SOMETHING FOR WOMEN.

Stratford Evening Post, Volume XXXVI, Issue 78, 6 August 1913, Page 6

SOMETHING FOR WOMEN.

TO READ, MARK, AND INWARDLY DIGEST. There was a great gathering in London recently of women who represented 65 societies, and who assembled at the invitation of the Criminal La\\ Amendment Act Committee. Among many subjects of pressing importance that were discussed were a number of proposals for the protection of girls. —The Age of Consent.—

Speakers were agreed that the agi of consent should be raised to 1! years. Mr Clarke Hall, K.C., wished it raised to 21 years where the mai offending was the girl's, employer, am able to take unfair advantage of his influence and opportunities; that boys and girls should, for their own protection, be educated in sex hygiene; and that boys as well as girls must be safeguarded from vicious persons. All were jealously anxious that in no particular should a lower moral standard for men be encouraged or tolerated, and hearty applause greeted the recurring demands for the woman's point of view in the making and administration of' the law. The last man who spoke declared that the day's discussion had very clearly shown the need for this reform.—Dr. May Thome, in urging the necessity for raising the age of consent, said that many girls of 16 were mere children, ignorant of the consequences of their acts, or of the responsibilities they might bring upn themselves. It was absurd for the law to forbid a girl to dispose of her property until she reached the discretionary age of 21 years, and yet allow her to. surrender her chastity at the age of 16.

—A Man's Point of View.— Mr Clarke Hall spoke of the public apathy in these matters, which presented greater difficulties than any existing legal disabilities. His suggestion that sexual intercourse under the age of 18, and prostitution under the ago of 21, should be made an offence in the girl herself in all cases when she was over 14, was obviously made

'in the idea that she could thereby be more easily subjected to reformative influences, but it was vehemently opposed by the women speakers.— Mrs Rathbone, P.L.G., urged that there should be an extension of time friin six to twelve months for prosecutions in cases of criminal assault; [otherwise, the man often got off scot

free, because the girl's people discovered her condition too late, or He had persuaded her to hush the matter up. Thirty-seven per cent, of the cases of assault against little children in England were incestuous. Parents had often such a low standard of morality that the father claimed a right to treat his own child as he chose, and the mother weakly acquies-1 ced. The unwillingness of juries to take assault cases seriously, and the failure of the law to regard offences against the person as comparable in importance with offences against property, were bound to continue until the, woman's point of view was recognised. —The Illegitimate Child.— A good deal was said about the unsatisfactory working of the Affiliation Act, and the consequent high death rate of illegitimate children. Miss Ethel Xaish .urged that where a man evaded payment of the order, an attachment order should be issued, directing his employer io deduct the amount from his wages, and pay it to the mother of his child. Several [ women sfWie very strongly against', the assumption in Mr Hanbury Agg's

speech that marriage between a man and the mother of his child would necessarily make matters all right, and nothing was more applauded than Mrs Nevinson's: "If ho saw some of the putative fathers ho would not think that. I once tried to bring about such a marriage, but I will .never do so again."—(Dealing with illegitimacy and prostitution, I)r Marion Phillips said it was useless to tinker, with ameliorative, legislation while economic conditions remained unchanged. The great thing was to secure decent wages, decent housing, and proper working conditions for men and women. What was the- use of trying to treat the problem of illegitimacy while men and women could not afford to marry, or of prostitution while people were herded into dreadful homes and girls denied a living

wage ? —Women as Police.— Miss Constance Tite, who has investigated the system of women police in Germany, where they are employed by 31 towns of varying character, gave an interesting account of their work, and pointed out that their great value lay in the fact that, unlike women police—court missionaries in England—they have a recognised official position and definite powers. They are usually appointed through associations, who often pay their salaries, thugh in some cases this is done by tho police department. They are mainly engaged in preventive and rescue work among women' and children; they are also sometimes employed in police work. Frau in Mainz, has ordinary police functions of control, ire*: 'pre'ssion, and prosecution :>of public immorality. She has r .ahio ( .to .watch streets and suspicious'.'ppgoins, >an4i to take part in night "raids on doubti'ui hotels and lodging-houses; and, in conjunction with the "police des moeurs," she . conducts the.' .vyliiol© official business with the keepers and inmates of tolerated brothels, for which die has devised a system ;: of bookkeeping which prevents the girls fr.oni <>eing cheated. /This "combination, of duties is strongly opposed by many, people, and the women's. associations, •specially dislike women being eraployed in any way in tne, State regulation of vice. In Berlin Miss Tite ,vas able to watch the work of another polico assistant, who, though appointed and supported by the Women's, Evangelical Association, has her own j jfficial rooms, is given generally a free hand in her efforts to reclaim women, snd makes regular reports to the head of tho police department. She is present at the medical examination of all female prisoners, and may take charge of tho examination of child witnesses. Public opinion in Germany (added Miss Tite) is generally in favor of iheso women police assistants, and while at first the police officials were inclined to regard them as interlopers, it is now recognised that they do valuable work that men could not