Transcriber's note:

Page numbers are enclosed in curly braces, e.g. {99}. They are located where page breaks occurred in the original book. Paragraphs are not broken.

When a paragraph flows around illustrations the "next" page immediately preceding or following the illustrations jumps to account for the pages occupied by the illustrations. The location of the paragraph following the illustration group is indicated as {52 continued}. The material following {10}, up to the next {}, is on page 10, even if the next page number is not 11.

Horizontal lines indicate the boundaries of segments such as advertisements or complex diagrams.

BOY SCOUTS HANDBOOK The First Edition, 1911



BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA

Boy Scouts of America
Official National Out
SIGMUND EISNER

New York Salesrooms
103 Fifth Avenue
Red Bank. N. J.

Each part of the uniform is stamped with the official seal of the Boy Scouts of America.

If there is no agency for the official uniform in your city write for samples.

SIGMUND EISNER

Manufacturer of U. S. Army and National Guard Uniform

The Best Food for The Boy Scouts is



Shredded Wheat

because it has all the muscle-building, bone-making material in the whole wheat grain prepared in a digestible form, supplying all the strength needed for work or play. It is ready-cooked and ready-to-eat. It has the greatest amount of body-building nutriment in smallest bulk. Its crispness compels thorough mastication, and the more you chew it the better you like it. Shredded Wheat is the favorite food of athletes. It is on the training table of nearly every college and university in this country. The records show that the winners of many brilliant rowing and track events have been trained on Shredded Wheat.

The BISCUIT is in little loaf form. It is baked a crisp, golden brown. It is eaten with milk or cream, or fruit, or is delicious when eaten as a toast with butter. TRISCUIT is the Shredded Wheat wafer---the ideal food for the camp or the long tramp.

Building buster boys is bully business--that's the reason we want to help the Boy Scout movement.

The Shredded Wheat Company
Niagara Falls, N. Y.

Getting the final word before hiking

BOY SCOUTS of AMERICA

THE OFFICIAL HANDBOOK
FOR BOYS



Published for
THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA
200 FIFTH AVENUE
NEW YORK

GARDEN CITY, NEW YORK
DOUBLEDAY, PAGE & COMPANY
1911


COPYRIGHT 1911
BY BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA

BOY SCOUT CERTIFICATE

This is to certify that _________
of ___________ State of _________
Street and City or Town address


Age_____ Height_____ Weigh_____

is a member of ________ Patrol, of Troop No. _____

________________
Scout Master


SCOUT HISTORY

Qualified as Tenderfoot ________ 191_

Second Class Scout _________ 191_

First Class Scout _______ 191_


QUALIFIED FOR MERIT BADGES

Qualified as Life Scout ________________

Qualified as Star Scout ________________

Qualified as Eagle Scout ________________

Awarded Honor Medal ________________

{v}

PREFACE

The Boy Scout Movement has become almost universal, and wherever organized its leaders are glad, as we are, to acknowledge the debt we all owe to Lieut.-Gen. Sir Robert S. S. Baden-Powell, who has done so much to make the movement of interest to boys of all nations.

The BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA is a corporation formed by a group of men who are anxious that the boys of America should come under the influence of this movement and be built up in all that goes to make character and good citizenship. The affairs of the organization are managed by a National Council, composed of some of the most prominent men of our country, who gladly and freely give their time and money that this purpose may be accomplished.

In the various cities, towns, and villages, the welfare of the boy scouts is cared for by local councils, and these councils, like the National Council are composed of men who are seeking for the boys of the community the very best things.

In order that the work of the boy scouts throughout America may be uniform and intelligent, the National Council has prepared its "Official Handbook," the purpose of which is to furnish to the patrols of the boy scouts advice in practical methods, as well as inspiring information.

The work of preparing this handbook has enlisted the services of men eminently fitted for such work, for each is an expert in his own department, and the Editorial Board feels that the organization is to be congratulated in that such men have been found willing to give their time and ripe experience to this movement. It would be impossible adequately to thank all who by advice and friendly criticism have helped in the preparation of the book, or even to mention their names, but to the authors whose names are attached to the various chapters, we acknowledge an especial obligation. Without their friendly help this book could not be. We wish especially to express our appreciation of the helpful suggestions made by Daniel Carter Beard.

We have carefully examined and approved all the material which goes to make up {vi} the manual, and have tried to make it as complete as possible; nevertheless, no one can be more conscious than we are of the difficulty of providing a book which will meet all the demands of such widely scattered patrols with such varied interests. We have constantly kept in mind the evils that confront the boys of our country and have struck at them by fostering better things. Our hope is that the information needed for successful work with boy scouts will be found within the pages of this book.

In these pages and throughout our organization we have made it obligatory upon our scouts that they cultivate courage, loyalty, patriotism, brotherliness, self-control, courtesy, kindness to animals, usefulness, cheerfulness, cleanliness,