WHAT WE WOMEN THINK

Radio Record, Volume III, Issue 45, 23 May 1930, Page 34

WHAT WE WOMEN THINK

Gone Are The Days,-. THE modern mademoiselle, with characteristic adroitness ané aplomb, has cast into the discard Eton crop, exaggerated casualness, and adorable skimpy skirt. Gone are the boyish camaraderie, the saucy stride, the sexless silhouette. And in their stead, what? A suggestion of subtlety, of Mona Lisa guile, frills and flutters, the Grecian bend! In this year of grace, the long thoughts of the sophisticated flapper turn to waspish waist and plethora of garments, without a sigh for a fashion that was sensible, hygienic and entirely

charming.-

M.

A.

Modern Method and Modern View HAVE a supercilious friend, the gods of whose literary idolatry are Aldous Huxley, Bernard Shaw and John Galsworthythese three, and the greatest of these is Galsworthy! Recently in London I induced this protesting highbrow to go with me to see the modern miracle of a talking picture; and wery bored he showed himself to be, until when the lights went up, who should be sitting in the same row but Mr. Galsworthy himself, obviously keenly interested and absorbed in the show. Impossible to mistake that handsome head, which by the way bears a striking resemblance to a well-known Wellington Pressman. ’ The latest dramatic tour de force of the eminent playwright was running at Home during my visit, and I revelled in the episodic charm of "The Roof,’ with its curious juxtaposition of types, and its dialogue compact with that wit, wisdom and aloof sympathy and pity for poor humanity of which Mr. Galsworthy is past-master. I admired very much the acting, in a youthful role, of Miss Ann Casson, who is another example of the fact that, though it is written the sins of the fathers shall be visited on their progeny, just as often the gods decree that beauty and wit are bequeathed, for this gifted girl is the daughter of Miss Sybil Thorndike, the famous English tragedienne, whose "Lady Macbeth" and "Saint Joan" created such a hurricane of applause.-

H.V.

L.

Making Nature Noisy ‘AN interesting story lies behind the evolution of a remarkable wireless invention, which it is bélieved will prove invaluable in maternity nursing. It was the inspiration of the head of a firm of.well-known chartered acecountants in London, who wrote to the present manufacturers, suggesting that such an invention might be possible. If' the manufacturers could produce it they offered to present it to a London maternity home. It consists of a special Marconi-phone micro-

phone and an 8-valve apparatus, with which it is possible to listen-in to heart beats. The microphone, an instrument of extraordinary sensitiveness, is connected from the ward in which the prospective mother is lying to a neighbouring room. Here, on a little table, beside the electrical controls and valves, are the loud speaker and a pair of headphones for the use of the nurse or surgeon in charge of the case. Amplification is so strong that sounds which would be too tiny to hear at all in the ordinary way are almost uncomfortably loud through the earphones, and one occasion, when tests were made on a man’s heart and transmitted through a loudspeaker, 2 window in the room rattled

every time the man breathed heavily.

Rita

Tormented My neighbour has a gromophone, It’s very bronchial; She has it going by the hour, From morn until nightfall. My neighour has a puppy dog, A chubby thing he is, He yaps and yaps for weary hours I wonder why ii is. My neghbour has a bobtailed cai, ’Tis valuable, I’m told, But all the same tt sallies forth As brazen and as bold. As any other common cai, And every jolly night Beneath my window caterwauls With evident delight. Methinks I'll retire from the world, Like old Diogenes, Far from all bronchial gramophones And cats’ weird rhapsodies.

Helen G.

She Would Not Eat SURELY the clever device adopted by the wardresses of St. Lazare’s prison to persuade Madame Marthe Hanau, the woman wizard of finance, to break the hunger strike in which she persisted, reaches the height of refinement of torture. Certainly it was only resorted to after Madame Hanau had bitten off with her teeth the milk tube, inserted into her throat during forcible feeding in hospital, and fought ten strong men and women, who attempted to hold her down.

Now the wardresses, who are kepf"in her | cell day and night, have been ordered to eat their meals in her presence. The most odorous and appetising dishes and delicious fruits are brought in, and the wardresses eat them under her very eyes. Although the same food is offered to the prisoner, who is a noted gourmet, up to the end of March, when last dispatches were reeeived. this remarkable woman had refused all

food.

R.

S.

. The Oat and Its Applications IN the British House of Commons recently, the attention of the Secretary of State for Scotland was drawn to the alleged danger of | the prominence afforded to oatmeal in the Scot--tish national dietary. Lieutenant-Colonel Fremantle stated thdt~ according to a report published by the Medical Research Council, the consumption of oatmeal promoted the decay of teeth. Mr. Johnston, Under-Secretary of State for Scotland, spiriiedly defended its consumption, declaring that Seots had far better teeth, when they were consuming more meal than they are doing to-day. If we are not mistaken, it was Mr. Johnson’s name-sake, the redoubtable Dr. Johnson, whu said: "In Scotland, they feed their men on it; in BMneoland. their horses: and where will vow

i OO find finer men or better.

Mabel

Where Is the Glamour of ~ Romance? I WONDER will it interest "Romantic" to know it was the custom with the young men of a certain district, some thirty years ago, to ask the lady of their choice, "if she would darn their socks for them’? If the lady assented, a wedding quickly ensued. Not very romantic certainly, but practical; and those men made good, reliable husbands. I have also been informed, upon good authority, that as far back as the eighties, a young man was driving two girls home one evening, both of whom were rather fond of him; not wishing to offend either, yet being desirous of letting them know which he really cared for, he presently said: "Are your feet cold, Peggy?" And Peggy eventually became his wife. While yet auother in quite recent years, having no other means of transport, often walked a distance of 16 miles, either way, to woo his lady-love. Aye, and once having travelled all day by train, walked nearly 20 miles after dark; footsore and weary at length arriying at the abode of his lady -love in the small hours of the morning. Not wishing to disturb the household, he wrapped his overcoat. about him, and slent under a tree until dawn. Romance is

not dead yet.

Nada