GIRL CITIZENS

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 113, 6 February 1935, Page 5

GIRL CITIZENS

Conference Sports An Olympic sports meeting was an interesting feature of the programme of tlie Y.W.C.A. Girl Citizens’ Dominion Conference at Auckland, which concluded last week. The teams competing were the different delegations, who, in order to assist in carrying out. the conference theme of “Under Heaven One Family,” have adopted various nationalities. After a keen struggle Italy (Dunedin) bore off the laurels of the day, with France (Auckland) as runner-up. Dramatics have played an important part at the conference and at the conclusion of the sports, Greek legends and dances were performed in an out-of-door setting. Tableaux vivants taken from the art of the various countries and stories from their literature have also been successfully prepared by the girls and a contest for the best dramatic presentation of “Under Heaven One Family” was won by New Plymouth.

Miss Jean Stevenson, national general secretary of the Y.W.C.A., who has recently returned to New Zealand, gave the girls an exceptionally interesting account one evening of some of the outstanding personalities of the recent World’s Council of the Y.W.C.A. at Genova. She also’ described her visits to branches of the association in Holland and Ceylon, particularly the work done by the younger girls.

The work of rural educational centres among women and girls in China was described by Miss Nessie Moncrieff, of the Y.W.C.A., Peiping. Another side of association work in China was concerned with the hundreds of girls who flocked annually to Peiping to enter its schools and colleges, she said. Many of these women the Y.W.C.A. had to advise in the choice of courses.

Dr. Elizabeth Cole (Auckland) discussed with the girls the subject of health from the woman’s point of view. A service held on January 27 was conducted by Miss M. Bentham, who gSve an address on the life and work of Mathilda Wrede. a pioneer of prison-ers-aid work in Finland.

On Wednesday evening an open-air banquet modelled on the League of Nations Assembly was held. Toasts were honoured and national songs sung. After the banquet the official conference closing took the form of the traditional Girl Citizen candle-lighting ceremony. On this occasion candles were lighted from the central candle to represent the five continents of the world, and all peoples of whatever colour, race or creed were remembered. At this ceremony Miss Nessie Moncrieff spoke, basing her talk on the culminating words of the Girl Citizen Code, “Love is the fulfilling of the law.” Several tramps and picnics have been held and a launch picnic was a novelty to many of the visitors. The conference closed in time to allow ■southern delegates "to see the city before the departure of their trains. The remits to the conference were studied from all points of view and final decisions made concerning the further development of the movement.