By Robert De Groat
Winter is a good time for collecting wood for miniature poles and carving
objects, as the sap is down and the wood will season quicker. It is also the
time of year when fellows are trying to decide what to give for Christmas
presents.
What could be nobler than to carve some object to give to your Troop in return for what it is giving you?
If your Troop Den has Patrol comers, it is a fine idea to have your totem in your corner. Some Patrols have their own den and meeting place. In that case it is easy to carve individual totems.
The plans for several large public buildings of recent construction include a
Scout Room. In one case (Young Men's Hebrew Association building Necarsulmer and
Lehbach, and Gerhon, Ross and Alley, Associated Architects) the ceiling beams
are heavy and have some carving on them, the windows are wide, suggestive of
pioneer days is a carved totem crest over the fireplace at one end of the room.
Building committees are recognizing the importance of Scouting and are including
it as an integral part of their plans, with the result that the number of Scout
rooms are rapidly increasing. If your Troop is fortunate enough to have such a
room, what could tell the Troop history better than this symbolic, legendary way
of massive carving on a totem pole?
Surely some member or members of your Troop are artistically inclined. Get them to make a few rough sketches of the possibilities for decoration in the Troop room and show them to the rest of the Troop. You'll find as a rule that anything on paper is generally a big step toward accomplishment.
After you have the rough sketches, perhaps touched up with a bit of crayon or water color, you'll find them very effective in getting your Troop Committee interested enough to take action and give the necessary permission to go ahead with the decoration of your room.
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