The first article that caught my attention today was "The Scout and His Equipment," penned for the February 1934 issue of Boys' Life by the incomparable Dan Beard.There's nothing earth-shaking in the piece, certainly. It's basic and, from a modern perspective, undeniably quaint. To the clear-eyed reader it's also obvious that it was placed to accompany dozens of "official" product pitches from the likes of Remington, Eveready, Ulster, Marble, Buster Brown, Plumb, Johnson & Johnson and others.
Seems the "special advertising section" isn't exactly a new concept.
Beyond the commercial slant, and given my own affection for sharps, one particular line stood out to me:
"A boy without a knife is as bad as a canoe without paddles, a lumberman without an axe, or a girl without a compact."Uncle Dan was right about that, of course. Knowing that present-day Scouts are explicitly discouraged from carrying knives, however, his words have almost a poignant ring.
Moving on to a 1950 issue of Popular Mechanics, I flipped through a primer on "Trail Knives," which prominently (and intentionally, I'd wager) featured Marble's fixed-blades and the Woodsman's Pal.
Last I landed on the June 1919 issue of Popular Science, where I found reader Rodney Bryson's advice on what to do with old inner tubes (pictured at right).Strange -- he didn't call them "Ranger Bands."
Whenever I catch myself craving the latest and greatest something-or-other, rewinding through these old publications often reminds me that there truly is nothing new under the sun.
