It was more than a camp; it was really a
community, and had somewhat the appearance of a frontier trading post.
In its construction very little bark had been taken from the wood; the
whole collection of buildings fitted well in their wild surroundings;
there wasn't a jarring note.
But Temple Camp was unique not only in its extent, its rustic character
and its magnificent situation; it was the fulfilment of a grand dream
which John Temple had dreamed. Any troop of scouts could, by making
timely application to the trustees, go to Temple Camp and remain three
weeks without so much as a cent of cost. There was to be absolutely no
favoritism of any kind (and Jeb Rushmore was the man to see to that),
not even in the case of the Bridgeboro Troop; except that troops from
cities were to be given preference over troops from country districts.
Jeb Rushmore was to be the camp manager, working with the trustees and
the visiting scoutmasters; but as it turned out he became a character in
this scout village, and if he fell short in executive capacity he more
than made up for it in other ways. Before the first season was over
people came miles to see him. There were also a doctor and a cook,
though a troop occupying a cabin could do its own cooking and mess by
itself if it chose.
There were some rather interesting rules and regulations. If a scout won
a merit badge while at camp this entitled his whole troop to lengthen
its stay by two days, if it so elected.
Pages:
102
103
104
105
106
107
108
109
110
111
112
113
114
115
116
117
118
119
120
121
122
123
124
125
126