WOMAN'S WORLD.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2221, 6 August 1914, Page 2

WOMAN'S WORLD.

MATTERS OF INTEREST FROM FAR AND NEAR.

I"Rv lifAnvw \

SOCIAL AND PERSONAL. Nurses and the War, It is not likely that people who wore present in the Parliamentary Grounds yesterday afternoon when His Excellency the Governor read the messages from the King and made' the announcement that .ivar waa declared against Germany will forget tho occasion and the climax of feeling that resulted. Every day" in the City feeling had been growing teaser and tenser until tho suspense wag almost more than anyone could endure, with any sort, of equanimity, and it came aa a relief to know at last wliat was definitely to ba faced, world-shaking though the end of it all must be. With many, women, and thej; wero there in. hundreds, "the pent-up anxiety and the curious instantaneous vision that occasionally uplifts the veil ffbat obscures distant events resulted in tears, and many men showed signs of intense excitement oil their faces. In a country like the Dominion, where many, people have men belonging to them either' in the Army or the Navy, the war isbrought 'very, verv close. What the feel--iiig must bo in-England, hardly further away from Belgium than Ohristcfhurch is from Wellington, so that the sound of the great guns \tou-ld bo easily heard in the South, is perhaps difficult'to adequately realise. ' . , V - That women have been actively bestirring themselves is evidenced by the fact that a great ihaiiy applications for service have been sent in to the Director of Medical Service from fulljMjualified nurses, and it is likely'that any. expeditionary ' force- sent away from New Zealand will lave its nurses and hospital equipment.' That there will be no lack of fiilly-cwalified volunteers is perfectly certain. The-St. John Ambulance Association is also gettiiig to work, and Deputy Commissioner Seed is receiving the names of members of the nursing diviS 'S" John Ambulance Association v.-Ro are volunteering for work wherever and whenever necessary. Tho Wellington Senior Nursing Division has largely vol--iinteeTed. and it i> likelv that'the'Wellington South aivl the. P-etone Divisions' are not far behind. - The. Hardware Ball. - \ The hardware ball, which has been an annual event for fifteen years, but which for piist fivo years had been allowed for various reasons to lapse, has been revived, and was held in tho Oriental Bay Kiosk last evening. Tlie efforts which the comniitteo had niade to ensure the enjoyment nf those present met with great 6ucceM. arid the music which was 'Supnlied by Williams's ■ Orchestra was excellent. The ballroom had been- most effectively decorated .with festoons and- rones' of lycopodium, alternating with bine and white rosettes, and all the doorvpays and windows v:ere drifnod with blue and white curtains. The balcony' room had also been decorated,, and with its lovely moonlight view over the harbour was a most attractiyo lounge room. The committee consisted of the Misses K. M. Butler, E. Grant, A. Gpugh, U.. Simon, Messrs. J. Brodie. E. Herron, H. Harper, W. Stead, L. Ritchie. D. Pollock. J. Gamham. L. A.verv, 1,. Zueker, J. Korslake, J: Webb.' The joint secretaries were Messrs. R. Bishop and P. Fquvel. . 1 Ladies' Billiard Tournament. The showrooms of Alcock and Co., Ltd., were again filled last evening t6 'watch tho conclusion of the second round of tho ladios" handicap. Some excellent billiards was played, especially by Mrs. Kilminster, who dofoated. Mrs. Watkins by 11 points; Mrs. Placer beat. Mrs. Cerutty by 12 points. The game between Mrs. Loclcwood and Miss O.' Stace proved ,'o.roal fine contest, and many of the ladies :ssfere worked iip" t0..*,a.,.Y6ry high pitch of excitement towards tho end,; Miss Staco securing. the verdict by 5 points. The semi-finals will _.be played : this evening, at 7.80 p.m., between. Mrs., Porter (for.) and' Mrs. Player (re 0.20) and •Mrs. -Kilminster (owes"'4o); aiid Miss .0. Stace;'Tlie final will be placed,to r morrow evoning at 7.30 p.m.,' Tickets, for admission are at Messrs. Alcock and Co., Ltd. For the Plunket Home, Mrs. Pitchett, organiser of the danee recently given in aid of the Phuket Home funds, entertained-the helpers and .patrons -to tea at the' Pioneer Club on Wednesday afternoon, and after tea hid been dispensed; the final business connected with the dance was transacted.: Mrs. Fitchett expressed her gratitude to all who assisted, especially Mrs. Sidney Kirk-' caldie, who was'responsible for- all the artistic floral decorations; Mrs.' ' Fred Ward and Mrs. Henry Hall, also the various firms n'lio contributed so generously. The balance-sheet', prepared 'by Messrs. Badham and Biss, auditors, was then read, and showed the very satisfactory credit balance of .£62 189,, which suin will be immediately : handed over to _ this, lion; treasurer of, the Plunket'Society. To this may be added the Government subsidy of 24s,'in the pound. ' : At the monthly meeting of the Ve Aro School Committee on .Tuesday night it was reported that arrangements' wero complete for the entertainment. to. be given at St. Peter's Hall, Ghilznee Street, on Friday night. The object''of the concert. it was stated, was to raise funds for a picnic and 'sports for the' children of the combined schools, to be held later in the year. It was reported' that, some of the best talent had been secured for the concert.- ■ - " - A pleasant' gathering arranged by the Forget-me-not Club was held last evening at the Church Hall, iLyall Bay. A.' programme, which included songs, recitations, and instrumental music, gave much enjoyment,- and was followed by' dicing for the remainder of the evening. The proceeds, wtich-amounted to i! 10, aTe to be devoted to the Taranaki, Street Free Kindergarten. The Mayoress, Mrs. J. P. Luke, who was present, was the recipient of a. very charming bouquet. . . ; Mr. and Mrs. Coates (Auckland) are staying at the Grand Hotel. " ■ -The death is announced of Miss Hannah Kittson, youngest daughter of the late Mr. Patrick. Kittson, of Charleston, West Coast.'; ! Mr. Kittson : was fbrmerly. proprietor and editor of the "Charleston. Herald," a newspaper that floiirished in the old mining days of the Coast. -The Misses Kathleen iind Hannah Kittson carried on the business of the old journal .up to a few years 'ago, when it ceased publication. For Face, Massage, Shampooing,, all Hair Treatments, and Electrolysis, Mrs. Rolleston'e is recommended. . Spacious Private Rooms, Qualified Assistants, and Personal Attention. Switches and Trans-' formations of every shade a speciality. Hair guaranteed to keep its colour.. 256 Lam...bton Quay.*

WOMEN AND. THE WAR PREPARING FOR EVENTS. [By Imogen.] The gallories of Parliament House were full on Tuesday aftonioon at the opening of the usual afternoon sitting, the expectation that important'information concerning the European war would be divulged by tho Primo Minister no doubt being the chief reason for so large a gathering of frequenters of the House, to say. nothing of outside visitors. At a .time when the minds of everyone, man, woman, and almost one might say child, aro filled with anxious concern aiid fearful forebodings of this overwhelming cataclysm of war that ! threatens to sweep European civilisation into unimaginable wreckage,, the short-, but wonderfully impressive little ceremony with which Parliament daily opens was- curiously in keeping with the stress of the present time. 'Tor the honour of the King, and the peace and tranquillity of the Kingdom," tho final words of tho invocation, must have fallen with deeper weight and moaning than usual upon tho oars and liiinds of members. .<■ The brief speech of the Prime Minister, although it djd not overflow with revelations, made a' strong appeal to members and to tho men and women present, because of its quiet, sober Imperialism, that brought home tho fact that war meant suffering and widespread hardship to all parts of tho Empire, but for that Empire and its honour they could' and would bb faopd with courage. Imperialism and the sinking of party differences was also the keynote of tho Leader of the Opposition's speech, and as an examplo of tho way in which this had been dono in Britain, he referred to the gaping wound that had been made in Ireland last . .week, and that had closed over at the call of Empire. It was no wonder that the speeches mot with a warm reception, aiid had it not been for flie restrictions of place and time, they would have been applauded also from . the ladies' gallery, judging'by the symptoms. '.- ' . ■ _ ' " That women are keenly alive to the situation and its possibilities is shown by tho. way in which they read and discuss tho daily bulletins, and it is probably tlic first time since they left the schoolroom that many of them liavo studied tho map of Europe with such an intense thirst for knowledge., Tho first' 'and foremost topic of conversation: is 'the war, and tho impossibility of Eng-' land boing able to keep out of tho maelstrom with honour' seems to have been generally acccpted, although it was' hoped with the utmost fervour that sofrte way 'out might be found. "It was only the other day that one was reading with the utmoßt unconcern that there was a dispute between Austria and Servia," said ono woman. -"We little dreamt how deeply it was going to hit us, and that countries so aiien as these were 'going to plunge us into all the horrors of war. If seems monstrous that it should be so, that our civilisation should .'go down like that, aiid jot, there it is, and we are now to fight for our very existence as an Empire." While there are women to whom the only aspect of war that has yet presented itself : is tho ■- increased • cost of living and tho depreciation of financial' assets,, there ire. others whose tion'.sees '"whole," 'and wlio realises in-' stinotively what is at stake. To thetii' hardship,. suffering, privation, poverty, can be faced uncomplainingly, because: the.V see-on the'other side of the ledger the lives' that are given lip 'for King ' and country, and while "they deprecate war with all their hearts, for who knows the cost of life better than women, they feel thai/they, toe, are partners m the great traditions that perhaps have been just a little lost sight of in the days of peace and prosperity that have now come to so sudden an; end. ' That women are to take an active part in service of some kind is . shown by cablegrams from Sydney and Melbourne, which state that women are already volunteering as nurses. Hero in Wellington there are fully qualified nurses wlio aro applying in numbers for service with' expeditionary forces should it be decided' to send tliem abroad. All over' the-world the often dormant sense of nationality is making itself felt, and to be British, whether African,- Canadian, Australian, or New. Zealand, is to feel 'the-call .of race in this greatest calamity that has befallen the world for centuries.