Scouting, Volume 24, Number 9, September 1936 Page: 12
This periodical is part of the collection entitled: Scouting Magazine and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.
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SHIM
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■
*
Hi
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§■■■■
mk
Dog holding back as blind man
steps off ahead.
WE have in the United States
about 10,000 blind people
who could use to economi-
cal advantage Seeing Eye dogs as
guides and companions. Of these how-
ever, many are not physically able to
undertake the training course at the
time they first apply for a dog guide.
In those cases he may be referred to
the Boy Scout Troop in his neighbor-
hood. The greatest part of the prep-
aration is physical, as a rather stren-
uous physical effort must be made by
the blind during their month of in-
struction at the school. Many blind
persons who apply for a dog guide
have had little exercise other than slow
walking with a member of their family
on whom they depend entirely. Many
others have spent weeks, months, or
even years in arm chairs and are not
ready to do the amount of walking
that is necessary in learning to use a
canine pair of eyes. They have not
learned' to walk by themselves or to
think and give directions.
The Blind to do the Directing
Usually, when a Boy Scout comes
to take one of the blind men for a
walk, the first thing the blind man will
say is, "Well, take me down past the
Post Office, and around the block, and
back." In that way he is leaving it to
the boy to decide where all the turns
are to be made, follow the route he
has given, and get them home safely.
Now the first thing the Boy Scout
must do is to insist that the sightless
The See
lV/TANY Scouters are familiar with
the work with the Seeing Eye,
that organization which trains Ger-
man Shepherd dogs to act as guides
to the blind. We present a fine op-
portunity for a Troop Good Turn
project. Learn how much Boy Scouts
are needed for preliminary training
man direct him at every turn just as
later he will have to direct the dog.
The blind man cannot direct his dog
guide in the same way that he would
direct a human guide. Therefore, all
of the direction commands given by the
blind should be limited to "Forward,"
"Right," and "Left." The Scout
should insist that the blind person leave
his cane at home and should not let him
lean with too much weight on his
guide.
As they start on their walk, the Boy
Scout should give his right arm, or
rather his right elbow to the blind
man whom he is to lead, and stand
quietly until the man says "All right,
forward," just as though the Scout
were the dog guide. The Scout should
go forward, even though that is the
incorrect command and then they im-
mediately come to the curb in front of
The blind must feel for the
cause of stopping.
Page Twelve
The dog stops as a signal
for curbs or obstacles.
■■
The Scout does not turn
until the blind has com-
manded "left."
Are You Taking New Scouts Into Your Troop?
The man directs "left,1
then the dog guides.
SCOUTING
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Boy Scouts of America. Scouting, Volume 24, Number 9, September 1936, periodical, September 1936; New York, New York. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth313019/m1/12/: accessed April 26, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Boy Scouts of America National Scouting Museum.