“SPOTTING.”

Shannon News, 30 June 1925, Page 3

“SPOTTING.”

YOUNG WOMEN AND ALCOHOL. TRYING TO BE “SPORTY.” That “spotting” among the young women of' Christchurch is not more prevalent than it is among the young women of any other centre, was the opinion expressed by a social worker this morning. “But,” she said, “although the position does not cause alarm, th e fact remains that the evil is in our midst, and it has no right to be.”

Speaking with reference to a message received from Auckland, in which it was stated that much of the drinking by girls to-day is merely bravado, the social worker sa,id that she had no doubt whatever about this. Many; girls simply wished to be “one of the j crowd,” and they would do what the j crowd did no matter what the cost. The twentieth century girl was not

nearly so bad as she was painted, but the “spotting” habit was one of her little faults. “Of course it would be nonsense to say that these girls are on the downward path simply because they take a glass of something stronger than tea,” she said. "A girl is entitled to what she wants, just as much as a man is, for that matter, but I don’t think a girl can exercise the restraint that a ■ man does. The average girl hasn’t got the will. And therein lies the) danger. “She is likely to take her ‘spot’ more or less as a n atter of fun at the start, but as time goes on she takes more and more, and gradually acquires a most degrading habit. Most girls, 1 think, have enough sense not to lose their heads over such matters,

and know just when to stop. Many of the girls I. have come across from time to time at parties, and so on, who are supposed to be habitual spotters, really do not like the stuff at all. As I say, they drink it more or less as a matter of courtesy, and to be in * with the rest. I myself do not say Y they are doing the right thing; in fact I would rather see drink abolished from these parties and places where young women congregate; but I see no need for over-stressing the evil.” “That there are few homes iri New Zealand where alcoholic beverages are - used at meals in place of tea, there is no doubt, but to see many of the young people sipping their cocktails in hotel lounges and supper rooms one

would immediately jump to the conclusion that they had been drinking all their lives,” said a prominent church worker. “The modern girl is a frivolous miss; she likes to make a holy show of herself, and on e of the most successful ways of doing this, she finds, is to copy the vices of the young people of the opposite sex. That is why a girl smokes; you can’t tell me that these girls like to smoke. They do it .because its being done. “And then tliere is the influence of the young men. I think that they are at the root of the trouble. It is idle to say that drinking isn’t going on amongst young women to a very great extent. Anyone who doubts it may secure the evidence by taking a walk past' on e .of leading daneehalls on the occasion of a big dance. The evidence is usually to be found in the side-channels in the form of empty bottles. It might be contended that the contents bad been drunk by men only, but if” you are particularly observant you may perhaps see for yourself a young woman in the act of taking her spot. I’ve seen it.”

That the modern young man who claims to be ihe friend of a girl, though in reality her worst enemy, is primarily responsfble for “spotting” amongst the young people of the opposite sex, was the opinion expressed by several other women workers.