AUGUST 31 ISSUE ANSWERS (photo to right): These are Romeo Boy Scouts. The Boy Scout movement was founded in Great Britain in 1908 by a cavalry officer, Lt. Gen. Robert S.S. (later Lord) Baden-Powell, who had written a book called Scouting for Boys but was better known as the defender of the town of Mafeking in the South African (or Boer) War. He noticed during the battle how the youth helped defend the town. William D. Boyce brought the movement to America in 1910 as a result of a scout’s good turn when he was lost in a London fog. Many have heard of merit badges, but few know the original purpose for them. They were not designed as a source for decorating a scout’s uniform. They were a way for scouts to explore a potential occupation as the boy grew to manhood. An early list of some of the merit badges from the 1948 handbook lists earlier occupations suggested for young men: Hog and Pork Production, Farm Layout and Building Arrangement, Bookbinding, Textiles, Farm Records and Bookkeeping. Cotton Farming, Small Grains and Cereal Foods, Automobiling, Bugling, Radio, Signaling and Dairying. These were all introductions to a future occupation as the boy learned to be a better citizen. Richard Beringer, Romeo Historical Society staff