OXFORD MEMORIES

Evening Star, Issue 23382, 27 September 1939, Page 6

OXFORD MEMORIES

ADDRESS BY MISS W. M'QUILKAN

The old world atmosphere of Oxford formed the theme for Miss Winifred M'Quilkan, who was the speaker at the Travel Club this morning. Th* hostesses were Mrs Barton and Mrs Tennant, and Mrs Cook presided. Mrs Raines, president of the Invercargill Travel Club, briefly addressed the gathering. Of the 6,000 students at Oxford, said Miss M'Quilkan, 10 per cent, were women, and the authorities seemed to consider that this wms a very good percentage. They were not at all enamoured of women students, _ although the same prejudice as existed at Cambridge did not obtain. There it was related that a professor spoke, to his class about an island in the South. Seas, where women wire so scare that “ even such as those that attend these classes” could get husbands. Actuated bv extreme indigation, the women present rose from their seats in a body, and went to leave the room. But the professor stopped them at the door, adding insult to injury by saying, “ There’s no hurry _ ladies, the next boat doesn’t leave till Friday.” Oxford was set in the very heart of the beautiful Coswold country, and it* Quiet beauty was incomparable. On* of its most appealing features was tbs constant play-giving and musical entertainments held in the open air throughout the summer term. In the last September crisis, th* authorities were prepared to evacuate Miss M'Ouilkan’s college at 24 hours’ notice. This was not evacuation in the sense of shifting to another town, but’ a matter of clearing out the building so that it might be used as a hospita.. Patients from the London hospitals would he brought down to Oxford, and the seat of Government would probably be shifted there. The town was in the very heart .of England, with four strong lines of defence between it and the sea. , , , , Miss M'Quilkan was very glad to be hack in Dunedin, and particularly glad to see genuine hills again. In England and in Australia she had found it hard to convince people that MUr should ho as they were here. Hills in England were" gentle rises, and the Blue Mountains in Australia well they were ouite nice little hills, but only hills. New Zealanders were inclined to he too humble altogether about their country.