Mutual Work

MutualJWork

Stake Work

Suggestive Preliminary Program

General topic: "Mountains."

Hymns: "Our Mountain Home So Dear," "O Ye MountainsHigh," "For the Strength of the Hills.'"

Talk: "The Influence of Mountains;" or, "The Rocky Moun-tains;" or, "Mountains in Relation to Prophecy."

Solo: "There is a Place in Utah," L. D. S. Psalmody, p. 328.

Stories: "A Thunderstorm in the Wasatch," Contributor, Vol. 10,p. 372; "A Mountain Thunderstorm," Era, Vol. 18, p. Ill; "The GreatStone Face." Select one.

Suggestive Subjects for Addresses

'Rich Without Money." "The Door of Success is Labeled

"The Man with a Purpose." Push."

"Room at the Top." "Labor Opens the Gate."

Questions for March

Stake Superintendents and ward Presidents will please notice thefollowing questions for consideration in the March monthly stakemeetings, to be reported upon by the stake officers to the General Sec-retary, no later than April 1. A number of stake officers did not re-port by March 1, on the February questions. Please be prompt thistime and report by April 1:

1. Which of the 18 suggestions in the "Hand Book," pages 20-26,have you adopted, to enable you to keep up your attendance until theclose of the year? (For a new suggestion see the one adopted in thePioneer stake and mentioned in this number of the Era.)

2. What is your Stake Secretary doing to insure a prompt annualreport from the wards, so that he may report on time to the GeneralOffice?

3. What steps are being taken to comply with the requirementsmade in the Church-Stake Contest Report? (See March Era andJournal for statement and blank form.)

4. Enclose with your report this month a copy of your M. I. A.Day program for this year. In case your program is not ready, statewhat you are doing for a definite M. I. A. Day program.

Keeping Up the Attendance

Officers of the Y. M. M. I. A. should see to it that there shall beno falling off in the attendance, or in the efficiency of M. I. A. work asspring approaches. Extra efforts should be put forth, also, to keep upthe interest, so that neither attendance nor interest shall dwindle to-wards the close of the season.

There are eighteen suggestions in the "Hand Book," on how todo this. Pioneer stake has, in addition, adopted a "double-up evening."At a previous regular meeting, held a couple of weeks ahead of this"double-up evening," announcement is made of the date when eachofficer and every member is to bring a person to the meeting who hasnot attended this year. Special efforts to make an interesting classrecitation and preliminary program will be made by the officers andleaders to interest the new comers in mutual work, and to induce themto continue with the associations as enrolled members for the re-mainder of the season. It is a suggestion worthy of considreation forlive officers, who wish their closing meetings to be even more numer-

470

IMPROVEMENT ERA

ously attended than the first. Do not worry about the percentages;get your people to meeting, and get them enrolled—that is the mainthing.

Getting Subscriptions for the Era

Throughout the Church there are hundreds of young men who areentitled to great praise for their unselfish efforts in obtaining subscrip-tions for the Era. Without their co-operation, and the time spent andthe efforts put forth by them, it would be impossible to publish a mag-azine like the Improvement Era, considering the limited circulation itmust have owing to its being a religious magazine.

One of the presidencies of our associations, who have been spe-cially successful and energetic in obtaining subscriptions and convert-ing the families of theirward to read the Era,is that of the Farr-Westward in North Weberstake, whose portraitswe present herewith:Left to right, A. D.Brown, President, IrvinHigby, Clarence Steph-enson, Counselors, J.M. Thomas, Stake Sup-erintendent.

These brethren ob-tained 12^% of theChurch population oftheir ward as subscrib-ers. Every Latter-daySaint family, except three, in the ward subscribed for Vol. 18. It wasnot only a good work on the part of these brethren, last year, but ithas taken considerable labor in previous years to bring the per centup so high. The Farr-West people, as a whole, are very loyal to theEra, and their loyalty has come largely through the labors of thesebrethren in converting them to reading it. Where a family can beconverted to reading the Era they are immediately converted to reg-ularly subscribing.

Athletics and Scout Work

Tenderfoot Examinations

Experience has taught that in order to carry on Scout work satis-factorily, and to get the best results, it is necessary to insist that boyswho participate in Scout activities should be regularly enrolled, and beadvanced from one grade to another. Where they desire to take theexamination that entitles them to be called Scouts they should paytheir Scout fees, and otherwise show that they are really in earnestabout the work. In harmony with this idea, the following recom-mendations have been made by the Scout Committee to the GeneralBoard, which were approved by them:

Before boys are permitted to take an active part in Scout work,they shall be required to enroll first in the local Y. M. M. I. A., andthen as candidates and take the Tenderfoot examination within twomonths.

That Tenderfoot examinations must not be given to boys unlessthey have paid their Scout fee—twenty-five cents.

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Troop Records and Blanks

Realizing the necessity of keeping records of troop activities. Na-tional Headquarters have issued a set of blanks for that purpose. Theyare listed under the following headings:

No.

1 Sheets for record of attendance and dues 506

2 Cash record sheets 509

3 Weekly troop minute blanks 519

4 Advancement record 528

5 Certificates of test passed 525

6 Individual Scout records 503

7 Transfer blanks 502

8 Assistant Scoutmasters' applications 505

9 Applications for merit badges 507

10 Short sheets for record of attendance and dues. .. .506-A

11 Order blanks for uniforms 510

12 Additional enrollment blanks 515

13 Monthly report blanks 520

14 Guides 525

The first five will be found very useful in commencing the trooprecords. No. 6, while calling for considerable detail work, will give ascout master a complete record of the scout. The other records, suchas merit blanks, enrollment blanks, etc., will enable the scout masterto keep on hand these different forms, so that he can send to NationalHeadquarters any information he desires on the proper blank.

These blanks are made up uniformly 11x8^4 inches and are per-forated so that they may be used in a binder.

Where blanks only are desired, they may be purchased at NationalHeadquarters in any combination which the Scoutmaster desires at 80cents per 100, or when less than 100 blanks are ordered at 1 cent perblank. Guides or index for different blanks for filing these blanks,1 cent each. Khaki binder, $1.25 each. Order blanks by form numbersto the right as above.

It is suggested that the Scout Scribe be assigned the duty of keep-ing them up to date for the troop. Each individual blank indicates itspurpose, and the method of using same. Scout masters, at a verysmall cost, could obtain a sample sheet of each blank and then selectthose which they think of most use to them.

To conform to these blanks the M. I. A. have printed an M. I. A.Scout application blank. (See M. I. A. Hand Book, page 53) Thisblank, which takes the place of the Scout application blank of NationalHeadquarters, can be had at the office of the Y. M. M. I. A. at tencents per dozen or seventy-five cents per hundred, postpaid. In thepast these have been distributed free, but on account of the increasedcost, a charge will now be made for them.

Boy Scout Ranks

At the meeting of the National Council of the Boy Scouts of Amer-ica, on February 10, it was announced that there had been an increaseof 46 per cent in membership during 1915. The year was the mostprosperous in the six years' history of the movement. The Chief ScoutExecutive's report showed that there are now a total of 182,622 scoutsin this country. In almost every church denomination there havebeen scout troops organized. There is one boy scout to every 453 ofpopulation in Maryland, one in 232 in Delaware, one in 268 in Connec-ticut, one in 470 in Pennsylvania, and one in 392 in Masachusetts. Utahstands at the head with one boy scout in 1/2 population. This splendidshowing in Utah may be attributed to the work of the M. I. A. scouts.The figures from Idaho were not named in our information.

Waterloo M. I. A. Scouts

A Thanksgiving "Good Turn"

The M. I. A. Boy Scout Troop 1, of Waterloo, Granite stake, onlast Thaksgiving, chopped twelve trek carts and cutter loads of kin-dling wood and distributed the wood to lone widows living in theward. T. George Wood is Scout Master of the Troop. The picturesshow the Scouts in two different positions with their carts.

M. I. A. Scouts at Price.

Troop No. 2, at Price, Utah, was recently organized with 40 mem-bers, Arthur S. Horsley Scout Master, and Dr. H. B. Goertzmann asDeputy Scout Commissioner for the Carbon stake. This troop hasseveral first class scouts who are trying out for merit badges. The"Price Advocate" contains a long account of a trip which the M. T. A.scouts took into the mountains last season. They went for a week'svacation, with the necessary equipment: and, needless to say, they hada most enjoyable outing under the leadership of Dr. Goertzmann and

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473

Arthur S. Horsley. The boys are anxiously waiting for the summermonths to come again so that they may take another such trip. Inthe meantime, they are making the best of their opportunity for study,examination and "good turns."

Y. M. M. I. A. Day and Contest

Special Activities

The time is now approaching for the awarding of Stake andChurch pennants. Scoring in special activity events closes on April 2.The total number of points scored jointly in each ward in the stakein each activity, together with the total for the entire season fromOctober 12 to April 2, inclusive, is to be obtained by the stake boardmembers in charge of this work. This total, with tne joint enroll-ment of the stake, is to be sent to Moroni Snow, General Secretary ofthe Y. M. M. I. A., Bishop's Building, Salt Lake City, not later thanMay 25. Any report received after this date will not be considered.The stake scoring the highest number of points in proportion to itsenrollment will be awarded the Church pennant. This awarding willtake place at the June Conference. The report blank form follows:

CHURCH WIDE PENNANT SCORING BLANK-

The following is the monthly and yearly report of the Stake Pen-nant Contest of our stake. It has been kept in accordance with therules and regulations issued by the General Boards:

Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. Total

1. Mixed Double Quartet

2. Boys' Chorus

3. Girls' Chorus

4. Male Quartet

5. Ladies' Quartet

6. Adv.Sr.Extem.Pub.Sp'k'g

7. Senior Public Speaking

8. Retold Story

9. Drama

10. Reading Course

Total

Grand total of points for year

Enrollment for year of Y. M. & Y. L.

Stake Supt. of Y. M. M. T. A.

Stake Pres. of Y. L. M. I. A.1 Note: Where monthly record has not been kept, send in total points

in each event.2. Note: A record of individuals and wards should be kept on file forreference.