CAMP FIRE YARN NO. 17
HOW TO GROW STRONG
Need for Scouts to Be Strong - Exercises
- Care of Body - Nose - Ears - Eyes – Teeth Nails
Practices
HINTS TO INSTRUCTORS
PRACTICES IN DEVELOPING STRENGTH
It is of paramount importance to teach the young citizen to assume responsibility for his own development and health.
Physical drill is all very well as a disciplinary means of development, but it does not give the lad any responsibility in the matter.
It is therefore deemed preferable to tell each boy, according to his age, what ought to be his weight, height, and various measurements (such as chest, waist, arm, leg, etc.). He is then measured, and learns in which points he fails to come up to the standard. He can then be shown which exercises to practise for himself in order to develop those particular points.
Encouragement must afterwards be given by periodical measurements, say, every three months or so.
Teach how to make camp tooth-brushes out of sticks.
A SCOUT LAY SICK IN HOSPITAL in India with that most fatal disease called cholera. The doctor told the native attending him that the only chance of saving his life was to warm up his feet and keep the blood moving in his body by constantly rubbing him.
The moment the doctor’s back was turned, the native gave up rubbing and squatted down to have a quiet smoke.
The poor patient, though he could not speak, understood all that was going on, and he was so enraged at the conduct of the native attendant that he resolved then and there that he would get well if only to give the native a lesson. Having made up his mind to get well he got well.
A Scout saying is “Never say die till you’re dead”— and if he acts up to this, it will pull him out of many a bad place when everything seems to be going wrong for him. It means a mixture of pluck, patience, and strength, which we call “endurance.”
A Sample of Endurance
The great South African hunter and scout, F. C. Selous, gave a good example of scouts’ endurance on a hunting expedition in Barotseland, north of the Zambesi River, some years ago. In the middle of the night his camp was suddenly attacked by a hostile tribe, that fired into it at close range and charged in.
He and his small party of natives scattered at once into the darkness and hid themselves away in the long grass. Selous himself had snatched up his rifle and a few cartridges and got safely into the grass. But he could not find any of his men, and, seeing that the enemy had taken possession of his camp, and that there were still a few hours of darkness before him in which to make his escape, he started off southward, using the stars of the Southern Cross as his guide.
He crept past an outpost of the enemy whom he overheard talking, then swam across a river and finally got well away, only dressed in a shirt, shorts, and shoes. For the next few days and nights he kept walking southward, frequently hiding to avoid hostile natives. He shot deer for food.
But one night, going into what he thought was a friendly village, he had his rifle stolen from him, and was again a fugitive, without any means of protecting himself or of getting food. However, he was not one to give in while there was a chance of life left, and he pushed on and on till at length he reached a place where he met some of his men who had also escaped. After further tramping they got safely back into friendly country.
But what a terrible time they must have had!
Three weeks had passed since the attack, and the great part of that time Selous had been alone—hunted, starving, bitterly cold at night, and in sweltering heat by day.
None but a scout with extraordinary endurance could have lived through it, but then Selous was a man who as a lad had made himself strong by care and exercise. And he kept up his pluck all the time.
It shows you that if you want to get through such adventures safely when you are a man and not be a slopper, you must train yourself to be strong, healthy, and active as a lad.
The Wrong Way to Endurance
A man told me recently with great pride that he was teaching his son endurance by making him do long marches and bicycle runs. I told the man that he was likely to do just the opposite for his boy—that the way for a lad to gain endurance was not by trying to perform feats, as these would very probably injure his heart and break him down, but by making himself strong and healthy, by good feeding and moderate exercise, so that when he became a man and his muscles were all “set” he could then go through hardships and strains where another weaker man would fail.
Exercises and their Object
There is a great deal of nonsense done in the way of bodily exercises—so many people seem to think that their only object is to make huge muscle. But to make yourself strong and healthy it is necessary to begin with your inside and to get the blood into good order and the heart to work well. That is the secret of the whole thing, and exercises of the body do it for you. This is the way:
(a) MAKE THE HEART STRONG to pump the blood properly to every part of the body, and so to build up flesh, bone, and muscle. Exercise: The “Struggle” and “Wrist Pushing.” See page 220.
(b) MAKE THE LUNGS STRONG to provide the blood with fresh air. Exercise: “Deep Breathing.” See page 210.
(c) MAKE THE SKIN PERSPIRE to get rid of the dirt from the blood. Exercise: Bath, or dry rub with a damp towel every day.
(d) MAKE THE STOMACH WORK to feed the blood. Exercise: “Cone,” or “Body Bending” and “Twisting.” See pages 210
and 211.
(e) MAKE THE BOWELS ACTIVE to remove the remains of food and dirt from the body. Exercise: “Body Bending” and “Kneading the Abdomen.” Drink plenty of good water. Regular daily “rear."
(f) WORK MUSCLES IN EACH PART OF THE BODY to make the blood circulate to that part, and so increase your strength.
Exercise: Running and Walking and special exercises of special muscles, such as “Wrist Pushing” (page 220), etc.
The secret of keeping well and healthy is to keep your blood clean and active. These different exercises will do that if you will use them every day.
The blood thrives on simple good food, plenty of exercise, plenty of fresh air, cleanliness of the body both inside and out, and proper rest of body and mind at intervals.
Six Exercises for Health
It is possible for almost any boy, even though he may be small and weak, to make himself into a strong and healthy man if he takes the trouble to do a few body exercises every day. They only take about ten minutes, and do not require any kind of apparatus.