WOMEN AND CIVIC WELFARE.

Dominion, Volume 2, Issue 473, 3 April 1909, Page 10

WOMEN AND CIVIC WELFARE.

THEIR CONCERN 1 AND THEIR IDEAS. The avcrago man is fond of talking about yonjan s splicro in a belittling way and inleinng that her inlluencc should begin in kitchen, and end in tho drawing-room (Quito regardless of tho fact tliat many a woman has neither drawing-room nor 'kitchen), and that her interest should be bounded by tho four walls of her house. 'J'o this, American women nro apt to answer that the welfare of tho larger homo should bo of as much interest to a woman as what concerns Jier own wooden sphere, and that her duty tako a part in tho affairs of tho city in which sho lives. Her want of business training prevents tho averago woman from going into tho question of municipal finance, and sho is quite unablo to pronouueo any opinion with regard to the administration of funds, but sho can have a very good idea of tho character of tho difforent candidates; and tlicro aro certain points with which tho council must deal that means eren moro to n woman, than to a man. Tho question of street lighting, for instance, is 0110 that concerns women ■ very closely, and in view of tiio recent alarms that have, been raised in even tho main streets, thev should insist on all tho streets ■ ' Many of tho streets in Wellington aro a disgraco-to tho town— dark, gloomy places where ono might well bo afraid to walk at . any reasonably early ? ur " as 11 'v 0110 who know what ho was talking about it is not safo for a woman to be unattended in tho streets of Wellington after half past nine at night. More policemen aro required to safeguard tho city, and while we aro waiting for them to he appointed we might as well have a little more liglit to let us look at tho pas-sers-by. Then thero comes tho question of streetcleaning and rubbish - collecting, which aro primarily housekeeper questions. Tho beautifying of tho city and surroundings is by no means an unimportant matter. At present tho surrounding hills aro disfigured in all directions by ugly gashes, showing yellow clay, and in all the city except tho gardens there is hardly a tree to he seen. One cannot go about much in Wellington without being struck by tho fact that the women care very much for tho adornment of their own homes. In even the most impossible and hopeless-looking of houses, there will be some pitiful attempt at decoration, brightly-coloured cards will bo stuck up over the mant-el-piece, shells, china ornaments, •bits of glassware, anything bright and pretty will be cherished as an aid to the atmosphere of comfort and the prettiness of tho homo. But these efforts are usually confined to the interior of tho home. Scant

care is given to the plot of ground in -which the home stands, though oven ono tree would give somo charm to tho place, and very little .interest indeed is shown in the beautifying-of tho # city as a whole. Thoso who come to live in Wellington are struck with its want of general beautv, whilo people who are merely passing through, and do not look at it with a view to its possibilities as a homo, speak glowingly of its situation, and tell us that it is like Naples or Genoa*. Wellington need not seek to resemble beautifill Naples too eloscly. It should content itself ■■ with', being Wellington, but it should take full advantage of its picturesque situation, and do its best to repair the damage that has been done by civilisation, to cover up, with a green' growth, tho scars where cuttings have been made, to soften tho bare appearanco of the hills, with hero and there a tree, and break tho deadly monotony of the tin roofs.

But much moro important than this is it that tho city children should have playgrounds. If their mothers do not tako an interest in that, who should?