Going Back to Memories of one of my Scout Campouts, -that I Touched On elsewhere in this Forum,-( I'm speaking of my Patrol Campout,-June 1970.),

-I was Absolutely Horrified and Mortified!, -to Behold a Fellow Scout of mine!, -Just Cooly Tearing the Pages out of his Scout Handbook!, -and using them to Light his Fire! Complete with his Cavalier Attitude towards Doing So!

It was Gathering Dusk, -on that Warm, Cloudy, Early June Day. And he, -Rationalizing that just because he's now Past Tenderfoot, -that he'd mayswell just use those pages to light a fire he had a Fancy for.

And to my Horror, -He Proceeded to Do So! -"Thats your Scout Book you're Doing that To!", -I Thot to myself. - "All that Excellent, Priceless, Information! It Goes Against the Whole Spirit of It All! What do you Think you're Doing?! Don't you Know!?"

But unlike me, -He Wasn't a Book Person. He Couldn't See It! -Even Had I said Something. -Which is also Precisely a Part of Why I Didn't say anything. Where would It have Gotten?,-Anyway!

In Retrospect,-It could have at Least Served to do some Concsious Raising.

I know it's a Ready Source of paper, -and a Quite Suitable Enuf means of starting a Fire. In an Outdoor Situation, -That can take Precedence.

Even so,-We were in No Spot,-Adequate Other Firestarting material existed, -And I Hate to Think what Good Ole Mr. T....,-our Scoutmaster, would have Said or Thot of that! -If This had been one of His Drop In Times!

-That was his Scout Handbook!, -All that Priceless Information!, -and the Whole Spirit of It All! You just Don't Do Things like That!

Yet he Did,-and he Honestly Didn't mean anything Maliciously Bad by It!, -But Still Shouldn't Have!

I'm Sadly Sure he Wasn't the First,-or Last. I Think many other Scouts have Done this,-over the years as well! Perhaps it's a sort of a Non Book Person Laff At, -type of Revenge!? As well as it being many instances of Genuine or Semi-Genuine Firestarting, with a Lot of Scouts.

All I can Add, -is that my Scoutmaster wanted us having our Handbooks there, -to Read and serve as a Reference, -NOT to Start Fires,-Unneccessary Fires with!

He could have Practiced with something else! It was Not that kind of a Need To- of a Situation!

As Far as I was concerned, -It was Akin to Doing a Sacrilige in a Church!,-to be Needlessly Burning your Scout Handbook like that! You just Don't Do things like that!

How many of you have had similar Experiences? How many of you have Witnessed This? How many of you (are Brave Enuff to Admit that perhaps you ) have Done This yourselves?

-The Encouragement and Moral of the Story is,- Leaders,-Watch for This and Urge (or More) them Not to Do This! -And Present Day and Future Scouts,- -Don't be Doing This! -Burning Up your Scout Book! -That Runs Right Up Against the Whole Spirit of It All! -DON'T be Doing It!!! [color:"black"] [/color] [email]ScottRezaLogan[/email]