LONDON'S CHANGED LIFE

Evening Post, Volume CXXVIII, Issue 93, 17 October 1939, Page 14

LONDON'S CHANGED LIFE

LATENT KINDNESS REVEALED

Who would believe that in one week everyone's life could be so completely changed. But in modern warfare we are "all hr it," and the front line may be on the back door-step before one knows it!

LONDON, September 14. The silver lining to the present black cloud is the spectacle of the self-govern-ing Dominions, Crown Colonies, the vast Indian Empire and all the small dependencies rallying to the support of Great -Britain in her hour of trial, which should convince the world of the united spirit of the British Empire Like families, we niay have our individual opinions when the .world, is running smoothly, but the first breath of interference from an outsider closes our ranks, and a united and defensive front faces the intruder who threatens the, liberties which are the foundations of our national and family life. AIR-RAID SHELTER RENDEZVOUS. Dividing one's time between London and the country during this first week of war conditions has revealed all the latent kindness in our fellow citizens which we might never have suspected in normal times. Certainly, an early morning rendezvous in air-raid shelter breaks down the reserve of neighbours who have lived in the same block of fiats for years—but never exchanged a greeting. The common danger when an airraid siren wails its warning has the effect of levelling all barriers, and the instinct to help each other and complete absence of any panic show the national character at its very best. Our little county . town becomes a city of the dead after 8 o'clock—so completely black that one can feel the darkness, and the flutter of a bird in the hedge at the back of our cottage is magnified by the enveloping silence. We have been so used to aeroplanes all day and night that their absence intensifies this quietness, for they have all been withdrawn for duty elsewhere and private flying is prohibited. CHILDREN IN THE COUNTRY. The evacuated children are having the time of their lives, running wild in the country, pale faces getting a healthy tan and filling out with country fare. Mothers from the crowded cities are homesick for the noise and bustle of their daily round; for-them the peace of the country is too dull and only the thought of their small children's safety keeps them from risking life in their home surroundings. This is only the first week of war conditions, and there is much adjustment needed to make them bearable for the civil population which must just do as it is told for the safety of all concerned. London shopping centres are also adjusting themselves to these changed conditions, for although business must and will go on, "Business as usual" is impossible. Many luxury shops are already closing or being converted for I more practical needs, and the big < stores are working with small staffs— I so many men and women with the i Forces or Auxiliary Services. But instead of glancing indifferently through the lattice of brown paper on shop windows women are now going inside. Trade, numbed for the first few days of the war, is thawing as we realise that autumn is here and we need something new to wear. '? ■ FIRST WARTIME DRESS SHOW. Tomorrow I shall attend the first wartime dress show. It was to have been a splashing affair at Claridges Hotel the day after war was declared! Now, in the quieter surroundings of a designer's showroom, the less specta-,

cular. models will be paraded. Fripperies of a few weeks ago are forgotten, and new fashion points combined with practical materials and styles will be shown. ' "Utility suits" in light-weight tweed, reversible coats ,and lovely coloured angora sweaters are what most women; are looking for. The last named angora sweaters, short jackets, and boleros have been a feature of the summer season in white and pastel colours. IDEAL FOR A "BLACK-OUT." White lambs' wool coats also will continue in favour, for white is the ! ideal wear for a "black-out." Already

women who have to get about after dark are making deep circular collars and wide belts and armlets of white American cloth. This shows up like a lamp in the rays from the motor lamp and will increase the safety of evening walks. Combining; two materials in a suit was a feature of the earliest of this season's fashions shown to American buyers. I have -sketched a model seen in one of those collections which is now a "winner" in New York. It is a development of the waistcoat fashion, showing a sports suit with a contrasting front: rust and brown over checks on a green ground, with the sleeves, back, and skirt in plain brown. E. RUTH SIBLEY. ,