for Women WOMEN AND WAR

Auckland Star, Volume LXIX, Issue 208, 3 September 1938, Page 4 (Supplement)

for Women WOMEN AND WAR

IT is reported from England that * arrangements and discissions : *re proceeding regarding the formation of a woman's territorial army. The work to be assigned to tit* tnnj :ha# not yet been made pabiic; in view of totalitarian scope of modern warfare it is jar's to jay that newspaper forecasts are correct. La orrtline these are that one section of the arrn 7 wiH be employed oa home service. | setting every available man free, and a i second section en. air raid precautions ; work. Add to this the recently formed j air asit "or defence. and feminists 1 wiK #areiy limit that the inai xoal i aas tee a re a :hed. Wsma a has oftea : been •iitHomavcaiiy conceded it e<j~al-' ity in intelligence. btrt *0 fa.- she h$L.» j had iit""e -pDrrtanity for proof. en ' m»-*se. of physical bravery. >13 it mast to the ar-ieat sap- : porter of women* rijrhts; bat it is post- ; s-ibLe to pr'-ivij that tats or-j!tniwttica is ! 1 sim. not that cornea are advanced ! but that they are conventiooaL and; .■an see no farther thaa immediate . iaaiier*. That they are aiiowins: "hern- : *eitry be ciaweii ap—a* men are —by ! a robot-like assembiv machine that is• sending them all to destroctioE. I " • - - • - - . ! Lie aarancert thing « tae new tanj. th«* or-._iin.il thins. And there ; s nothnx new or original in women '.a defence. Myths aru the urtistic I expression of the hard demand- of real- | ;ty. and it is $afe to «y that tile legend of the Amazons aa* massed into record. \ 'mcanee man ba* often had to rely on ' ;he I'd of his women when hard- ;

By-

Bart Sutherland

It is not necessary to seek outlandish [ and faraway examples, for Bsrltish j woman. have taken thai? part in defence Long before now. That essentially English book—Conan Doyle's "White Com-pany"*-—brings vrvidly to oar- minds the ; knowledge that while ktriiht mrj bowi men foogirs at Crecy aad Poitiers, fair ; hiiiiies wars left on the alert at home. in j ! 'harse of the boiling lead. "It wjus ! 1 an age e£ martial women.jits the i . tathor. "'The deeds of Black Axaes of I : Dunbar, of Lady Salisbory. and of the 1 i Cotiatese of Mont fore were still fresh! j ;a the puofio m:nd. With saca examples ! I before them tile of the Eniiish ' ; captain* had become a* warlike a* thei- : I mate?, aad ordered their castles in their j ■absence with the prude ac. and disci p-1 1 ane of veteran seneschals."' j Nearer ia time and pi ace. and peroap<« j- ■ mora »ixaiticttat to as. are the records i of Maor- women warriors. Jadje Wu- ; son record* that ia a tribal war of the i eighteenth century, when the Xjrati - ! Manawa invaded Xzati-Ftikeko terri- | tory. a .mtt'e took piace at Mana»"ata. | 1 when the balk of the Xiati-Fukeko j tlhtinj ten were away. "I* *vris -'nr"Lj faTiiaraille to Xri~i- ! P-iiiefeo. imi wtls t vor-r pt'V'il :;lr battle i becanse ft was f>raxttc ft? women. There ; ! w»re on 1;-- 3T men en.aci.2eif • all r&e r"sr w!io were women. • : 1 n<i tb" xfits against "iem f»ar- • i i'tl. Tile were t:ae ■ : w;<"ii hair eoope<i and botiies-! naiie ' cbar-ie«t into cn<* ! I <:ti.e 'L r h** t wirg siic*i zorr*> n$ j -•) -ririiw Siia faco c-infaaien. Mneajja j

T** ®e < TT.Tmirt ai ;ie >ae fomsht wttit a. gaiaia. and n«wed •—l* s Xratt-Xanawa. down -ja ?7err * L **e.Gn all sides liir? feil. aatil &e ornate ajl.i ie<i ; Xit« mat-Tr 3i;tir a if tnrrjr caan* up in Sie to-roilo-w tn. ouxsoxt. a«r stogoed till Kanaajja. *m reoc&ei" f Within oar own historical period. we ! na~e such an "ance ac that of Eeni Pore, wis died hoc lonx axo a: Ketorua. she w;;h *u.b-tribe. the SohenkL, chraaii. the Waikato ■war. a;xaimst tne British; escaped from the secret encampment of the Sin-rites in the Hunua Ranges when iz was i attacked oy tie Forest Eanxers. ' n.? was j w - til tie der'snding force at the Gats ■ **- Or her. -James tiie omcial i historian of tie Xew Zealand war sa —s. ! 1 b»end of l-Euoa and v>aa- ■!:•*. ivi; i..-* compassionate as she ; brave, r- WJLS e -jrho- rrn.?e- ire. iza»e water to Coujnel Booth. a deed I that has been wroaxly attributed no a man M_ned Te Ipu.*' " | In 1'*•5.5 the Da at Te Mawhai. Tokci ma—i B.f y. v ic* i-.efecded j *a»:a«t La Tiding Hauhaus. by only i*«? "nen ami the women, while chief ami nia men ware alonjt the coast, satherinx in tae loyal people.. -A-icepc in a few rare instances—suca as tnat of Miss Wit.«a. of Burtti 1 Farm. Paeraca. who had to ran for helo j with ballets *pat taring behind her—the j white heroines of these wars are mon j - I moos. But we can imagine tie fearful ! a.arumi? tircuja which. they li«sd—and '. worse thaa tie alarum* tie abandoning or au their dearfy acquired household ! when <ian:ier tiireateaed. The j votce that sp<3i£e to thern was tie true | vote? of war. An old pi<oaeer once ?aiii | that all tirotrsa her lifa sie had heard j tie eobs of bereaved women, tie echoes

from, ier dsllckccd waea. sie w been «iut t:p in tia Marslaad kti t CitadeL, Xe* Piymctrti. and tiers come tie news of tie battle of Waireka. iLiny o-f tiese were left with loaded ri3e« wMEe tierr menfolk were away at work- Tc—day tie women of Stuiia and China ajrht for immediate t life. Perhaps circumstance wuald make j | most of us c-ra»"e. I tzlisz confess myself r that, be lax one of those people to whom I it is not safe to- ser-re out arm* iert - j ti-Oaih fear or poor markmanship- they t i hit a tjffirfectiy innocent person. I ae^er 1 cease from tiankiax providence that I » am far from tie battle. The utmost r .of »e If-de fence to which I could hope . j would be that of an old Albertland - 1 pettier who. bernx warned of the escape .j of tie Maori pris-iaer* from Sawaa. i kept a few- kettle* -rf "ooiTiag water j t handy. Even then. I think, most women ; ; i would like to rive notice of their Lnten- j 5! tioa*. w. "Now thru is cwilisa water, ao j , : you be careful:' i 1 V.'t entirely for -jraven reasons, many j - of us mu.st hi~T>? that the ret*7rt that ' -; 1 V.jr'vailc-?. the Soviet Com-j ! : rn.iider i~ 'Thief his sent hi'* women I «<>:»t;er« •-><•? is true. For th >* ! 1 -athe- than the formation of womenV | i : irtnies. will ~o:nt to women where the : J trie battle ajaiatt convention lies. j Mr*. Dun Sewett. in her b»7oit. "Look- j : nac 8.l ■;«.'* says that when the Taranaki I s war w-ts threatening, a Maori working -a~T became hostile aad attempted to -e; nre to a ti'e of toetoe jrass that they | ««t aiaiast her home. M-s. Hewetrt ran . and silt on the pile, and dared the men j ;to come near her. This so am used the j i j women of the rarty that a chiefs wife ' ! ordered the men to shake hamis with W-s. Sewett. There were manv notable ' Maori women war-tor*, but these others :, were tile advanced womea of that bar- : j baric n re. And surely we. in this self- . labelled, enliihteaed era could do some- i ! . thiax ti'vs for mankind than in merely j i i-Mnx "he trairi! bravery of men. There j ! a wtotiTry to "->e won frr pea.:e. and the l i burden is on those who .ire orrtsid* the i battle, and free.