“Could we be scouts?” asked Andy breathlessly.

“Yes, to be sure!” Doctor Joe smiled.

“’Twould be rare fun, now!” exclaimed David.

“All of us scouts, just like the boys in New York?” Jamie asked, his face aglow.

“Yes,” answered Doctor Joe.  “I knew you chaps would like to be scouts.  We’ll organize a troop, and we’ll call it Troop One of The Labrador.  There are Boy Scouts of America, and Boy Scouts of England, and Boy Scouts of nearly every country in the world except The Labrador.  We’ll be the Boy Scouts of The Labrador, and become a part of the great army of scouts.  It’ll be something to be proud of.”

“How’ll we do it?” asked David.

“I’ll be leader, or scoutmaster as they call the leader,” explained Doctor Joe.  “These books explain all about the things we’re to do.

“Before you become tenderfoot scouts you’ll have to learn some things,” Doctor Joe continued, after looking through one of the handbooks, until he found the proper page.  “You can tie all the knots already.  You do that every day.  But there are plenty of boys, and men too, where I came from that can’t even tie the ordinary square knot.

“You’ll have to learn the oath and law.  You live pretty close to the requirements of the law now, but it’ll be necessary to learn it, and I’ll explain then what each law means.  You’ll have to learn what the scout badge stands for and how it’s made up, and other things.”

Doctor Joe carefully marked the necessary pages and references.

“Now about the flag,” said Doctor Joe.  “You’ll have to learn about the formation of the flag and what it stands for.  This book is for the Boy Scouts of America, and the flag it refers to is the United States flag.  I’m an American, but you chaps are living in British territory and you’re British subjects, so you’ll have to learn about the British flag or Union Jack, as it’s called, for that’s your flag.

“The Union Jack is the national flag of the whole British Empire.  The English flag was originally a red cross on a white field.  This is called the flag of St. George.  Three hundred years ago King James the First added to it the banner of Scotland, which was a blue flag with a white cross, called St. Andrew’s Cross, lying upon the blue from corner to corner—­that is diagonally.”

Doctor Joe opened his travelling bag and drew forth two small flags, one the Stars and Stripes and the other the British Union Jack.

“I nearly forgot about these,” said he, spreading the flags upon the table.  “This is the flag of my country,” and he caressed the United States flag affectionately.  “I love it as you should love your flag.  The Union Jack is the emblem of the great British Empire, of which you are a part.  It is one of the greatest and best countries in the world to live in.  To be a British subject is something to be proud of indeed.”

“Aye,” broke in Thomas, “’tis that, now.”