THE MODERN GIRL.

Shannon News, 29 December 1926, Page 3

THE MODERN GIRL.

BETTER EQUIPPED FOR LIFE. THAN GIRLS OF 50 YEARS AGO. That the lot of the modern, ochoolgirl is infinitely more pleasant and that she is much, better equipped for life’s battles than was 'he case 50 years ago is the opinion of Dr. Agnes Bennett, of Wellington, who was the speaker at the breaking-up ceremony of the Gills’ High School at Palmerston North! . ; « • “ Perhaps the most interesting thing for modern girls is to try and realise what those before .them suffered,” was; the opening remark of Dr. Bennett, who added that not so very many years ago school was not nearly so pleasant a place as now. There was no sport, but( strict supervision, and absolutely no talking to one another, at least one school of which the speakmerely for sisters to converse, so strict er had knowledge. It was permissible was the preceptorial code of the period. Sixty years or so ago examiners scouted the idea of girls being able to do anything up to examination standard. In Other Climes. The : speaker proceeded to give some of her impressions of the life of young girls gleaned on a recent tour abroad. . On returning to New Zealand, Dr. Bennett stated; she realised just how fortunate our children were. America, .although an advanced country, Was s congested in its'universities which now took only a- restricted number of girl .students—-admission was' bompetitirvje in fact, ’ ' /-y I In England, > most of the money in } a' faiqily was being spent on the- boys l and the possibilities for the girls were { much restricted in consequence. I 1 There was financial stress in France } which had poor school buildings and ( was compelled to sadly curtail the field of activity for girls,. who were largely obliged to do .house and farm work in an impoverished country which lacked modern labour-saving devices. There were those, stated Dr. BenI nett, who believed that civilisation was “running away” with us and that j fact was to be deprecated, but when one saw conditions in races lacking it, such a viewpoint was untenable. This time last year, said Dr. Bennett, she was in that interesting island Sumatra, which until recently had contained many savage tribes. One race there, full of energy, and recently uncivilised and cannibalistic, was now' being civilised by Dutch influence. The tribal girls all had marriages arranged for them at 10 years of age and were married at 13. At 10, too, their teeth were filed down as an indication that they had reached an estate of life in which they had to share the communal burdens in practical fashion. They ate nothing but rice, a village of about 800 having often but one pig a week sas supplementary diet. Were these people fed and living under better conditions they might quite conceivably overrun the world, such was their latent virility. Only too often, continued Dr. Bennett, we did not appreciate the safety in which we lived. Here one did not run the risk of being sandbaged or robbed by bandits. Industry was not paralysed by crime. There was the sure consciousness here that, having worked for and won a thing, it could be held without risk of misappropriation. Our Freedom. In New Zealand girls had a wonder- . ful degree of freedom and on leaving i school found many avenues open to l them where formerly only domestic i, I work offered. Not that the speaker . j decried domestic work. It had lacked . | its true dignity and status because I hi the .'to it had been along unscientific 1 lines. Now domestic and home science was altering that. 1 t Physically, the modern girl was the ’ j superior of her sisters of half a cen--1 tury ago when it was “unladylike” to 1 ' play games, and her all round scope 3 1 was, so very much greater. The giris of to-day had great responsibilities, Dr. Bennett told her audience. Damd Melba had said that she was not alone an artist but also a woman, and that she valued her womanp hood more than her art. Many of ' those before her, concluded the speaker, ’’ were about to bnter upon their life-’s ° responsibilities and they were well fitted for them.