THE OUTDOOR WORLD 



229 







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OUTDOOR WORLD 



BMSfe 



The Camp Fire Girls. 



The best thing in the handbook of 

 the Camp Fire Girls is almost its 

 shortest paragraph under the heading, 

 "Object:" 



"Its object is to add the power of 

 organization and charm of romance to 

 work, health and play." 



I particularly like that expression, 

 "the power of organization and charm 

 of romance," for most of the pleas- 

 ures of life are in the mental anticipa- 

 tion and in our ideals. There is no 

 greater incentive to well doing than 

 our association with others. Long ago 

 Thomas Hood sang" of the pleasures 

 of a home, and a home is merely an 

 organized body. The joy of having a 

 home is the joy of working in co- 

 operation with others. All other 

 organizations are largely on the same 

 principle. That "power of organiza- 

 tion" is one of the great incentives in 

 working for nature through The 

 Agassiz Association. When the ideals 

 of any commendable organization are 

 realized what a "charm of romance" 

 there is about it. Take, for example. 

 Masonry, one of the oldest of organized 

 brotherhoods. Is there anything pret- 

 tier in it than the compass that ex- 

 tends around the lives of all the mem- 

 bers that are "on the square?" The 

 square and comoass in themselves are 

 only matter-of-fact tools used by the 

 carpenter and the mason, but when 

 they become emblems what a "charm 

 of romance" they have. To hang on 

 the wall a pennant of green baize 

 bearing the letters A A in gold, is per- 

 haps no more decorative than the pen- 

 nant of a foot-ball team, but when one 

 stops to consider the "charm of ro- 

 mance" in the fact that those golden 

 letters represent the oldest and largest 



organization in the world for the study 

 of nature — the golden sun on the green 

 fields — there is the "charm of ro- 

 mance" woven about the whole world. 



The Camp Fire Girls have started 

 aright. Their commendable purpose is 

 ideally expressed, with one possible 

 exception. We could wish that they 

 had mentioned a rather more definite 

 purpose for their outdoor interests. 

 Yet that is perhaps comprised in the 

 words, "health and play." 



The qualifications for Guardian are 

 well expressed and of importance : 



"It is important that she have the 

 out-of-door spirit and be somewhat 

 familiar with the out-of-door life and 

 activities ; and that she understand the 

 meaning of the home and the opportu- 

 nities for doing important things in 

 the home in an interesting way. She 

 should be a woman wdio wants to be 

 with girls because she enjoys it, rather 

 than because she merely thinks it her 

 duty. The work requires real devotion 

 and enterprise on the part of the Guar- 

 dian and the greater her enthusiasm 

 and health, the better; the more na- 

 tural her leadership, the better." 



An important point of view in any 

 organization is well expressed in the 

 ualifi cations required for membership. 

 The candidate must first of all become 

 a wood gatherer. She does not find 

 the cam]) fire ready burning, but she 

 starts at the beginning and goes into 

 the thicket to find fuel. She is re- 

 quired to do that herself — no one goes 

 with her and she uses her own common 

 sense in finding that bit of fuel. Then 

 she, with others, takes it to a common 

 center and makes the fire. O, you 

 members of The Agassiz Association, 

 and those who have inquired about 

 membership, hark ye to this. How 



