WOMAN’S WORLD.

Dominion, Volume 15, Issue 40, 10 November 1921, Page 2

WOMAN’S WORLD.

MATTERS OF INTEREST FROM FAR AND NEAR.

(By

Imogen.)

SOCIAL AND PERSONAL Miss Gretchen Hume, late of the nursing staff of the Northoote Hospital, Palmerston North, is visiting her sister, Mrs. W. H. Townsend, Kilbirnie. She will leave for Auckland to-day, and will join tab Tofua on Saturday en route for Samoa, where sho will take up nursing duties. A bulrush wedding is a present-moment phase of fashionable marriage and giving in marriage in London. The title conveys tihe feature of bulrushes as i substitute for bouquets, and .this innocation was introduced at the wedding of Miss Irene Dashwood, a Hampshire hockey player, who married Major Bull at Winchester. The bridesmaids wore lavender silk and lavender tulle veils end sheafs of bulrushes set round with a posy of the sweet-smelling member of the tdillroom garden. The bridal bouquet was comprised of the same original floriculture. The Christchurch Polo Club’s ball, which was held in the Art Gallery on Monday night, was a most brilliant gathering. Tho scheme of decorations—black walls punctuated at intervals with garlands of lemon and orange paperformed an excellent background for the ladies’ dresses, many of which were really beautiful, both in colour and material. A small committee, the members of which were Major Hatton, Captain 'Tahu Rhodes, Dr. W. Pox, and Mr. J, G. Macdonald, were responsible for the excellent arrangements, which made the pall'd great success. Lady Jellicoe wore a. trained gown of black lace over satin, with jetted corsage and pointed panels falling over the skirt, and she also wore diamond ornaments; the Hon. Lucy Jelficoe wore maize-coloured taffetas, trimmed with ruchings. There passed away at the Colonial Hospital, Suva, a few days ago, one of the last of tihe Royal line of princesses of "Fiji, in the person of Ad< Salusalu, granddaughter of King Cakobau and cousin to Ratu Pope, the present head 'hereditary prince or chief of Fiji. Sho was a most interesting character, and was the wife of Ratu Vuki of Ran (the old Royal capital), and 45 years old. She was one of the three last members of the famous order of Vusaratu, or priest cniefs, a mysterious clan who held supreme eway in the Islands during the old savage days. The survivors of the Vusaratu are Rata Orisi and her sister, Adi Asenaca. As Ratu Orisi has no children this mysterious sect (which represents the embodiment of their old savage gods) will soon be extinct. Mr. Knowsley’s Dance Recital. Dance recitals are almost of nightly occurrence at the present time and tne younger generation of Wellington’s coming citizens should certainly be good dancers, judging by the amount of tuition they receive. The pupils of Mr. Joe Knowsley’s school of dancing were the performers at a recital which was held in the Concert Chamber last evening, and there was a large audience to witness their achievements. The dances were very prettily staged and some of t’ho ballets were effective and uncommon. Among the soloists were Miss Victoria Pritchard (Oriental Snake Dance), Miss Noeline Pritchard (The Naughty Quaker Maid), Miss Evelyn Wright (Irish Jig), Miss Betty Hoare (Operatic Polka), Miss Beryl Ward (Fairy Tip Toe), Mies Daphne Read (Lancashire Clog), Miss L. Hathaway (Ragtime Frolics), Miss Nola Wright. (a Spanish Danoe), Miss Edna Parnell (Skipping Rope Dance), Miss Evelyn -Wright (Sailors’ Hornpipe). Miss Thelma McKenzie (pupil of Miss Dorothy Saunders), who danced “La Palonia," and Miss Gene Rogers (The Night Moth). Among the ballets were a "Dawn Ballet.’’ introducing the Shades, the Spirit of Dawn and Dawn; “In An Old Garden,’’ with butterflies, flowers, and rose petals, etc.; “The Spider and the Fly Ballet,” and a Hawaiian Ballet, with Miss E. Wright as the soloist. The song "Hawaii I’m Lonesome For You” was sung meanwhile by Misses Olivo Banfield, G. Williams, and Betty Hoare. Mr. Knowsley danced as the but. tea-fly in the "Ballet of An Old Garden.’’ Several pretty duos were also part of t'he programme and the music for the evening was by Mrs. White and Mr. Taylor. WOMEN AND DIVORCE / A DEFENCE of the law. After speaking last evening to the E.O.W. Circle of tho Pioneer Club upon representative Englishwomen, Mies Lyra Taylor referred to th* Trork that Mrs. Seton Tredeman was doing for reform of the divorce law in England. Hearing, as she had done when in England, so much about necessary reforms of the English divorce law, and,, so many congratulatory remarks having- been made to her by Englishwomen about the new divorce law in New Zealand, it was with the greatest surprise and dismay that on coming back to this country she found people, particularly women, demanding the repeal of a law that embodied tho very principle which thousands of women in other countries regarded as a thing to be worked and agitated for. It was very much to be doubted, she said, whether many of the women who were making the loudest outcry had given the matter more than the slightest consideration. They had their attention drawn to a few cases in which they were told the new law would prove a hardship, and against these they failed to weigh tho incalculable good to the community at large, which easier divorce laws would undoubtedly do. It was alleged that under this new law a husband would ill-treat his wife in order to force her to obtain a separation order from a Magistrate, and that when such order had been in operation for three years ho would obtain his divorce. People seemed to overlook the fact that the husband obtaining such a divorce was compelled io make just as adequate provision for the wife and for any children after the divorce as he was while the separation order was in force. Most men would think twice before incurring such expense. This objection to divorce, as opposed to separation merely, on tho part of a great many women was nothing more than a desire to keep a firm hold at any cost on that —to them —most precious thing, the status of a married woman, although the marriage might be only one in name. Miss Taylor quoted from Sir John Salmond’s judgment in a -recent Wellington case: "There seems no reason why a woman should bo privileged to insist on the maintenance of her legal status as a wife notwithstanding the fact that for years past she has lived apart from her husband, and her marriage has been one in name only." Miss Taylor hoped that whatever amendment. Parliament might make in this law it would still adhere to the principle that where a marriage had in fact come to an end, and the separation between the parties had continued for the entirely reasonable period of, say, three years, either party io such marriage should be enen titleci io a divorce. Miss Taylor further quoted from Sir John Salmond in the same case: “In general, it is not in the interests of the parties, or in tho interests of the public, that, a man and a woman should remain,bound together as husband and wife when for a lengthy period they have ceased to bo such in fact.” >

“It is preposterous to speak of the present law as undermining the foundations of society," sbe said in conclusion.

BRITISH AND FOREIGN BIBLE SOCIETY t AN "AT HOME.” ■ Y-esterday afternoon the British and Foreign Bible Society held an “at home” in St. John’s Schoolroom, to welcome Mr. Axil Welin, a member of the London committee, who is visiting New Zea-, land. Mr. Troup (chairman) presided at the gathering, and the guests as they arrived were received by Mrs. Troup, Miss McLean, and Miss Millar. On behalf of the workers for the .society, Mr. Troup, in welcoming Mr. Welin, said that when the council.was set up no one had had any experience in such work, and they were practically groping in the dark. However, they had done what they could, and now they had a Bible house, a building which had been purchased at a cost of J3BBOO, every penny of which had now been paid; then organisations had been formed, and auxiliaries existed in many places where they had not hitherto been. After consultations with Mr. Welin they hoped, to do much better. So far as the churches were concerned, he had not seen a more representative gathering of men and women than that of the afternoon, and he thought it a matter of congratulation to think that such was the- casa with the work in which they were engaged. The-Bishop of Wellington (Dr. Sprott), on behalf of the Wellington diocese, joined in welcoming Mr. Welin. He thought that the work of the British and Foreign Bible Society was the most important work of any society in Wellington. At such a crisis in the world’s history no society was more worthy of support than it. Many people had been hoping for a world-unde League of Nations. Such a world-wide League did not yet exist, and yet thinking people believed that such a League was Iho only hope of saving the world from a greater disaster than the one that had already befallen it. The League of Nations needed a soul. It needed a common faith and a common moral ideal — that only could be the real bond between nations. No other faith, no other teaching showed the way to bring this about than that contained in the Divine Scriptures. It may be said, continued the speaker, that the nations of Christendom have had that faith, that teaching, and yet disaster and shipwreck had happened. T o his mind, however, faith and knowledge had been imperfect, and when they had become more widely spread they would find justification tor that faith in the help that would be given. Never had there been so many uneasy consciences as during the period of the war —consciences that had made themselves felt as never before—not that they thought the wrong course had been taken —but that they believed that the necessity that brought about war was an evil one. It was in this that hope lay—in faith 'and a common moral ideal. The only agency that was providing, this common basis for a higher international faith, for a .world-wide brotherhood of man, was the British and Foreign Bible Society. On behalf of the non-Anglican churches, the Rev. Dr. . Gibb , also added a welcome to Mr. Welin. Speaking of the achievements of the society, be considered i“’a triumph of linguistio work. It sought to reach every people of the earth. The way in which its translations were distributed, was hardly less wonderful than its linguistic achievements. If only a fragment of th# money that had been thrown away in war had been spent in the past in spreading the work of the Gospel we would not be looking out upon such a wounded world as that of to-day. In spite of the fact that they were “up against things” at the present time—that this was n period of moral decadence in the British Empire—there were heartening -signs that the Kingdom of God was at hand. Dr. Gibb also paid, a very hearty tribute to the work of the Rev. A. T. Thompson, who had shown a genius for organisation and collecting money. Another speaker was the Rev. A. T. Thompson,, who, in welcoming Mr. Welin, spoke of the composition of the London parent society and its members, thirty-six in all, who were men of much distinction. Mr. Welin was one of the foreign members of the council, and he had not only given his services to its work, but ho had served the Empire as well. The Scriptures, he told, his hearers, liad been translated into 543 languages, and every five weeks a fresh language was captured and sent out. The Bible house was to be utilised for definite organising work, and they were looking to Mr. Welin for advice and guidance. In replying to all the different speeches. Mr. Welin disclaimed the statement that he was visiting New Zealand as a representative of the pai'ent society in London. He was a purely unofficial visitor. New Zealand and the work of the New Zealand society lay close to the heart of the society in London. Ona or two stories were told by the speaker illustrative of the spirit that animated the London council; one in particular showing how absolutely apart from their thoughts and activities were denominational differences. None troubled to know what was the faith of their fel-low-worker. The care with which money that wag sent from all quarters was handled by the London committea left nothing to be desired. Mr. Welin spoke of their work in Japan, where at first he had felt considerably discouraged, but on seeing and learning more of it he camo to realise much more was being quietly done than appeared on the surface. A decision that faced the present committee in these days was that which lay between curtailment of its activities or getting more money. To curtail their work was to grievously retard it, to cut at its life, and they all felt that such would be the case. England, he told his hearers, became a great nation because of her faith in the Bible. If she drops it, then her end as a great Empire was inevitable. Another speaker was Miss McLean, president of the Women’s Committee. Mr. Field, of the Auckland Auxiliary, expressed his thanks for the interest that had been afforded by the afternoon’s gathering. Afternoon tea was handed around, and a brief musical programme was given.