THE POSY.

Auckland Star, Volume LXI, Issue 175, 26 July 1930, Page 4 (Supplement)

THE POSY.

Pretty, smart and. always chic, the posy has lasted long in fashion's favour. Worn on shoulder, hip and hem to match, and in contrast with the frock, they have had many season's popularity, and have been little subject to change. At the beginning of the present, season, it was doubtful whether flowers, artificial -and real, would outlive yet another span of fashion. 4 Designers, however, were : loth to discard an accessory so complete in its note of finish, and the posy,- scarce departed, hastily returned to vogue. With it came new ideas for wearing, new materials, and smarter . shades. American fashioners introduced-the collar posy, worn a little to the back of the neck on tailored and fur coats. French designers, not to be outdone, placed their flowers on the backs of evening frocks, just below the decolletage. Newest and quaintest of all is the washing posy designed specially -for . the .summer's "tub" frocks. Astounding as it may seem, the material chosen for this purpose is men's shirting, stiffened,- and cut in tiny petals. The centres are of colored wooden beads. For dress wear a mixed posy of flowers and print is the most fashionable when ipade of, celophane, for all up-to-date flowers must shiny and a little stiff.

women alike. More discouraging than the fact that only a handful of women occupy such posts are the outstanding inequalities that remain among the rank and file of both industrial and professional workers.

We have a woman to-day as Minister of Labour, yet throughout industry, in spite of half a century of "protection" and reform, women are still at the bottom of the wage market, and are excluded by trade union regulations from many of the best-paid processes.

It is, moreover, only the single woman who to-day obtains full benefit from such opportunities as do exist. The married woman is still generally regarded as incapable of deciding for herself how best to regulate her life. Almost all Government and municipal appointments still involve the dismissal of a woman on marriage, in spite of the fact that ths celibacy qualification is known to affect adversely the birthrate among those classes having the highest sense of public obligation. > And in the Professions. The last and hardest victory which women have still to achieve is . the recognition of their claim-to unqualified humanity. At present the majority of our eminent women—sucli as our women representatives at the League of Nation's Assembly—go through life as substitute delegates, vice-chairman, subeditors and assistant secretaries. They are human beings with a hyphen, never quite complete.