WOMAN'S WORLD.

Dominion, Volume 12, Issue 210, 30 May 1919, Page 2

WOMAN'S WORLD.

(By Imogen.)

Mrs. Monteith.Jlrs. Moiison, awl -Miss Marion Jlonteith' (West Coast) have'returned to Wellington from Ifotorua. Mrs. Pulton, the wife of General Fulton, returned to. New Zealand by tho Himutaka on Wednesday. .Mrs. Fulton, as a nurse, has ft splendid record of war work to her credit, and has been incn--.tioued in dispatches. -■ ■ ' Mr. John Hay and .Mrs. Hay, who arrived in New Zealand by the liiiuuttikn on Wednesday, left yesterday for the south. In connection with the production of "The Tiireo Doors" at tho Qrand Opera House last evening for the benefit of the free kindergartens, home-made sweets were sold, Sirs. W. Reid and Mrs. A.rndt being in charge of the stall. Indentured Labour in Samoa, At a meeting of the Women's Xational Council hold in Auckland this week, itwas decided that the following resolution bo plnood beforo tho Government:—"That tho Auckland branch of the National Council of Women of New Zealand urgently requests the Government to declare officially that, in exercising its mandate over Samoa it.;'wi!l abolish.the system of indentured labour, and refuse absolutely to allow it to be reintroduced," A V.A.D.'s Fine Work. Mrs. Stewart, 0.8. E., wife of the Uitti Colonel Stewart,'- w : ho commanded tlit .fifth Reinforcements, returned to New Zealand by the Rimutaka, and last evening she left for the south. Mrs. Stewart was one of the first of New. Zealand women to go to Egypt; and she was accompanied' by her sister, Miss .Herbert, who H in England in connection with tne T.M.C.A. Hostel (New Zealand), in Loudon, in which -Mrs. Stewart had been helping after leaving Brockeuhurst. The latter first joined up with the New Zealand Forces at Pont do Koubbah Hospital as a A'-.'A.D., where sho did splendid work. She also helped in the Eskcbieh Gardens Soldiers' Club, with Mrs. De Castro, of Wellington. With hardly- ti break Mrs. Stewart has ivprked for New Zoaland soldiors during the ■ past four years, and there are few of the latter who wero in Egypt in those earlier times who would not romembor her as.their greatest friend and helper at a time when they needed both, ■ . I ~ ■ ;- . ' Dresses in "The Three Doors." The staging of "Tho Three Doors,"-a kindergarten fantasy, -produced for tho first tinio in tho Grand Opora House last evening by Mrs.'James, Hannah and Miss Gladys Campbell, was an event in which much intorest was taken. The dressing, grouping, and colour combinations were altogether unusual, and many of the .effects charming. In the first act (Tho hoor of Happiness), MJss Vera Pegg appeared dressed in while, with a white cloak and a white flowing head-dress, the scarlet symbol on tho front of her gown standing out in vivid contrast against the white 'background.' Littlo Elsie Dick, tho child to whom was re-, vealed the joys of the kindergarten, was a. ragged and picturesque little figure in red and brown. Some very quaint, ballets were introduced in this act, Ihe first, be-' ing the ballet of tho "Milk Jug; and Rusks," already described,-as was that of "Towels and Sponges," and the romantic ballet of "Water." In tho latter 'the soloist was Tlielma Harris, in white over, opal draperies, and her companions wero in soft greys, greens, and .blues, with fluttoriug edges. The "Clean Clothes Ballet," in which the children were, dressed in champagne-coloured Pierrot suits, picked out With black, and carried wooden clothes horses, was charming. -In the second act, "The Door of Beauty" ("Ode to a Grecian Urn"), the dresses were, of course, of the Greek period, and the processional groups, which made' their way across the stage,/were very picturesque' and dignified. In the sncrificial procession • the prevailing colours were of. white and gold, grey, heliotrope, and bine, and a striking feature of it was the' emblem representing.' the sun, moon, stars and. planets,.-carried-, by Mavis King. A dignified- figure 'was that of Miss Williams .(the priest)> in white and gold, , and. wearing a gold head-dress, with an emblem representing the rays of the sun., The golden incenso stands, which were carried in tho procession,, as well r.s the emblem of the sun, moon, and stars, ; 'wore made by Mr. Chapman. All the clothes were stencilled' and ornamented with tho Greek key pattern >by , Mrs. Hannah and Miss Vera. Pegg, and'designed hy, the former. In Miss Campbell's dance .story some charming' frocks arid colour combina- , tions were seen. Miss Francis Muter as the "Sungod" was in draperies of flamo colour, orange and dull gold, the gradations of tones being- very cleverly com-, bined. Miss Ngaire Phipson as "The Wind" wore draperies of soft bluo and grey, with fluttering edges, and Miss Kathleen Boyle as "Frost" was a glittering figure in, a jerkin of cut points to represent icicles, worn over blue tights, with an icicle crown and a sword. Tho flower spirits were particularly cnective— "Colour," "Shape," aud "Perfume.' ' Colour" wore shot pink and red draperies, "Shape" was "a collection of strange, orchid-liko forms-of flowers, while "Perfumo" appeared in an Eastern dress of green and silver. It was in tho third act, the sccno from ■ the "Midsummer' Night's Dream" (the "Door of Faery") that the most gorgeous effects wero secured. Titania's dress of > opalescent and blue draperies was beautiful, and equally beautiful were her wings, largo and irridesccnt, with glittering veins and studded with largo, ir- . regularly-shnped purple spots. Golden sandals were worn, and she carried a wand crowned with a beautifullymodelled purple iris. Her crown w»b gorgeous, of opalescent fleur de lys. ana small flowers, in tho heart of which burned, a tiny flame so that tho coronet looked as though it were ablaze with jewels. The crown, the wings, and tho wand wero. all the work of her father, Mr. G. A. Chapman, of the Hutt. "Oberon" (Miss Millar) was a study in greens and gold, with n transparent violet cloak, and he too had most beautiful wings like nothing so much as huge dragon fly wings, all gold and black. As the first fairy Miss Ngairo Pmp6on was in moonlight blue draperies, with tiny pink flowers over a gold suit. A contrasting touch was given by a suggestion of violet in her draperies. Her wings were in colours of royal blue, vio. let and gold, and sho also wore a horned opalescent headdress. "Puck" (Hazel Hardwicko) wore a suit in which,insects wings wero painted on a green back, ground. Branched wings of black, inmo and gold, sprung from his back, and his tights, as well as his elf cap; wero of dull flamo colour. Tho "Cobweb '- (Joyce .lulien was in a torn elf s 6int,-m different tones of grey, hung with sil. ver cobwebs, while Irene Marsh us Red Leaf" was a charming littlo figure in crimson and gold. Titania's fairies were clothed in draperies ot mauve, gold and dull blues, one in painted violet and gold being particularly effective. "Oberon's" men wore chiefly in blues and greens, with heads banded with silver and-with silver wings. The goblins wero in green elf suits, with spotted tomato caps- Mrs. Hannah mado all tho wings, which wero wonderfully clfective, and also planned and carried out the details of tho clothes.

MATTERS OF INTEREST FROM FAB AM) NBAS,

SOCIAL AND PERSONAL

Scottish Women's Hospital Unit. • In reply to a question as to what hud become of the Scottish "Women'*; Hospital Uiiit which sho Mul.commanded ■ for Bomo time, Dr. .Agnes' Bennett, in' th» course of a talk with n, Dominion representative, said that it was still very busy indeed. After staying at Dobrnvonya (where she had left it), the unit then joined tho Serbian Army, and followed it in its northward inarch to Serbia —the first unit to pet hero. -By lorry, by' motor-car, by jiny possiblemeans of -transport, they got to Vranya, and there found things in a terrible condition. The sick and wounded, hundreds of tliem, were all crowded into a largo barracks, with no one to look after them but peasant girls. There was no hospital equipment, hardly anything to eat, and the place was isdescriba'bly filthy. As may be imagined, t.horo was plenty to do, and the unit set -to work to do it. Asked as to .whether the .ambulance for which'money'liad been's<mt"by -tho'Pio-'. neer .Club', in Wellington, had reached' them. Dr. Bennett said that it had and was very greatly appreciated. As a matter of fact, they find ordered with the money provided by the club not an ambulance, but a.Stetson motor lorry fri>m America, which was more adapted to tho work which had to bo done.

.' ENGLAND IN TRANSITION

A. TALK WITH DR. AGNES " BENNETT, Dr. Agnes Bennett, who recently returned to tho Dominion, has much, that is interesting to say concerning conditions at Home, and especially in London. After her return to England from her furlough in Now Zealand and Australia, Dr. Bennett, who, it will bo remembered, had commanded ono of'the Scottish Women's Hospital Units in its work for the .Serbians, did not continuo her work in that direction, but instead accepted an appointment at the Glasgow Infirmary, where th-e work was partly civil and partly military. Later, having gone through a strenuous time-during the influenza epidemic,. she left for Netley Hospital, where she was working practically up to- tho tjme of leaving. Thoconditions that, prevailed at Home sho described as. being far from comfortable. Of food the.-o was still a.shortagein certain directions, though the hospitals suffered tho least of all, but even there 6uch a thing as butter was a thing to long for, the allowance that was granted individually -being,almost microscopic, margarine . largely taking _«s place. -During tho winter there had been a coal shortage, and a good deal of suffering and distress had in consequence resulted. Many people .could only buy as much as seven pounds of coal at a time, and tho greatest economy had to be. exercised in using it; Tho old condition of affairs when fires worn to bo found in nearly every room of tho house was altogether a thing of tho past.'^ Railway travelling Dr. Bennett described as an evil to be avoided as much as possible, unless a person was prepared to spend about, an hour or so standing in a queue at the ticket office waiting to secure a ticket, and if there were luggage to see, to then about- double that time'was needed to arrange the i necessarv details. With demobilisation tho whole schemo of things had to bo readjusted to' m*ct tho necessities of civil life, and at that time things wero in the intermediate stage, and would bo so for somoCtimo. to come. The .housing problem in London was extraordinarily acute. Erbm seven millions London s population-had within vory recent times increased to eleven -■ millions, and.-dur-! ing the war building had practically stood still. Owing to tho, lack of domestic help pooplo with large- houses had 'in many cases given them up and. had gone into-.smaller; ones,.and the people who had been living in them until that moment had had to look elsewhere, though often -with no success.-.i. People who had contemplated marriage .were forced to .postpone it till they could find homes. A schemo for building temporary homes had been projected but a, considerable amount of doubt had been expressed as to whether that could-be. done becausb of drainage and the water sup. plv. > In-such a-crowded city as London and its thickly-populated suburbs, .these were Tory important things, and would have to bo done with ns much thoroughness as though the buildings were of a 'permanent, nature. There had., alsoi.been talk of turning hutments into homes tar the waiting people. Hotels and boardinghouses wero taxed to, .the utmost. When asked as to whether there was verv much unemployment among, women at Home, Dr.. Bennett said. unemployment was beooming more apparent as the women reached the end ot their maintenance allowaneps. ; Their demobilisation was taking place slowly, so that as much distress as- possible might be avoided, but it had to he remembered thata very largo number of women had been ■mobilised for war service. .On the other hand there wero a great many women,, such as bus conductresses, driven.,'etc.-, who wero very glad to give up their .-work and go-back to other ways, of life, ..Some, nf the V.A.D's, however,- were viewing the future with dismay, and wondering what they were to do with their time now that the need for theirserviceS .was passing. An interesting career that was King up for girls was.that. of almoner af tiv/hig hospitals and quite a goodmany were going m for it. Inc \.A.y.. Scholarship 'scheme was also a help in ■placing opportunities 'before theso war workers, for careers of interest- and a ;good many wore ready-to take advantage Sit Tho 'Tab." (laboratory) girls were imonY'thosß who'had dono Rood work ■ when replacing "lab." men, and their e ices had tan largely used. fcomA had seized the' -Opportunities for research, work, bacteriology, etc., winch t had opened ..UP, and were doing very well indeed. . . •