Wool Collecting

Items:
none

Directions:
Cut up some skeins of bright yarn into pieces about a foot long. With this lay the trail across country. It goes without saying that the permission of the farmers over whose land you travel is first obtained, and patrols are given strict orders to shut all gates after them, and not to break through fences. Do not put all the wool on the ground, but tie some of the pieces to gates and hedges, on low branches of trees, and so on, leaving about twenty yards between each piece. Then two or more patrols are started on the trail, the idea being to follow the trail as expeditiously as possible, and at the same time to collect all the pieces of wool. When a Scout sees a piece he gives his patrol-call loudly in order that the rest of the boys of both patrols may know where the trail was last sighted, and he at once hands over the wool he has found to his Patrol-leader. While the scouting is in progress no boy may give his patrol-call except when he has hit off the trail. The patrol wins whose leader has at the end of the run collected most pieces of wool. Points will also be given for ingenuity displayed by the Scouts in spreading out and making the best use of their numbers. This game gives a good opportunity for the Scoutmaster to notice who the best individual trackers are. If the trail is ingeniously laid the resourcefulness of the Scouts will be put to a severe test. This form of scouting has one great advantage over the use of tracking irons. The signs to be found are not all on the ground, so Scouts learn to look upward for signs and not keep their noses always on the ground.

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