WOMAN'S WORLD.

Dominion, Volume 9, Issue 2632, 1 December 1915, Page 2

WOMAN'S WORLD.

MATTERS OF INTEREST FROM FAR AND NEAR, (By Imogen.)

SOCIAL AND PERSONAL" Frincess Mary's Cift to Soldiers. Interesting and valued mementoes of the war to many soldiers will bo the Christmas gift which Princess Mary had sent to each individual soldier who was on duty on Christmas Day, 191-1, ono of which lias como into the possession of Miss Bobiii. The gift consists of a lead pencil with a gilt holder made from a bullet said to havo been picked up from tho battlefields. The pencil and holder aro enclosed in a metal box on tho cover of which is stamped a medallion of Princess Mary, clean-cut and charmingly girlish-looking, while above it as well as on the pencil holder are engraved her crest. On tho iid of tho box and just abovo tho crest lies a sheathed sword, and at intervals around the border are stamped the names of the Allies, in which is included Monte-, negro and Servia as well as Japan. In addition to tho pencil there was enclosed a card containing Princess Mary's wishes for a victorious Now Year. •It was also rather interesting that Sliss Kobin should also havo in her possession the box in which was enclosed the chocolate which tho late Queen Victoria sent to the soldiers fighting in South Africa in the Boer War, the lid of which bears the date 1900. It would bo interesting to know if tho late Queen ever had a presentiment of what fifteen years .ivero to bring, and that her granddaughter would he following m her footsteps, in one respect at least. The "Fighting" Fullers. Mrs. Payne, of Hanraa, might well be proud of her nephews," tho ""fighting Fullers." Six of the Fuller family are now in tho firing-line, and ono of tho boys, Corporal Fuller, won the Victoria Cross at Neiiive Chapelle for. capturing fifty Germans single-handed. Corporal Fuller was presented with an address by the Mayor of Mansfield (England), and there wore many celebrities present at the ceremony, including the Duchess of Portland. Mrs. Payne's son Fred left New Zealand with the Rifle Brigade, and she has several other lienhews besides the Fullers serving tlie Empire. Miss K. Campion and Mrs. H. Higgie, of Masterton, are leaving for England this month. They will connect with the Mttloja, which leaves Sydney for London on December 24. Mr. W. Evans and the Misses Evans left for tho south last week, on their return to Timaru, from a visit to .Wellington. A concert party arranged by the Rev. G. S. Cook visited Trentnam last Saturday evening. Apart from songs by the Rev. G. S. Cook and Mr. Coad, tho programme, which was fully appreciated, ovcry individual item being encored, was contributed to as follows: —Songs by Misses Boutell, Sissons, and Nicholas; monologue and recitation by Miss Gow; comedietta by Misses L. and J. Nicholas, Miss D. C. Clarke, Hibbet, V. Collins, and E. Flaws. Tho visitors were afterwards entertained by the officers at supper. Miss Rose Mills, who has been spending some time in Australia arrived in Wellington yesterday by tho Sydney, steamer on her way back to Dunedin.

Miss Dangar and . Miss Mackerras arrived in' Wellington yesterday from Sydney/' - They propose touring New Zealand. ■

M.L.C.C. patriotic Cake Room. The committee of tho Patriotic Cake Room desires to acknowledge, with thanks, gifts of home-made cnkiu, subscriptions, etc., from the following:— Mesdames Firth, Holmes, W. Gavin, R. P. Ward, Askew, Findlay, Palmer, A. W. Young, Vickery, Osborne, Clabhnrn, W. S. Reid, Henry, Hamer, Eurlc, B. L. Taylor, Bethune, A. Williams, Clayton, J. "Williams, Gill, K. Kirlicaldie, Nelson,- J. M'Lean, Brown, llichardson, F. P. Wilson, Hayes, Gifford, W. F. Ward, Jack, Liddle, Fulton, Hilder, Hurst, Finch, Wood, R. Wilson, iSmitton, G. Eoid, Laurenson, Bidwell, ■ Misses Macintosh, Gear, Chapman, Wheeler (2), Gavin, M'Kellar, Cameron, Cole, Saunders, Kirkcaldie, Kember, Chalmers, Spraggon, AVvight, M. Marchant, Brice, Hall (2), Cooper, Turner, Sidey, Gambrill, von Dadelszcn, M'Gowan, Webb, Richardson, Jacobscn, Barron, Maudsley, Barnett, E. Williams, AV. Dnimmond, J. M'Kenzio, Hohnes, M. Seed, I. Johnston, E. ?Jyers, West, Stafford, Pearson, Me6srs. Firth, Burnett, Marshall, Scholes, Tobiu, Osborne, M'Keuzie, Joseph Nathan and Co., W.F.C.A., Ltd., and Coles. The ladies' committee formed at Lower Hutt for the purpose of holding a Christmas Ere flower carnival ,in the city is leaving no stone unturned to make the function a success. Arrangements have been made for a complete canvass of tho city by flower-sellers, and tho lion. sec. (Miss Bunny) will be glad to hear from everyone desiring to dor nato flowors, and also from those willing to assist. It is hoped that a central depot may be secured in Wellington from which the wliolo city will bo worked. Tho organisers are indebted to tho Lower Hutt District High School Committee for assistance. The annual meeting in connection with tho Girls' Friendly Association was held at the lodge in Vivian Street yesterday afternoon. Thejeports froni the various branches were presented, and showed steady progress. Two new bitdiches ■were reported as having been started. The Sunday afternoon teas at the lodge are still being contimied, and are much appreciated by mejnbers. Miss Humphries was elected to the vice-presidency left vacant by the departure of Mrs. Harper for England, and Mrs. Ernest Hadfield was elected a member of the council. In other respects £Ee personnel of the council remains the same as that of the previous year. An interesting ceremony took place at- the Hastings Drill Hall on Saturday afternoon, when the Mayoress of Hastings, Mrs. Hart, on behalf of the Hastings branch of the Liverpool Committee, presented B Company, 9th Hawke's Bay Regiment, with,a Union Jack. Tho presentation was made as a token of the committee's appreciation of tho service rendered by the company in collecting £06 for tho leather waistcoatfund. Tr-a flag was named "The Countess of Liverpool" flag by permission of Lady Liverpool, who, in reply to tho request that it might be so named, asked that her good wishes be conveyed to tho company. The company was paraded under Major Holdernesa and' addressed by -officers of the Liverpool Committee. Miss E. B. Williams, vice-president of tho committee, read an address, and Miss Lnclde read a letter from the Mayoress of Wellington, Mrs. Luke, thanking the committee for its assistance in regard to the waistcoats. .

- THE NURSES OF THE MARQUETTE REMEMBRANCE—OR OTHERWISE ? [By Imogen.] In reading the Australian newspapers one cannot- but be struck by the various efforts that are made from lime to timo to add some comfort to tho lot of tho nurses who are away on active service, or to make concessions that will add to the comfort and privilc<";» of those who may have returned for a while from the' scene of their labours, either on the hospital ships or else in the hospitals in Egypt. Comparing the public interest that is displayed m Sydney and Melboumo in the welfare of tho nurses with' that which is displayed iu Now Zealand for her own nurses who are away on active service, a striking difference reveals itself. A few weeks ago several well-known women in both tlio cities already mentioned were exerting themselves in many ways to obtain funds with which to provido Christmas presents "for the nurseß. liiey worked hard. and they obtained a, considerable amount of money, in addition to gifts which wero presented for forwarding 'to the recipients in Egypt and on the hospital ships, a special, appeal, being made for them. No doubt, m addition, the nurses received many private gifts from their own friends and wcll-\vishers, but the public efforts wero a distinct recognition of the' work which wne being so well done by th 9 nurses. In New Zealand, or at least in Wellington,. it was loft to the Countess^of Liverpool Committee ( to provide for the nurses, the organisation that over since the outbreak of tho war has been devoting its energies to the welfare of the soldiers, and upon which constant demands are'being made, so that their hands are ' already very full of work. Without a doubt many gifts to our nurses would have beou sent privately, but there is all the difference—the Australian. mothod was a public effort and a public appreciation specially working for that purpose, while hero it was anybody's business. A little while ago we read ana wero thrilled to read of the splendid heroism of tho nurses who wore on board the ill-fated Marquette,, and of the way i in which they insisted that the fighting men should he saved lirst. And among these wore our own New Zealand nurses, who stayed .to the last cheering tlio soldiers until only a few* remained to help them finally into the boats, iho story of their heroism continues a little furthor, and we read of their supporting one another in the water, forcing others among them to get Into the rescuing boats before them and holding up' one another till the meroy <'f death befell them. No country in the world could snow finer courage in its -women, no greater devotion to duty, no greater self-sacri-fice: Tlio example-set by Nurse Oavell was no finer, and surely if women in New Zealand inteud to create a memorial of Nurse Cavoll thoy cannot pass "by* the example set by the women of their own country, women who knew that when they left New Zealand thoy left with their lives in their hands, willing to sacrifice them so that they might do what they could in helping to stem the awful-horror and wreckage of war. The Minister of Public Health, the Hon. Mr. Russell, in it-lie tribute that ho paid to the nurses at the memorial service that was held in tlio Salvation Army Citadel, said: "Those women who had given their lives to their country deserved a memorial tli at sliould stand for all time, and lie-would fain liko to say that the memorial for,, the nurses 'should be. erected by the, women of New Zoaland. Therefore, he hoped that the women of their country, in the different ccntres, Auckland, .Wellington, Christchurch, Dunedin, and all the rest of New Zealand, would say 'This is our responsibility, to erect a tribute that shall last for all time to those of our own nurses who have given their lives for our soldiers; and the Empire.'" And there the matter appears to lie, though such a .story 6hould be. made part "of our country's history. ,

A Note of Contrast.—Eighteen months and eighty years wero the ages of two clients in Miss Milsom's Rooms, same time, same day. The former wondered why, tlio latter marvelled _ at—yet each treatment was very benefioial and satisfactory. It should be realised that it id natural for hair to gj-ow as long as lite lasts and most unnatural for it to cease doing so at any stage; and it is impossible to keep hair at its best oxcept by propei treatment. Consult Miss Milsom. Sue treats and teaches the true massagJ of the had and imparts to clients sufficient knowledge that they can carry on hei treatment in their own homes. Miss Hueom, Barnott's Buildings, 94 Willis Street (4 doors past "Evening Post"). Telephone 814.—Advt. ' .