Eyes

A Scout, of course, must have particularly good eyesight-he must be able to see a long way off. By practising your eyes in looking at things at a great distance, they will grow stronger. While you are young you should save your eyes as much as possible. Avoid reading by poor light, and sit with your side to the light when doing any work during the day. If you sit facing the light it strains your eyes.

Eye strain is a common failure with growing boys, although very often they do not know it. Headaches come frequently from the eyes being strained. If a boy frowns, it is generally a sign of eye strain.

A Scout, besides having good eyesight, must be able to tell the colour of things which he sees. Colour blindness is a trouble from which some boys suffer. It takes away a pleasure from them, and it makes them almost useless for certain trades and professions. For instance, a railway signalman or engine-driver or a sailor would not be much good if he couldn't tell the difference between red and green.

It can sometimes be overcome. A way of doing this, if you find you are rather colour blind, is to get a collection of little bits of wool, or paper, of different colours, and pick out which you think is red, blue, yellow, green, and so on, and then get someone to tell you where you were right and where wrong. Then go at it again, and in time you will find yourself improving, until you have no difficulty in recognizing the colours.

Author

Lord Baden-Powell of Gilwell (Chief Scout, London, UK)

Date of Creation

1908

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