| The honors of the Camp Fire
Girls are devices by which wholesome activities
may be divided into "measurable
bundles" and social recognition and status
given for accomplishment. Standards.
The effectiveness of this whole honor plan
depends upon the good judgment of the Guardian.
In interpreting what degree of excellence is
demanded for any honor she must bear in mind the
other honors. For example, to identify and
describe twenty wild flowers may be made so easy
that a girl with a good memory would qualify by
an hour or two of work, or it could be made so
difficult that it would involve weeks and weeks
of work. Common sense is needed here. It is of no
help to the girls to give them their honors
easily. On the other hand, to make them very
difficult will tend only to discourage them. Each
honor should be won by good honest work. Any
other way serves only to hurt the girl. One
reason why there are so many elective honors is
that girls of all kinds, of all ages, tastes,
training, and home life may find those which fit
them.
REQUIRED HONORS--FOR
RANK OF FIRE MAKER
(I) To help prepare
and serve, together with the other candidates, at
least two meals for meetings of the Camp Fire;
this to include purchase of food, cooking, and
serving the meal, and care of fire. (All
candidates work in rotation; that is, each does a
different part of the work each time.) A typical
meal to be cooked with an open fire on one of the
tramps consists of cream of tomato soup, potatoes
baked in ashes, bacon broiled on green sticks,
with bread, butter and lettuce brought from home
ready for sandwiches. For an indoor dinner to be
prepared in rather small quarters on a gas range
with the help of a fireless cooker, left over
meat chopped for a chartreuse with rice and
tomato sauce, a green salad with a cooked
dressing, and individual sponge cakes would make
a good menu.
(2) To mend a pair
of stockings, a knitted under-garment, and hem
some necessary article, requiring at least a yard
in length of hem. Use the sewing machine if
practical, and also the attachments for hemming
(3) To keep a
written classified account of all money received
and spent for at least one month.
(4) To tie a square
knot five times in succession correctly and
without hesitation.
(5) To sleep with
open windows or out of doors for at least one
month.
(6) To take an
average of at least half an hour daily outdoor
exercise for not less than a month.
(7) To refrain from
chewing gum, candy, sundaes, sodas, and
commercially manufactured beverages between meals
for at least one month.
(8) To name the
chief causes of infant mortality in summer. Tell
how and to what extent it has been reduced in one
community. In a city, there may be an opportunity
to visit a milk station, to see the babies
brought in and weighed and to see there what is
being done by that particular city. The work of a
number of cities has appeared in illustrated
magazine articles, which may be found by an index
to current periodicals.
(9)
To know what to do in the following emergencies:
- Clothing on fire
- Person in deep water
who cannot swim both in summer and
through ice in winter.
- Open cut.
- Frosted foot.
- Fainting.
(10)
To know the principles of elementary bandaging
and how to use surgeon's plaster.
(11)
To know what a girl of her age needs to know
about herself.
This is a
requirement in knowledge of personal hygiene to
include the best use of hot and cold baths, care
of the hands, cleanliness of the hair and its
appropriate dressing, the encouragement of good
teeth and a sweet breath. The girl should know
the care of the eyes in respect to good light and
occasional relaxation by glancing to a distance
when reading or doing other close work. She
should know the normal requirements of sleep and
out-of-door exercise for her age, the suitable
dress for cold or wet weather, the proper care of
the feet and proper selection of footwear,
especially for school, work, and tramping, simple
preventives of constipation through regularity,
exercise, and attractive laxative foods. She
should know those intimate things which careful
mothers tell their daughters about the personal
life of women and something of the delightful
results of a happy attitude to all about her.
(12)
To commit to memory any good poem or song not
less than twenty-five lines in length.
(13)
To know the career of some woman who has done
much for the country or state.
(14)
To know and sing all the words of the national
anthem.
In
addition the candidate shall present twenty
Elective Honors. At least one honor must be won
in each group and with the exception of Home
Craft not more than five honors may be presented
from any one group.
ELECTIVE
HONORS
Elective
Honors form the basis of Camp Fire work. These
honors may be won in seven crafts, each craft
being symbolized by a distinctively colored bead..
BIG HONORS
These
will be awarded to any Fire Maker over fourteen
years of age who wins elective honors as follows:
The Big
Honor beads are a special shape,--large,
decorative, and are of the same colors as the
Elective Honor beads.
TORCH
BEARER HONORS
A special
honor will be given to any Torch Bearer over
sixteen years of age who passes advanced tests in
such subjects as water sports, star lore,
dancing, outdoor cooking, indoor cooking,
story-telling, horseback riding, mountain
climbing, housekeeping, singing, playing any
musical instrument, writing plays, or pantomime
plays based on fairy stories, hiking lore, any
special branch of nature lore, fire lore, any
special branch of handcraft, or patriotism. The
nature of the honor given and how it is to be won
will be described in future numbers of Wohelo.
These tests will be based on usefulness to the
Camp Fire Girls' plan or idea. For example,
mountain climbing would mean that the candidate
had climbed mountains of certain difficulty, knew
how to equip a party of girls for this work, and
had actually directed such a trip.
LOCAL
HONORS
Some Camp
Fires have special needs or opportunities that
are not provided for under the elective honors in
connection with which it seems wise to offer some
honor. Any Camp Fire may create local honors and
award special beads or other emblems for such
honors. These local honors do not, however, count
toward the rank of Fire Maker or Torch Bearer.
NATIONAL
HONORS
Special
decorations for the ceremonial dress have been
adopted for award to those who send to the
National Office of the Camp Fire Girls original
ideas, songs, poems, plays, drawings,
photographs, Camp Fire Girls' stories, counts
kept or decorated in particularly beautiful or
original ways, headbands, original and beautiful
ways of wearing honors, and suggestions as to the
design of Camp Fire Girls' clothing or other
articles for use. These National Honors are
graded as follows:
(1)
The "Uta" honor; meaning effort.
Given for any effort, however humble.
(2)
The "Keda" honor; meaning to think
hard. Given for work showing deep thought and
excellence.
(3)
The "Shuta" honor; meaning to
create. Given for material which can be used
in part or adapted for use in National work,
or those showing especially fine Camp Fire
spirit.
(4)
The "Wakan" honor; meaning
inspiration. Given for articles or
suggestions of excellent quality which are
acceptable for use in Wohelo, the Handbook,
etc.
ELECTIVE
HONORS
Any
attainment described in the following lists
entitles the girl to as many honors as there are
stars after the honor, e.g., one honor, two
honors, etc. Each honor so won counts toward rank
of Fire Maker or Torch Bearer the first time it
is won.
Repeat
for Rank honors are those which count for rank of
Fire Maker or Torch Bearer each time they are won
in a new way, e. g., "Do any two standard
dives in good form." The first time the
Front and Back may be presented, the second time
the Back and Front from a run may be accepted;
or, with a chafing dish, "prepare four
appetizing dishes." When this is to be won a
second time the dishes presented must be
different from those presented the first time.
These honors, which may be repeated and count
toward the rank of Fire Maker or Torch Bearer,
are called "Repeat for Rank Honors."
They are marked with a capital "R."
Some
honors may be repeated indefinitely and the
proper bead awarded each time, but count for rank
only the first time they are won. For example, a
girl walks forty miles in ten days and wins her
red honor, and counts it toward her rank of Torch
Bearer or Fire Maker. She may win this over and
over again and receive a red bead each time, but
these repetitions do not count for rank. Such
honors are marked with a circle "o."
Honors
for Camp Fire work may be counted only from the
date of the organization of the Camp Fire. The
members of the Camp Fire, with the exception of
the Guardian, are not entitled to credit for
honors won before the Guardian has received her
certificate of appointment from the National
Board. The Guardian is entitled to honors for
past attainments.
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