THE SCOUT JAMBOREE BOOK
American Scouts at the 3rd World Jamboree

Gateway to the American Camp

THE days sailed by and before we knew it we were getting toward the close of the jamboree. We had all been using the days to the full visiting foreign camps. We had made scores of friends from many different countries. We bad looked at pageants in the Arena and watched performances in the camp theater.

Every night we had participated in camp fires; some nights in our own Sub-Camps and other nights in other Sub-Camps. We bad spent hours in the shopping district and hours in talk with brother Scouts. Now we suddenly realized that we were drawing near to the farewell. What made us feel it especially was the fact that our next door neighbors, the Danes, were leaving. During the morning hours of Saturday their Camp disappeared as by magic and the only thing left was a big open space, empty and spotlessly clean. Still the Danes hadn't gone entirely. They were sticking around for the afternoon's display, after which they would all be off for London.

In our own Camp everything was in a bustle during that last Saturday. America, too, was putting on her display. At two o'clock we lined up our Troop area and then marched briskly across the parade grounds to the clearing behind the stands. As the big parade didn't begin until two-thirty we had a half hour's wait, so we sat round and watched the other Scouts arrive, all decked out in their costumes and finery. The Indians came, a bit subdued perhaps, but still energetic; then pioneers, Spanish Grandees, explorers, pilgrims and cowboys.

Finally the signal was given for the start of the parade. The flags quivered a little as they were hoisted on high and the procession moved. Only the uniformed Scouts were in the parade, as the costumed ones were to wait "behind the scenes" until our act commenced. We were among the latter but were able to get a partial view of the procession through an opening in the stands. It passed slowly around the field, flags flashing in the sunlight of a perfect day.

At last America and her pageant. With their tom-toms sounding, Indians slowly entered the Arena. Gradually they gathered near the huge tepee which was erected in the center of the Arena. The Medicine Man went forward towards the huge heap of logs and chips that would soon be the Council fire. Slowly he approached the pile, calling on the Great Spirit for fire. He drew nearer, and as he touched the logs, fire blazed upwards! Wildly the Spirit Dancer flung his body to the barbaric music of the tom-toms. Thus the Council opened. One by one the Indians entered, executing the Buffalo Dance, the Sun Dance, and the Circle Dance.

While these dances were going on Ponce de Leon, Balboa, and his soldiers, the pilgrims and then the pioneers and the "forty-niners" entered, each of them having a pantomime to perform.

We saw gold discovered by the "forty-niners"; saw Pocahontas save John Smith; and still further back, saw Balboa claiming the Pacific. Still they came: Indian chiefs, Massasoit, friend of the whites, followed by Tecumseh, enemy to the Pale Faces.

Bang! Bang! Bang! No, not the beginning of a Western Story but cowboys swinging their lariats and spinning their ropes.

"Uncle" Dan Beard received a tremendous ovation. He certainly looked great in a beautiful buckskin suit, and surrounded by Indians.

The pageant ceased. In its place came hundreds of Scouts in familiar khaki, building pyramids, playing games, and constructing pioneer bridges and towers. In practically no time at all a forty-foot signalling tower had been erected and a boy was at the top, vigorously waving a pair of Semaphore flags. Complete Adirondack camps were pitched, fires set going, and all the semblance of cooking an evening meal kept up. Every important American game was demonstrated. There were even two football elevens out there, pummeling each other with considerable relish.

All of a sudden a bugle, signal halted activities and the American Scouts gathered in the center of the Arena. Then with a lusty roar from 1,500 throats America greeted "B.-P."

The display was over. The performers passed out with Indians, historical characters and Scouts. A flash of color and a mass of khaki', with the excited cheers of the spectators still ringing in the ears of the boys, and the exhibition ended.

As America went off to the right, the Boy Scouts of Denmark approached on the left. They made a wonderful sight with Danish national flags at the head of a mass of white hats, white shorts and husky, young bodies. They marched up ready for a display of Danish gymnastics which they performed to perfection.

India came next with their "Baluchi" dance in ceremonial costume, then Greece with graceful classical dances; and Scotland doing its gay "Highland Fling."

There was more to come. Up over the Arena slowly moved a shining new Rolls

Royce with a caravan car attached. It halted in front of the grandstand and a couple of gentlemen appeared beside "B.P." on the little platform.

One of the new comers was the President of the Danish Boy Scout Association, the father of an idea. He thought that it would be fitting that the Scouts of the World at this jamboree should offer their Chief a gift in token of their appreciation. Therefore, long before the jamboree, he wrote to the different countries to be represented, and suggested that each Scout pay a nickel toward such a presentation.

The idea was gladly accepted everywhere and the car in front of the stand was the proof that "Poor Richard" was correct when he said "Many a mickle makes a muckle"

if that is what he said. For Boy Scout nickels had bought that wonderful car! But the car and the trailer, the "Jam-roll" as it was called, wasn't all. There was a painting too, a check for $14,000 and an illuminated scroll, containing the names of all the participating countries!

You could feel that "B.P." appreciated the gift when he thanked us. There was a warmth and gladness in his voice and a smile in his eyes when he told us how those having the matter in charge had approached his wife to find out what he wanted; and how he had told her that the only thing he could think of was a pair of braces. Then instead he had received these marvelous gifts!

He surely deserved it all; and evidently the other Scouts felt the same way for they greeted him with cheer after cheer when he, with Lady Baden-Powell, their son Peter, and Heather and Betty their daughters, stepped into the car and rode round the Arena.

That was that. And by the way, since he had mentioned the subject, during the next few days the Chief Scout of the World was presented with five pairs of braces!

That Sunday was the greatest visitors' day during the whole jamboree. More than fifty thousand people came to see us in the good weather we had. They were all over the place, a perfect stampede. They simply swarmed into the American camp. Everyone of them seemed to have some sort of book for us to autograph. From the amount of things we signed one might have thought we came over from America as heroes in a trans-Atlantic plane instead of by ordinary boat as ordinary fellows. The crowds were especially interested in our games and Indian dances, and would stand around for hours watching them.

They liked to watch us cook, too. One curious fellow kicked over our pan of biscuits and another one knocked our stovepipe over into a pan of beans. Each one exclaimed: "I'm sorry!" but of course we returned: "That's all right. The biscuits weren't good anyway and we like soot in our beans!"

During our spare moments many of us tried to write home, but with our heads being filled with: "Did you come from America? Have you any badges to swap? Are the Indians wild?" our letters probably sounded like cross word puzzles! When we went to change clothes people peered into the tents. Finally we began to feel like monkeys in a cage.

We had a lot of fun with the crowds, though. They weren't such a bad bunch after all; and since they apparently had brought along magnificent weather we forgave them easily enough for their overwhelming numbers.

That night there were camp fires all over the camp which turned out to be some of the best ones during the whole jamboree period. Many of us strolled from one to the other, picking up a song here, a joke there and a stunt the third place and were more than satisfied.

Sunday, too, was a real day with lots of sunshine and streets like concrete. Not a drop of mud was found in the whole camp that day except on the shoes of a few Scouts who had forgotten that the eleventh point of our Law also refers to our outside appearance.

So finally we got to Monday the twelfth of August, 1929, the last day of the third International jamboree.

During the morning, camp after camp was coming down, tent after tent disappeared, group after group trekked out of the Park. But for a time during the afternoon the work of breaking camp was suspended while we all went to the Arena for the final displays and a farewell to our Chief.

We couldn't help but feel that there was a stir of regret in the air. It had been such a wonderful time in spite of rain and mud.

After the displays came the farewell march past Baden-Powell. There was a wild cheer from each of the contingents as they greeted that grand old man on the small platform. Then came one of the most impressive and symbolic ceremonies we had ever witnessed.

The rostrum was suddenly brought by willing hands to the center of the Arena where it formed the hub of a tremendous jamboree Wheel of friendship, a wheel of twenty

one spokes all formed by boys that had come together in Scouting spirit.

The Chief Scout stood up and silence fell among the boys.

"Here is the hatchet of war, of enmity, of bad feelings, which I now bury in Arrowe," said the Chief, at the same time burying a hatchet in a cask of gilded wooden arrows.

A storm of cheers broke from the assembled legions.

"From all corners of the world," he continued, "you came to the call of brotherhood to Arrowe. Now I send you forth to your home land, bearing the song of peace, and good will, and fellowship to all your fellowmen. From now on the symbol of peace and good will is a golden arrow. Carry that arrow on and on, so that all may know of the brotherhood of men.

The Chief then proceeded to send golden arrows toward all corners of the globe. They flew from hand to hand down along the spokes of the human wheel until they had reached the whole way down the line. As we stood in the center of one of the spokes we had a wonderful feeling, when the golden arrows sped by us, that we were making a pledge to do our best to live up to our wonderful Chief's expectations.

And then he bade us goodbye!

"Go forth from here as ambassadors of good will and friendship. I can only say now, 'Goodbye to you. Farewell.' I hope you will come again to the next jamboree, as many of you as can, and make a success of it as you have made a success of this one. Try to carry on your Scout work in the meantime. Try to make yourselves better Scouts than ever. Try to help other boys, especially the poorer boys, to come and be happy, healthy and helpful citizens like yourselves.

"And now, farewell, goodbye, and God bless you all."

There was wild cheering, in which some of us couldn't take part, because there was such a lump in our throats. One of the most glorious experiences of our lives had come to a close. All these boys around us, that fine old man on the platform, the tents, the trees had become our friends. We couldn't bear the thought that we had to leave.