IMPORTING ENGLISH GIRLS

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 5490, 1 April 1910, Page 3

IMPORTING ENGLISH GIRLS

A proposal to bring* 1000 girls from the United Kingdom to wurk in Victor-, ian factories was met with great disfavour by Melbourne women and girb, over GOU of whoraatteuded, a meeting cal led to mako a- protest. Tbo chai.man, who was president of the Trades ITa 1 Conn ;il, eaitl they all knew the sweateu' Jens that f xisted in London, and iho) did not want them to be st artel in Au9 tralia. In an immigration letter from \ustralia p^ublished in the United Kingdom it was stated that girls should go out to Australia, " when' husbands and hoaes were awaiUi\g-4bera>'' .(Great liughter ) The speaker, who moved the resolution of prote&t, siid there was no short age of latour in V.ctoi ia. . The prrspect of those girls being married en 1 settled in perfect bliss was held out, but looking up the statistics he found that there were many thousands more women than men of a marriageable age in Victoria What the marriage prospect of the 1000 emigrant girls' would be he left his hearers to guess.

Another speaker boldly asked whether tbe women in that audience din not want husbands, and when an eager answer came iv the aftrmative, he said that conditions should be established such as would permit men to earn en ough to become husbands.

The motion of protest was unanim ously agreed to, and it was decided to send copies to the Prime. Minister, the Premier, the Chamber of Manufactures, and the Labour party of Great Britain.