The Daily News. THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 1913. DOMESTIC ECONOMY.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume LVI, Issue 16, 19 June 1913, Page 4

The Daily News. THURSDAY, JUNE 19, 1913. DOMESTIC ECONOMY.

Domestic economy is- threatened with an upheaval beside which the sufi'ragette I v movement pales into comparative insig- | nificance, if a calilegrain from London, j ( published yesterday, is to be believed, j. According to the Express, married wo- j men all over Great Britain are being canvassed with a view to inducing them to join the Homemakers' Union, an organisation which has been started in a I London suburb for the purpose of assisting husbands to secure better wages, to obtain for women a fair share of their ] husbands' earnings, and to protest s against bad conditions of home life, however caused. It is added also that in 1 the event of the union not regarding its j members as being legitimately treated, they will "down pots and pans." The mere idea of such a calamity is calculated to send the average man into a cold sweat. Taken "by and large," he knows as much about culinary and domestic processes as' a Cow does about Babylonic cuneform, possibly even less. Of course he might at a pinch essay to roast a silverside of coined beef or fry a neck of mutton, but lis would approach even these simple experiments with a degree of diffidence that would only be equalled by liis subsequent indigestion. To stop such a calamity he would even be prepared to give women a vote as a quid pro quo. It is popularly believed that the shortest way to a man's heart is through his stomach, and a housewives' strike, with its accompanying downing of pots and pans, might seriously damage the prospects of many a contemplated alliance. But, jesting apart, we doubt if such a union would be a success. Its platform is essentially against' the feminine temperament, and whilst, no doubt, there will be plenty of women to join the proposed union and pay the necessary fees from the dripping of the family joint or the mysterious disappearance of candles, they would only constitute a small majorit3 r . And if that majority ' did go on strike, the strike would be sent as high as Tom Quartz's cat directly after breakfast, for there is no woman whose heart would not fail her at seeing her partner go hungry for more than an hour or two. Furthermore, in the event of a strike she would be faced with the awful fact tlmt her "man" would probably desecrate the holy of holies, the kitchen, in a vain attempt to forage for 1 himself, and that her sacred pots and pans would he in imminent danger of becoming leopard-like from their many spots. The Union would not remove the grievances that it seeks to remedy: it would rather accentuate tliem. Still, they do exist, and in the properly-con-ducted household the wife should certainly be allowed her private purse, and should not be asked to accept the position of a mere drudge. The wife and the mother are just as essential to the home-circle as the father, and tlie Household motto ought to be " 'arves, pardner, j 'arves," not only in money but in everything else. Our women a patient and long-suffering race who are generally far too good for our men, but tiiey have ' inherited from their Mother Eve an immense capacity to "suffer and be strong." A relief of the disabilities and tneir lit- , tie annoyances will not come from a clamor from them. It will only be secured when man begins to realise properly that his partner is not part of the furniture in the house, but is entitled to every privilege that he himself possesses.