WOMEN OF ALLIED COUNTRIES

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 36, 6 November 1919, Page 4

WOMEN OF ALLIED COUNTRIES

A TALK WITH LOUISE MACK

After living in many countries as sho has done. Miss Louise Mack, authoress and cx-war correspondent, who is at the present timo visiting Wellington, is .ina position to speak of tho characteristics of tho people of those countries among whom she has lived. Some of these impressions were gleaned in the course of an interview with her yesterday, Miss Mack sketching some of the. features of the women of the Allied countries. For France and tho people of France the authoress has a great admiration, and she considered them tho most scientific and most intellectual pcoplo m the world to-div. Women, as well as men, made everything they did a science. No one in the worldkncw so well how to dres3 as aid a Frenchwoman.. Sho considered it her duty to be perfectly turned out from head to foot not only for her own "ratification, but for the satisfaction of knowing that sho was perfect in every detail. A full-length mirror was regarded as a necessity, so that she could get the full effect of her clothes from every aspect, and here it is that one of the differences between tho •Frenchwoman and the American is said to show itself, the Frenchwoman, according to Miss Mack, making sura of every point of view, front, skies, and back, and the American.being satisfied with tho front; view only. When a Frenchwoman decided to get herself a new frock she would make a study of it for days, and think it out in every detail. When selecting a hat .to wear she would have hats' sent to her home, and there try them on with different dresses, so that the hat she chose would harmonise with whatever frock sho wore. it on was a very solemn rite. Everything she bought was good, and a Frenchwoman never decorated herself with the trumpery things that so often figure in tho toilettes of women outside France. As was well-known, the French were the best cooks in the world, and that was because they applied scienco to the preparing of food. They were also tlio most frugal of people, and could make delicious things out of almost nothing. A French custom, which Miss Mack thought people in English-speaking countries might follow, was that of dowering their daughters. If parents would start to nut even a small sum by. weekly for their daughters, instead of frittering their money away on all sorts of profitless things, they would add much to the futuro happiness of their daughters. To be economically independent as the Frenchwoman is by this.means, smooth-, ed the wheels of life wonderfully. In reply to a question regarding tho turning down of tho franchise for women bv tho French Senate recently, led by Clemenceau. Miss Mack' expressed the opinion that even if Frenchwomen never got the franchise-it would hardly matter, as so much power already lay in their hands. The Frenchwoman, if she were a wife, was her husband's partner in a verv real sense, no matter what career ho followed, and if she were his mother she was queen of tho household, and deferred to in every way, the wife, as a rule, willingly sharing in the general attitude. In any case, the franchise was certain to come for the women of France, in spite of Clemenceau. Tho war has shattered many ideas that have held ground concerning the people of France, especially the idea that they were a frivolous people. Another thing that is realised is the jealousy with which the French guard their family life, tho cxclusiyeuess with which it is hedged. Hospitality such as we know it is for that reason an unknown thing in France.. . The Belgians Miss Mack described as being a somewhat stolid people, materialistic in their outlook on life, but when occasion calls ailainc with an intense love of country. Their architecture is fine, handsome, and solid, and the furniture of their houses is in keeping. One thing that struck Miss Mack was the wav in which they contrived that their windows.should look out ni»n tho gardens at the back of their houses, so that there was nearly always a vista of garden, grass, or trees, to delight tho eye. The Belgian woman was, as a rule, a cood housewife, and took a pride in her. house and her family. Belgium, as is well known, is a very socialistic country, and at the outbreak of war some doubt was felt as to what attitude the Socialists would take up. King Albert, however, called the Socialist leader, Van der Velto. to him, and mado him Prime Minister, and so securing his assistance. Tho rest of ths party followed. Whether this act secured their nllegienco or no. it was porhaps difficult to say, as tho love of country is usually very strong in a nation that lias had to fight ■for its independence for centuries. For Italy, home of art and beauty, Miss Mack has a very deep affection. With -beauty'all -around them—from 6cme of the greatest masterpieces of art and of architecture to the natural beauty of the country—it was-impossible to conceive the Italians as anything else than a people lor whom beauty was the mainspring of life. The women were something like the Frenchwomen, in that thev had an instinctive elegance of appearance, but instead of being what' a scientific people must 1», controlled and oven artificial, tho Italians wore cxtremelv natural and laughter-loving, as people living in suiihy lands usually are Verv beautiful women wero often to be seen, slim in figure, beautifully formed, but as lifo advanced there was a tendency to grow rather stout. Although not as a rule of the advanced intellectual type that is to be met with in some other countries, the'ltalian woman has a very alluring charm about her, a certain sweetness and suavity that makes her distinct from women of other nations. Tho largo colonies of England and American people who live in Rome and Florence wero touched upon, and in connection with the American colonies, a somewhat serious problem is arising. "An intensely bitter feeling, a hatred oven, for President Wilson now exists among Italian peoplo (if all classes," said Miss Mack, "and I believe if President Wilsou. were to show himself in the streets of these cities he would be stoned. This bitterness is being extended to the Americans', living in Italy, and it is going to make things, very awkward for them. A great many American heiresses are married to members of the Italian aristocracy, and the present situation is not going to make things any the easier forsfheiu." Some of the c-hnracteritsics of American women were touched upon, their camaraderie as travellers, (heir keenness for "culture," their instinctivo purity of outlook, which makes them faco thft fundamental, facts of life with a frankness and naturalness that if universally followed would do much in helping to banish the social evils which afflict tho world to-day. The splendid teeth of Americans were commented upon bv Miss Mack. Splendid because of the care with which they are looked after from the earliest cays. Russian . women wero \ described as the most intellectual-women she had met. Their intellect was voracious, and their power of analysis pitiless. The characteristics of Englishwomen needed no comment in this country. Touching upon Australian women. Miss Mack expressed the opinion that one of their characteristics was their ln-nutifullv-shaped ankles and (cfA, and this was particulaily striking.