

After these preliminary steps, the prospective tenderfoot may proceed to learn the required knots.

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[Illustration: Reef knot.]

_Square or Reef Knot_. The commonest knot for tying two ropes together. Frequently used in first-aid bandaging. Never slips or jams; easy to untie.

[Illustration: False reef knot.]

_False Reef or Granny_. If the ends are not crossed correctly when making the reef knot, the false reef or granny is the result. This knot is always bad.

[Illustration: Sheet bend knot.]

_Sheet Bend or Weaver's Knot_. This knot is used in bending the sheet to the clew of a sail and in tying two rope-ends together.

Make a bight with one rope A, B, then pass end C, of other rope up through and around the entire bight and bend it under its own standing part.

[Illustration: Bowline knot.]

_The Bowline_. A noose that neither jams nor slips. Used in lowering a person from a burning building, etc.

Form a small loop on the standing part leaving the end long enough for the size of the noose required. Pass the end up through the bight around the standing part and down through the bight again. To tighten, hold noose in position and pull standing part.

[Illustration: Halter knot.]

_Halter, Slip, or Running Knot_. A bight is first formed and an overhand knot made with the end around the standing part.

[Illustration: Sheepshank knot.]

_Sheepshank_. Used for shortening ropes. Gather up the amount to be shortened, then make a half hitch round each of the bends as shown in the diagram.

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[Illustration: Clove hitch knot.]

_Clove Hitch_. Used to fasten one pole to another in fitting up scaffolding; this knot holds snugly; is not liable to slip laterally. Hold the standing part in left hand, then pass the rope around the pole; cross the standing part, making a second turn around the pole, and pass the end under the last turn.

[Illustration: Fisherman's bend knot.]

_The Fisherman's Bend_. Used aboard yachts for bending on the gaff topsail halliards. It consists of two turns around a spar or ring, then a half hitch around the standing part and through the turns on the spar, and another half hitch above it around the standing part.

[Illustration: Timber hitch knot.]

_Timber Hitch_. Used in hauling timber. Pass the end of the rope around the timber. Then lead it around its standing part and bring it back to make two or more turns on its own part. The strain will hold it securely.

[Illustration: Two half hitches knot.]

_Two Half Hitches_. Useful because they are easily made and will not slip under any strain. Their formation is sufficiently indicated by the diagram.

[Illustration: Blackwall hitch knot.]

_Blackwall Hitch_. Used to secure a rope to a hook. The standing part when hauled tight holds the end firmly.

[Illustration: Becket hitch knot.]

_Becket Hitch_. For joining a cord to a rope. May be easily made from diagram.

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[Illustration: Fisherman's knot.]

_The Fisherman's Knot_. Used for tying silk-worm gut for fishing purposes. It never slips; is easily unloosed by pulling the two short ends.

The two ropes are laid alongside one another, then with each end an overhand knot is made around the standing part of the other. Pull the standing parts to tighten.

[Illustration: Carrick bend knot.]

_Carrick Bend_. Used in uniting hawsers for towing. Is easily untied by pushing the loops inwards.

Turn the end of one rope A over its standing part B to form a loop. Pass the end of the other rope across the bight thus formed, back of the standing part B over the end A, then under the bight at C, passing it over its own standing part and under the bight again at D.

[Illustration: Mariner's compass.]

The Mariner's Compass

Boxing the Compass consists in enumerating the points, beginning with north and working around the circle as follows: North North by East North, North-east North-east by North North-east North-east by East East, North-east East by North East East by South East, South-east South-east by East South-east South-east by South

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South, South-east South by East South South by West South, South-west South-west by South South-west South-west by West West, South-west West by South West West by North West, North-west North-west by West North-west North-west by North North, North-west North by West North

NOTES

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