Boy Scouts

[anotheoldgit]

Scouting was brought up on a recent thread, and it got me wondering, why was it that during my days of being a Boy Scout, a sheath knife, a small axe and a stout ash pole was all part and parcel of a Boy Scout's equipment.

What has changed to make the carrying of these items both socially unacceptable and also illegal?

[Sqad]

Yes....thank you JTH for that valuable contribution.

[Jackdaw33]

Ging gang goolie goolie goolie goolie watcha,
Ging gang goo, ging gang goo.
Ging gang goolie goolie goolie goolie watcha,
Ging gang goo, ging gang goo.

Hayla, oh hayla shayla, hayla shayla, shayla, oooooooh,
Hayla, oh hayla shayla, hayla shayla, shayla, oooh.
Shally wally, shally wally, shally wally, shally wally,
Oompah, oompah, oompah, oompah.

[anotheoldgit]

melv16

We didn't have television aerials in my day, we did however have radio aerials but they consisted of a very stout pole set in the ground at the bottom of the garden, with a wire attached on which was fixed special porcelain items so as to stop the birds from settling on the wire, this wire then stretched from the pole to the house, and into the back of the radio.

The radio also had to have an earth, this was a piece of copper pipe driven into the soil attached was a piece of copper wire and the other end also into the back of the radio.

Forgive me for the trip down memory lane.

[stuey]

I'm looking at my ATC log book right now. "R.A.F. Form 3822; RECORD of SERVICE". Number 2286 Arden Squadon, Keresley End Nr Coventry. It brings back some great memories, including a week spent at R.A.F. St Athan in Wales.

[mrblear]

The Model Shop in Wilmslow stocked air guns, bows and arrows (metal tipped) knives (throwing and sheath), catapults etc. We carried these weapons through the streets without anyone bothering. It's amazing how things have changed.

[melv16]

Couldn't resist.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Mq59ykPnAE

[stuey]

And don't forget that dastardly weapon of multitudinous wounds...The pea-shooter!

[Jackdaw33]

...and the spud gun.

[Retrochic]

I got some spud guns to sell in my retro shop and they literally flew of the shelves -average age of buyer I would estimate 55 -66 lol!

[anotheoldgit]

Jackdaw33

Did you sing this around the camp-fire?

I went to the animal fair,
The birds and beasts where there,
The big baboon by the light of the moon was, combing his auburn hair.
The monkey fell out of his bunk and slid down the elephant's trunk,
The elephant sneezed and fell on it's knees,
And that was the end of the monkey, monkey, monkey.

Then while the monkey, monkey, was continuing another half would start off once again at the beginning, "I went to the animal fair".....

Cause you can imagine that those singing the monkey bit, would also be doing their own monkey impressions, just to try and make the others laugh.

[anotheoldgit]

And of course the Pop-Gun.

[anotheoldgit]

Another weapon we had the blow pipe.

We would go to our local chemist and buy one foot of glass tubing, shred a piece of silk to attach around the end a darning needle, insert it in the tube and blow.

[stuey]

AOG, just how many shrunken heads do you have in your collection, and what type of badge did you get?

[shoota]

You still may carry these articles as long as you have 'good reason'.
So if popping down the shopping centre for a coffee you would be unable to show good reason for carrying a knife, if you were trawling the woods for edible fungi you would.
Discussed here: http://www.theanswerbank.co.uk/Law/Question1476548.html

[shoota]

By the way, I still do carry a stout pole with me....

[Peter Pedant]

Thank God for shoota
on the given thread hc has put up a very useful URL which answers all the uuestions about knife carrying and so long as you would be in uniform and being a scout it would count as a defence to a charge of possession

also of interest is
(3)This section applies to a folding pocketknife if the cutting edge of its blade exceeds 3 inches.

which I think exempt cubby and scout penknives innit ?

[anotheoldgit]

Peter Pedant

/// which I think exempt cubby and scout penknives innit ? ///

A sheath knife is not a folding penknife.

[weecalf]

I would have thought that if you were only gonna get a bob a job you were not gonna go to the expense of bringing a JCB