WOMAN'S WORLD.

Dominion, Volume 11, Issue 76, 22 December 1917, Page 4

WOMAN'S WORLD.

MATTERS OF INTEREST FROM FAR AND NEAR

(B; laosEH.)

SOCIAL AND PERSONAL Christmas Gifts to the Hospital. The acting-sccrctary of tho Wellington. Hospital and Charitable Aid Board acknowledge rcceipt of the following donations for tho Christmas clmcr: — Wellington Fruit Brokers, Mrs. Nathan, £2 2s. each: Messrs. E. S. Knight, J. P. Luke, London Dental Co., Wellington Meat Export Co., J.' Myers and Co., Campbell and Burke, £1 Is. each; Messrs. R. and B. Tingcy, Lid., Robert Martin, Ltd., Biircli and Co., Bannatyno and Hunter, \V. Buruitige and Co., Waterworths lid., E. Johnston and Co., 10s. Gd. each'; Messrs. E. Anderson and Co., Joosten and Murie, R. A. Nicol, P. A. Laws, W. Crabtree and Sons, Wellington Bread Co., 10s. each; N.Z. Bible and Tract Society, Messrs. S. J. Manning, J. Rod and Co., R. C. Kirk, Morrison and Gilberd, F. Cooper, Basil Cooper, Ltd., Ross, Jory, and M'Whannell, ss. each. Goads have been received from the following Messrs. Hyman .and Co., goods; R. Stent, 1 doz. ale; Thornton, sweets; Kirkpatrick, 1 case of jam; G. and C. Aldous, goods; Bray's Co-op. Produce, poultry.

Women In tho Workshops. As tho war continues and tho call for men becomes more and moro insist- ■ ent, women aro having xo take up a greater share of the labour which previously had been considered suitable only for tho sterner sex. The movement is not common to any one of the Allied countries, but while much has been hoard of tho female labour in England, France, and in a lesser degree in America, nothing has up.en mentioned of the role Italian women are playing in the great struggle, in tho industrial north of Italy women, have now takon their placo by the side of men in tho great factories supplying the armies in tho field. In the Fiat, factory, at Turin, now tho biggest automobile concern in Europe, women wore first introduced to the. electrical department, where They were found particularly suited for tho delicate and skilled tasks of making lighting dynamos and coils. Later they were extended to the machine shops, many of tho automatic tools being naudlect by women, clad in tho regulation pair of bloomers and • the 1 close-fitting ,cap. Most of tho radiators required inr Fiat lorries and aeroplanes are now produced /by femalo labour. The iron foundry at first sight appears'beyond the scopo of women, but even here it j has been found that many of tho more delicate tasks connected with the making of moulds aro quite suitable for womon and girls. At the other extreme we havo the aeroplane departments, where the work is light and l cleanly, and where in couscquoifco Italian women outnumber men. Mr. Howard Marmou. of the American Ai?craft Board, declared, after an extensive tour through all the European factories and_ along all tho fronts, that Italy led in aviation. It must be a' satisfaction to Italian women to realise that in a very largb measure they are responsible for this advance over other friendly nations.

Tho Hon. William Fraser and Miss Fraser loft for Christchurch last night, where they will stay for at least a week. Miss Ida Finch (Australia) is staying with her mother at Miss -Morton's. Mrs. Montgomery has returned to town after a long visit to Auckland. Mr. and Mrs. L. Tripp have gone to Christchurch for Christmas. Mrs. Tnverner and Miss Taverne'r, of Greatford, Rangitikei, who have been on a visit to town, have gono home. Mr. and Mrs. Atkinson, of "Hurworth" Boys' Preparatory School, have taken a cottage at York Bay for {lie holidays. Madame Cope-Dowsing has left for tho north on a short holiday. __ Miss K. Stofct has paid a short visit to Miss Hodges, of Woodford House, Havelock, in order to be present for the annual prize-giving, and the school play, "Drake," which was recently such a success in London. Miss Gladys Russell, who nrcom-| panied her father, the Hon. 0. W. Russell, on his trip to Napier, 1 as returned to town. ; Miss Hester M'Lcan, tho Assistant Inspector of_ Hospitals, is taking a short holiday, and is tho guosfc cf Mrs. • Guy Powlcs, at Day's Bay, for a few days. ' / • The Mayor and Mayoress, Mrs. MassejyMiss Massey, Mrs. Moorhonse, and some of the ladies of Mrs. Luke's Committee, motored out to Trentham yesterday. The officers entertained the party at lunch in their club rooms, and altogether a very pleasant day ' was spent. In the sJe\v Zealand Army Nursing Service the undermentioned liave been appointed Sisters.:—To date from April 6, 1917: 22/16 L. A. Burke, 22/19 S. L. Clark, 22/22 M. Crook, 22/37 J. Miller, 22/45 I. Stewart. To date from May 19, 1917: 22/67 C. E. Chorr.v, 22/71 I.'N. Coster, 22/74 M. E. Gould, 22/78 J. E. Lewis, 22/83 5. L. Nicoll, 22/89 E. M. Stokes, 22/177 W. M. Stronach. To date from. July 6, 1917: 22/178 F. A. Adams, 22/99 E. J. Austin, 22/100 V. R. R. Bavlev, 22/107 K. Carter, 22/113 C. M. Doitnognue, 22/200. A. C. Douglass, 22/114 H. G. O. Edgerley, 22/121 E. G. Hanan, 22/131 M. J. Jeffery. ,

Women's National Reserve of New Zealand. Tho members of the miniature rifle practice section (both Wednesday and Thursday classes) wore entertained by Dr. Platts-Mills, president tho W.N.R., and vice-presidcnt of the Miniature Rifle Association, 011 Thursday evening. Tho hostess congratulated Mrs. Sommerville upon winning tho trophy, shot for that evening, and presented by Lieutenant Haase, the instructor of the Thursday class, and also expressed her appreciation of the Rifle. Club in the following words: "Tho club has done splendid work, and is a very fine and sturdy branch of the reserve, one we are all proud ct. I think it was a wise thing to jr-in the Miniaturo Rifle Association and ' tho British Association founded by Lord Roberts, not only from the economic point of, view, but bccausio the matches and competitions are a great help towards proficiency. We can j only judge of our own powers when wo compare them with others._ I trust next season to see something of the actual work of the club." . Mrs. Sommerville tied with Mrs. Haase in the competition {the latter not competing for the trophy), gaining a total of 194 points, Mrs. Wakening and Miss Jenkins coining next with 19? points. _ A very • happy evening concluded with a dainty and delicious supper, and a very hearty veto of thanks to Dr. Platts-Mills for her hospitality and interest. The many friends of the Hon, Harry Butler will bo pleased to hear of his engagement.' His first wife v>as a daughter of a well-known Wanganui citizen, Captain Daniel.. Air. Butler was appointed 'honorary aide-de-camp to Lord Ranfurly, and did a great deal ip helping to jnako the parties at Government House tho delightful functions that they always wero under tho regime of the Earl and Countess of Ranfurly. An English papor says:— "Miss Graco Abdy lias received many congratulations on her .engagement to Mr. Henry Butler, brother and heir to Lord Lanesborough. Sir Anthony and Lady Abdy did a great deal ofp'easant entertainment at their houso !n Eaton Square in the years immediately preceding tho war, often giving pleasant fifth! dances for their threo daugliters; of whom the bride-elect is tho eldest. Mr. Butlor has been a widower for some years, his first wife having lost her life by drowning when a mail boat foundered en route from Southampton to St. Malo. Like his older brother, Mr. Butler has two daughters but 110 Bon "

Miss Sybil Nathan, hon. secretary of the Rod Cross Women's' Committee, acknowledges with thanks £18 3s. (3d., the prize-money from Miss I-aber's Fitzlierbert Terrace School, and 19s. in postal notes from the Pirinoa School, Lower Valley, in the Wairarapa district. It is quite a small school, and half the pupils arc Maoris. Mr a. Luke states that in addition to tho hampers enjoyed by the men in camp, three others were sent from tho ltfajor's Fund to the Trentham Military Kospi, tal, for of the patients ana staff. The British R.C, Comforts Fund had already dispatched further Christmas cheer, In the shape rf smokes and sweets, ctc. Tho Lowry i.'ay Hospital has received the same donations. 'At tho meeting of the Wives' Club, at "Charley's Aunt" Club yesterday afternoon, a very enjoyable programme was arranged by Mrs. Grey. The items were:—Mavis Burgess, recitations, "Mad Goblin" and "'Sarah Jones's Tea Party"; Ursula Furgess, recitations, "Snowflakes" and "The Land of Everywhere"; Molly (i>e;\\ recital, "Something New."; Molly Allen, and Terence Groy gave an action song; Gertrude Austin recited "Tho Suffragette" and "Guilty or Not Guilty"; Mrs. ; Grey recited "Trouble in tho Amen Corner." Mrs. Sant presided, and was responsible fol- the afternoon refreshment. Mrs. Luke has received (per ,Mr. T. Young), from Oppenheimcr Casing Co., a cheque for £10 10s. fortheliverpool Christmas Fund, and also the sum of £l Is. collected by Mrs. Daly. . Tho Spinsters' Club have received' a very pleasant letter of thanks and acknowledgment from the No. 1 Stationary Hospital for- tho money' the club forwarded to supply tho inmates with Christmas cheer. Tho writer stated that this was tho fourth year that the spinsters had remembered them all.

THE CALL OP THE SOIL WOEK OF THE FARM WOMAN. (By J. Hastings Turner.) To us veterans the surprises cf war have become commonplaces. looking back to the ideas of throe years ago ,1s like turning up an old volume of "Punoh" or diving into some ci the Brai numbere of the "Spectator." For this generation was all born in 1814. From {hat date, at least, our Ji.anners and customs underwent bo »adioal a ohange that it is really unprofitable to go further back to trace the genesis of prasent-day social phenomenon. As for our women, they, it is tnip, were already showing signs, Defore_ the war, of dissatisfaction with the limitations ; imposed on them as a logacy from ; times when women were regarded as i pictures, whose only business it V»as to provide their own background. This attitude, the loss of which is doubtless still regretted by many romantioists, with very limited conception s of the meaning of Bomance, could soaroely be expected to survive the wave of vigorous reaction whloh foli lowed the syatematised prudery of the Victorians. What waß beginning to stir, before the war, as a gentle zephyr is now in full blast. It lias nivt been necessary to fight for the fruition of that movement, owing to the entire revolution in publio thought .rhioh has grown from August 4, 1914, For now that is done without remark by women in the fields and on the farms which even four years ago would have bought a storm of letters from "Mother-of-Ten" "Pater-familiaß," and "Octogeflirian." WTmt kind of woman, then, is this worker in the fields F She is of all classes. She is, of necessity, young— for the work is not for ola bones or tired muscles. She is not afraid of a hard day, not vet (mirabile diotui) of a dirty day. This is indeed progress. Our women, more than any of us had been driven towards artificiality of all kinds. Absurd prejudice had deoreed that a woman shall he only half-edu-cated, and should be protected (save the mark) from the realities of life. But it i'b impossible to be artificial on the land. The life ia a natural life— the fatigue is a healthy fatigue. «or can women who work day bv day near this primitive _ natural _ life be kept is ignorance of life's realities. From that work of fruit picking and hay-making, of dairy work ;ind poul-try-keeping, in whion even four years ago women oould take a part, they have passed now to all the multifarious activities of the farms. There is nothing which they have not attempted, and little at whioh they have not succeeded, They have boldly .'et thoir hands to the hardest and dirtiest work, from ploughing and carting, to the oare of cattle and horses. We began by wondering if they could manage a hoe; we end by seeing them manage a three-horse plough. TLese women iTave learnt what .ts meant by the call of The soil. Will they oome baokP If they came, will they be content P Will they he oontent to return Eo the cramped atmosphere of small streets to the little interests and littler artifloes of suburban life, they who have worked in the. fields In all weathers?

Possibly ono of Ihe results hi this war, with its universal juggling with the habits of the people, wfll be a growing distrust of the itoh for the oities; a suspicion that it is possible, perhaps to sharpen our wh at the expense of our sense of proportion. Perhaps the time has arrived to put the brake on what wo thought vas progress, and havo a look round. At least it ia not unreasonable to suppose that sofe of these women will be off with the old love, and i ill not Teturn from their farms. Some such permanent change is foreshadowed in the Government prospeotns, whioh after the usual olauses about equipment and pay, finishes with an intimation that facilities will be granted to those who, after the war, would caro to try a hand at running their own Utms In tht/ colonies. Tbey would go out equipped less like a stranger to a strange land. Certain it is that, often from what one may call the by-wttys of a rat movement, big results have oome. the women pioneers of the lend today are the beginning of a bigger realisation of the Importance of the countryside in the general Bohome <.f things and the fallacy of tho belief that all real force for progress lies in *„he oities, they will have helped a great movement. The results of this experiment on the farms will be well worth watching. A straw shows whioh wa.v the wind blows—and every farmer oarries a ptrc.w in his mouth.