The History of Boy Scouts
The Story of Robert Baden-Powell
From the Boy Scout Handbook
Baden-Powell came home to England as the
best-known hero of the Boer War. He decided to use his fame to help British boys
become better men. H based his ideas for a boys' organization on his own
experiences as a youngster in England and as a soldier in India and Africa. In
1907 he invited a group of boys to attend the world's first Boy Scout camp on
the English island of Brownsea. The success of the camp led him to write a book
he called Scouting for Boys. It was an instant best-seller. Boys by the
thousands bought it and decided to become Scouts. Scouting spread like wildfire
throughout England and, before long, around the world.
The History of the Boy
Scouts of America
The Story of a Good Turn
From the Boy Scout Handbook
One day in 1909 in London, England, an American visitor, William D.
Boyce, lost
his way in a dense fog. He stopped under a street lamp and tried to figure out
where he was. A boy approached him and asked if he could be of help. "You
certainly can," said Boyce. He told the boy that he wanted to find a
certain business office in the center of the city. "I'll take you
there," said the boy. When they got to the destination, Mr. Boyce reached
into his pocket for a tip. But the boy stopped him. "No thank you, sir. I
am a Scout. I won't take anything for helping." "A Scout? And what
might that be?" asked Boyce. The boy told the American about himself and
his brother Scouts. Boyce became very interested.
After finishing his errand, he had the boy take him to the British Scouting office. At the office, Boyce met Lord Robert Baden-Powell, the famous British general who had founded the Scouting movement in Great Britain. Boyce was so impressed with what he learned that he decided to bring Scouting home with him. On February 8, 1910, Boyce and a group of outstanding leaders founded the Boy Scouts of America. From that day forth, Scouts have celebrated February 8 as the birthday of Scouting in the United States.
What happened
to the boy who helped Mr. Boyce find his way in the fog? No one knows. He had
neither asked for money nor given his name, but he will never be forgotten. His
Good Turn helped bring the Scouting movement to our country.
In the British Scout Training Center at Gilwell Park, England, Scouts from the
United States erected a statue of an American buffalo in honor of this unknown
Scout. One Good Turn to one man became a Good Turn to millions of American boys.
Such is the power of a Good Turn.
