numerous competitions. In a good many of the sections, the winners were awarded with free apprenticeships with well-known firms, which had been offered by the Directors.
◇◇
A Professional Man's Opinion.
A Surveyor who has a large business in Birmingham, after looking at the Exhibits in the Surveyors' Section, came up to the Secretary and asked if he could be put in touch with one of the Scout Exhibitors. He wished to take him into the office and teach the boy surveying at his own expense.
◇◇
Over 90,000 people visited the Exhibition Rally and Sea Scout Display.
◇◇
(From the Chief Scout's speech at the Scoutmasters' Conference in Bingley Hall):—
"On no other occasion in the history of the world have representatives of a Boys' Organisation gathered together from so many Countries. ..."
◇◇
An Incident.
A jolly Irish Scout turned up at the Exhibition—he appeared to have come "on his own," at any rate he arrived alone a day too soon and without telling anyone in Birmingham, but he felt sure he would find a shake down somewhere. He just went up to the Secretary and said: "I've come—can I do anything to help you?" "Yes" he was told, "some Scouts from abroad have turned up rather early. Just find them and see if you can make them feel at home." They were the Shanghai boys, and by a strange coincidence the Irish Scout was going out to Shanghai to start work in a business there in a few months time.
Before he left Birmingham that Irish boy had half-a-dozen friends who were going to look out for his arrival at Shanghai and give him a welcome, and he had already signed on as a member of the 1st Shanghai Troop.
56