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my powfR Iain not a Very Important Man, as importance is commonly rated. I do not have great wealth, control a big business, or occupy a position of great honor or authority. Yet I may someday mould destiny. For it is with- in my power to become the most important man in the world in the life of a hoy. And every boy is a potential atom bomb in human history. A humble citizen like myself might have been the Scoutmaster of a Troop in which an undersized unhappy Austrian lad by the name of Adolph might have found a joyous boyhood, full of the ideals of brotherhood, goodwill, and kindness. And the world would have been different. A humble citizen like myself might have been the organizer of a Scout Troop in which a Russian boy called Joe might have learned the lessons of democratic cooperation. These men would never have known that they had averted world tragedy, yet actually they would have been among the most important men who ever lived. All about me are boys. They are the makers of history, the builders of tomorrow. If I can have some part in guiding them up the trail of Scout- ing, on to the high road of noble character and constructive citizenship, I may prove to be the most important man in their lives, the most im- portant man in my community. A hundred years from now it will not matter what my hank accomit was, the sort of house I lived in, or the kind of car I drove. But the world may be different, because I was important in the life of a boy. — FOREST WITCRAFT Widely copied and quoted, "Within My Power" is often credited to "AnonymousIt teas written by the author jor his council bulletin, Pheasant Tales, and later reprinted in Scouting magazine.
