RANDOM REMINDER

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29725, 19 January 1962, Page 15

RANDOM REMINDER

GREAT OAKS.

It is regrettable indeed that the world must be plunged into war before the hand that rocks the cradle is recognised properly. Florence Nightingale might have dropped her lamp if she had known what she was starting when she invaded an extremely male domain and insisted on nursing the poor, sick, stubborn, overbearing creatures of the Crimean war back to health and. probably, a pension which allowed them the solace of a pint of ale every third Thursday. Although women, during the First World War. worked as nurses, ambulance drivers, railway porters, and showed other unsuspected talents, it was not until 10 years after the armistice that the vigorous efforts of Mrs Pankhurst and her daughters earned them a vote. Others took un the torch and grad-

ually broke through ’ masculine and feminine

opposition until the Eng-lish-speaking world had women teachers, nurses, typistes and lawyers. In the Second World War, women were engaged in fire-watching, flying planes, riding motor-cycles; there were many instances of them abandoning their manicure sets for the mechanic’s tool-kit. Since then, they have gone ahead in cricket, even football and revolting thought they have even boxed and wrestled.

Man, with his mouth wide open in astonishment, watched all this progress with misgivings. But he still felt safe in one field: he could still smile indulgently at the sound of a shrill feminine squeal from his child's bedroom when his wife, making the bed. lifted the pillow to disclose a jar full of horrid creepy-crawlies garnered from the darkest corners of his garden. But there is a house-to-

house salesman who does not share the belief that women are without courage in such matters. He was paid to convince householders that they must not allow carpet beetle to flourish unchecked. To one delicate, extremely feminine creature who opened her door to him, he explained that the district was very badly infested. She seemed unimpressed, and he felt that a really telling point was needed if a sale was to be effected. So he pointed to a threadbare part of a carpet with the observation that the beetle was obviously living in five-star plus style in that particular spot. But he was effectively floored when the prospective client smiled sweetly and said, with an airy wave: “Look! Providing they get away in a corner where I can’t hear them munching. I don’t give a rap!”