Seventy years ago this month, the January 1949 issue of Boys’ Life carried this article by William “Green Bar Bill” Hillcourt on the subject of Morse Code.

He points out that in addition to being a requirement for First Class, the skill was part of a Scout’s wilderness adventure. Through the use of Morse, Scouts have been called into action in hurricane, earthquake, and flood.

The article focuses solely on the use of wig-wag flags for sending messages. For relatively short distances, a team consisting of signaler and scribe was ideal. For longer distances, an additional reader was called for, since he would be watching through field glasses.