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In the execution of its purpose to give educational value andmoral worth to the recreational activities of the boyhood of America,the leaders of the Boy Scout Movement quickly learned that to effectivelycarry out its program, the boy must be influenced not only in his out-of-doorlife but also in the diversions of his other leisure moments.It is at such times that the boy is captured by the tales of daringenterprises and adventurous good times. What now is needful is notthat his taste should be thwarted but trained. There should constantlybe presented to him the books the boy likes best, yet always the booksthat will be best for the boy. As a matter of fact, however, the boy'staste is being constantly vitiated and exploited by the great mass ofcheap juvenile literature.
To help anxiously concerned parents and educators to meet thisgrave peril, the Library Commission of the Boy Scouts of America hasbeen organised. EVERY BOY'S LIBRARY is the result of their labors.All the books chosen have been approved by them. The Commission iscomposed of the following members: George F. Bowerman, Librarian, PublicLibrary of the District of Columbia, Washington, D. C.; Harrison W.Graver, Librarian, Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh, Pa.; Claude G. Leland,Superintendent, Bureau of Libraries, Board of Education, New York City:Edward F. Stevens, Librarian, Pratt Institute Free Library, Brooklyn,New York; together with the Editorial Board of our Movement WilliamD. Murray, George D. Pratt and Frank Presbrey, with Franklin K. Mathiews,Chief Scout Librarian, as Secretary.
In selecting the books, the Commission has chosen only such asare of interest to boys, the first twenty-five being either works offiction or stirring stories of adventurous experiences. In later lists,books of a more serious sort w