Dear Howard, <br><br>as a former cub scout, scout and venture scout in Blighty, and as someone who is Reformed, I can categorically state I have never previously heard the accusations you raise against scouting. Further, from my experience of scouting I can categorically affirm that I never heard anything resembling in the slightest the supposed origins of scouting symbols that you mention.<br><br>My "sketchy" knowledge of scouting's history is that it has much to do with B-Ps experiences in South Africa. Cub scout symbolism is derivd from The Jungle Book by Rudyard Kipling, rather than freemasonry. Although B-Ps approach was initially militaristic this greatly cooled after the First World War leaving the emphasis on scouting skills.<br><br>James.