WOMEN’S WORLD

Evening Star, Issue 24292, 5 September 1942, Page 8

WOMEN’S WORLD

ENGAGEMENTS

Jarvis—Hill.—Daphne Margaret Bose, only daughter of Mr and Mrs W. J. Jarvis. North-east Valley, to Trooper Arthur Colinge,' second son of Mr W. C. Hill, of Blenheim, and the late Mrs Hill. Stephenson—Buchanan.—Marie Sinclair, only daughter-of Mr and the late. Mrs G. Stephenson, Cargill road, Dunedin, to Leading-signalman Campbell Howard R.N.Z.N., son of Mr and Mrs J. W. Buchanan, Fox street, Port Chalmers. Toms—Cameron.—Betty Evelyn, younger daughter of Mr and Mrs Godfrey Toms, Coal Creek ,Flat, Roxburgh, to Secondlieutenant Ewen Henry John Cameron, onlyson of Mr and Mrs Ewen Cameron, Oamaru. Wheeler—Robertson.—Eileen Alice, onlydaughter of Mr and Mrs J. E. Wheeler, Anderson’s Bay, and John Duncan, onlyton of Mr and Mrs J. D. Robertson, of Bidwill street, Timaru.

[By Diana.]

Social and Personal. Mrs Leonard Thompson is spending a holiday in Rotorua. Miss Ethel Pearce, of St. Clair, has returned from Roxburgh. The final meeting of -the Dunedin Hostel Guild for the season will bo held next Wednesday,. when it is hoped that there will be a large attendance of members as there are many garments still unfinished. Although the guild is closing down, it will be on call for the Red Cross, should any emergency arise, when members will bo advised by advertisement. On \Vednesday last a bappy afternoon was spent by the ladies of the League for the Hard of Hearing in their rooms, Hanover street. Bowls of spring flowers tastefully arranged gladdened the eye, and time was spent in social chat and afternoon tea. The Momiugton branch of the League of Mothers met on Wednesday, Mrs Burton presiding. The speaker for the afternoon, Mrs Hiett, took for her subject the question, ‘ What Am 1 Living For.’ Mrs Hiett mentioned some notable. people who had answered this question satisfactorily for themselves. She instanced Florence Nightingale, who .had asked herself this question, and so had become ibe Angel of the Crimea and the Lady of the Lamp. The thought for the month, given by Mrs McKay, was, “ I arn the Bread of Lite, He that cometli to Me shall never hunger, and he that be’icveth on Me shall never thirst.” Solos given by Mrs McLean were greatly appreciated. . . The monthly meeting of the Port Chalmers branch of the League of Mothers was held in the Anglican Schoolroom, when Mrs Cassie presided. Mrs Brown sang two beautiful solos, and the Rev. Crozier spoke' on the ‘ Campaign . for Christian Order.’ The church parade will be hold on Sunday, November 8. On Tuesday, October 2, the following ladies will be in attendance at tbe patriotic shop.;:—Mcsdames Brown, Jenkins, Cassie, Thorn, Thomson, ‘and Buchan. The South Dunedin W’-C.T.U. held-, a meeting in the St. Clair Methodist Church Hall; at which Mrs Williamson presided. The Rev. T. Steele, who led in prayer and reading of Scripture, assured those present of his and- his church's support in the work of the W.C.T.U. Mrs Hiett Dominion president of the W.C.T.U., then gave a stirring address stressing the urgent need for 'Christian women to help in all work for the uplift of humanity. Mrs Garden, superintendent of the. Y's and organiser for the W.C.T.U., briefly spoke of tbe urgent need of temperance teaching among the young people. A recitation by Mrs A. M. Smith and a solo by Mrs M. A. Chetwin were enjoyed by all. Mrs Hprwood thanked the speakers and others who took part. At the committee ■ meeting of the Women’s War . Service Auxiliary,- concern was expressed at the growing panic among the younger girls. regarding direction into essential work,- and the members consider that for the sake of both parents and girls more publicity should be given to conditions. length of service, and to opportunity to appeal. With this in view, the committee has forwarded to the authorities what it considers helpful suggestions for carrying out suitable placements. The president and committee of the Dunedin. .Competitions Society entertained the judges, tbe volunteer house staff, and those who’had given assistance in supplying items for the programmes to a supper party at the Savoy on Thursday night. The deputy mayor, Mr D. ■C, Cameron, was present, and special guests included Mr and Mrs Victor Peters, of Christchurch, and Mr and Mrs James Simpson, of Gore. All the judges' expressed pleasure in adjudicating in .Dunedin, .and complimented the society on its efficient management. The president. Mr W. R. Sinclair, thanked all who had assisted in the festival, and made appreciative reference to the large body of voluntary helpers who had supported the committee: . Young Musicians and Poets. Miss Ron-. Thomson presided over the seventeenth recital of the Music Teachers’ •Association Students’ Club, when anothervery- interesting pre-gramme was presented by members, who showed distinct, progress in public performance. A special feature was the awarding of the Mona Dean prize for original poems. Mr G. W, Johnstone, in making the presentation, urged students to study poetry for its beauty cf thought and feeling", and they would find in -so doing a deeper and fuller vision of real life from which poetry could nob be .divorced without loss. Mr \V. F. Alexander, who judged the poems, slated in his report that ho had experienced the greatest difficulty in separating the first two. poems. Both sonnets were technically correct, musical and imaginative. The winner was Shirley Palmer, second place going to Tni Rutherford and third to June f.ee for “a poem having colour and music but in which (he metre broke down in a couple, of lines.” He. congratulated the students on their efforts. Those taking part hi the programme were Misses Ailsa Poulter. ' Nest a Calton, Thelma Thomson, Jenny Mearns, Shirley Palmer, Kowena Linden, Edith Turnbull, Lorna Pile, Clare Rouse, Ruth Stewart, Olwyn Belcher, Kathleen Allan, Betty Joel, Rosslyn Brown, June Holmes, Brenda Clark, Marjorie Holdaway, Jean Nelson, Marion Allan, Olive Nipper, Ellice Nieper, Betty McLean, Mabel Miller, and Joan Woods. Messrs Win. Clarke, Wm, Laing, Louis Rocard, and Walter Metcalfe. Free Kindergarten.

The monthly meeting of the council of the Dunedin Free Kindergarten Association was held in the R.S.A. committee room onThursday, Mrs Haggilt presiding. Two reports from the directors of the kindergartens stated that there had been small attendances on account of colds and influenza, but the hope was expressed (hat with the advent of finer weather things would improve. . . The town clerk. wrote giving permission to the North-east A’alley local committee to hold a door-to-door collection on' September 21. - . Correspondence was received and accounts were passed for payment. The financial statement for the month showed a big debit balance. The senior girls at a secondary school in Wanganui were recently asked to write an essay on their future plans—if they wished to marry, and if so, how many children thev would like to have. Eighty per cent, of ‘the girls intimated that they wished to marry, and all of these _ expressed a wish to have one or two children. “So the headmistress sent forme to come and address them.” said Mrs James Begg, Dominion president of the Plnnkot Society, when at a Plunket conference recently she related this incident in the course of her remarks on the declining birth rate. Travel Club.

The speaker at. the Travel Club next Wednesday will be Mr C. J. Hayward, who will talk about Whitehall. The hostesses will bo Mrs J. Y. Love and Mrs Dora Smeaton. Red Cross News.

The many Red Cross workers in the Otago sub-centres will learn with regret that advice has been rrtceived of the loss of 2-1 cases of refugee clothing en route to Russia. This is the first occasion that any cases have been losr. out of the 380 sent overseas by the Otago Centre of the Red Cross Society The society wishes to thank the

anonymous donor for her generous gift of £5 to replace the 3d collection lost last week. Transport.—'Members of the transport detachment took a party of returned sick and wounded men for a short di-ivc last Sunday, and they were entertained at afternoon tea. Repertory Society. The monthly play social of the Dunedin Repertory Society will be held next Monday in the Concert Chamber. Navy League Notes, The Women’s Committee bad its monthly meeting on Wednesday, when the comforts and spinning reports were given and other business discussed. During the month over 701 b knitting wool have been spun at. the' spinning room. A good number of largo parcels of garments and Untied foods have come in from the country, including a parcel, of children’s things from the Waitaki High School Old Girls’ Association. Over 700 garments have been sent away. Owing to shortage of space, it is not possible to publish letters in full, hut those who so kindly send in calces, honey, sweets, books, etc., for overseas ships in port,, will like to know that very appreciative letters of thanks are received from time to lime. One very correctly expressed Idler ended np with a P.S.: “ The cake was jolly good.” Another voiced the hope that friendships started might bn renewed one day. Plunket Society Conference. Mrs J. Cracroft Wilson, president, of the Christchurch branch, formally opened I lie Plunket Society’s Provincial Conference for tile Canterbury and Westland area, held in Christchurch this week. “There has never been- a time when the work of the Plunket Society for mothers and babies lias been of such vita! importance as it is today,” said Mrs Wilson. She welcomed Mrs James Begg, of Dunedin, tbe Dominion president, who, she said, was known throughout New Zealand for her zeal and ardour in Ibe cause of the society, and also Dr Helen Deem, medical adviser; Miss N. Fitzgibbon, nursing adviser; and Mrs E. R. Batchelor, Dominion secretary. A special welcome was accorded Mrs J. McGeorgo, a former Dominion president, who had come from Dunedin to attend the conference. Mrs Cecil Wood presided, ami the mayoress. Miss E. Couzens, was present. Jlrs Begg, in her opening address, emphasised Ihe importance of creating a ne'-. ideal of motherhood, and of regaining for mothers their rightful position of importance in the community. Mrs B. H. Gihnour said that criticism of the Plunket Society generally came from lack of knowledge of its aims and wo:k. One ideal of its founder, Sir Truby King, had been achhvcd in the low infant mortality of New Zealand, but members must turn their attention to another aspect of the nation’s health—its morbidity.' Women, she said, were the custodians of the country’s health, and members of the Plunket Society must p!cdge_ themselves to tackle'the problem of morbidity—to give to every citizen a full chance of developing his heritage of health. She appealed to all members of the committee to study the work of (lie society and help in carrying out its aims. Miss .Fitzgibbon gave an outline of the work done at (ho Truby King-Hams Karitane Hospital in Dunedin, and pointed out t.lio importance of regular supervision of babies by Plunket nurses, who should see each baby at, least once a month. After discussing a remit from the Cheviot branch asking Dial; children in schools _bo taught the value of a well-balanced diet and the best way of cooking food, it was decided to ask the, Domnin.n Council to approach the Health Dcpa'tment, asking that suitable talks on these subjects, given by experts, be included in the education sys--■'ui Speaking to further remits from Cheviot. Miss FilzgibKSn said that, as fains possible, recently-qualified nurses were not sent to one-nurse centres, and Mrs Begg said that members of tbe executive, when invited to do so. would fry to visit conn try branches "and discuss problems with the members.