THE GIRL & HER CAREER.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1984, 14 February 1914, Page 11

THE GIRL & HER CAREER.

HOME VERSUS OPEN FIELDS. [Br IMOGEN,] It must have been an interesting lecIme.that was given by Dr. Trub'v .King in Auckland on Thursday and as usual 'p emphasised the importance of the physical well-being of the mother .of;tho fapiily and of her daughters, not only for their own good, but also, and abovo all, for the beneAt of the race. Ho stressed tho point, with winch everyone must agree, that mere physical fitness—Sandow fitness—would not do for the nll-ronnd development that was wanted. In other words, mental ntness was just as. much needed, a i there must be a rational educational 'system brought forward. , truby King has done magnificent work in reducing the mortality of inrant life, and in the lectures and articles be has_ written upon the care and rearing of infants, and for that reason alone his words carry heavy weight. To a woman, however; it appears there is a somewhat unfair tendency to throw everything,. every' responsibility, upon the shoulders of the mother. She may, and usually does, play her part nobly in'tho care of her children, but she is not the only 0110 responsible for their well-being, for the physical and mental equipment with which they have to faco the world. And that, apparently, has not yet been fully emphasised. At a time when the widest facilities for the education of women and girls are being opened up in Great Britain, America, Germany, France, and even in Turkey (where it has just been decided that women may be admitted to the Universities), it was decidedly interesting to i learn that the following resolution was moved and passed in Auckland the_ other day:—"That the Hon. Dr. Collins, Dr. Gibbs, Dr. Truby King, and Dr. Elizabeth Platts-Mills be appointed a committee to wait on the Minister of Education, and represent that; in the opinion of this congress, it is in ' tho highest interests of tho whole community that the State should inculcate and bring about as far as feasible an ideal of education for girls which' (to quote the words of Professor Stanley: Hall) shall invert the present maxim that girls should be primarily trainsd to independence and self-

support, and that matrimony and motherhood, if it come, will take care of itself. TJiis, congress feels bound to deprecate any system of education which, under the stress of excessive straining after so-called accomplishments, pays insufficient attention to ensuring a normal, orderly, woil-balanccd development, and complete fitness for maternity. This congress also is satisfied that, broadly speaking, even where marriage does not take place, tho education which gives a girl the' : best'"all-round■ equipment in body, mind, morals, and inclination for hoinc-life and potential motherhood, also gives her the soundest and surest foundation for future health and happiness, and for a sustained nower of earning an iudepeudent living, if such should prove to be her lot." Of late the results of tho educational scheme pursued in the Stato schools have been somewhat severely criticised, and in the readjustment that may follow, it is to bo hoped that a "right balance may he struck between tho in--tellectnal and the practical aspects of a woman's sphere of activity in the home and-in society." The Jiome-loving girl has the right to' facilities for expanding in the way that best suits her nature and her needs, and. the world is all the better for her work, but so also lias the girl to'bo thought of and provided for who looks over tho hedge and longs for tho open road 1 that leads to the mountain peaks of knowledge. She is often a finer wife and mother because sho has faced the world and lias increased her talents to tho uttermost. What Mr. Carmichael, the Minister of Education in New South Wales said tiro other day might well be studied, and will bear repetition ill this connection:— "The calling of woman is something more than to be the cook, nurse, or dressmaker of her homo, for above this material sido of a woman's life sho has a right equally with men to share in the refined and intellectual enjoyments of life. Especially is sho called upon to be tlio intellectual companion of man. When sho marries she must be able to enter into'her husband's interests, and sho must have interests of her own, that will lift her above tho' position of a household drudge. It isncccssary, therefore, in tho education of girls, to guard against what might be called 'lopsidedness.'"