TOPICS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CV, Issue 23, 27 January 1923, Page 16

TOPICS OF THE DAY

fßy M.-B.'C>)

'■feMcpute,* right and bestttjfal! thing j&at«thare sboTdd' be' natch -interest tatoan 8* WeGrngton-'s War Memorial. Tier© are XIOO~ families, at least, who. sa» intunaieSy ; conaectedv with it'; and tßere;>are far imors whose 1 • connection. \is' fierisred from Gte fact* that they were /among those -who Ibenefiteed by the sacrifice of the 1700 liSeHingtan:lives.: Judging, ma.general asense; from the street collecMoD day' [(which appeared to ba a lamentable, (necessity owing to--the., poor -.amount sent Stt voluntarily there ■ is no enthusiasm, fin this city in the direction, of the>mfijnipaal, or very little; mostly among wot men, who are .the "economically uu'fioon&y" to use a modern expression. pSow; that -a settled effort is being made !&yVs'6me, men. who.ieel 'tfaeMirgenoy.of "the. jnaiter very keenly, and.wito have came (forward voluntarily to-do their best, late ■m the day owing- to,no fautt of'tlieics, jthe Armchair Critic has come grandly to .the-fore. .Indeed, more than one of; these is making public mention of the Sack that the memorial should be there already; that the sum asked for is absurdly small.; that the sit© shonld be aomewbere else than recommended by •Ehe committee, which gave much time, and heard all sorts of arguments, for and against pretty well every- possible .place in the city. If the Armchair iCritics ,had taken ;a . coDectingfbox and sallied forth on collecting day, they rroouH be well aware that it is best to start out .with moderation. Of course jit: is .possible that generous sums will come in from the critical, which will make the projectors of the present scheme fHosh with mingled joy (at the immensity jof the response}, and shame (at their refiteieted ideas of what could I>jd gathered in this city), and Wellington will haw. ithe memorial which will be a credit to-, (the "Suprema a, Stw" town, and toj&ose absays liimented brave ones who jure to-be iononred by its erection. Criticism is the easiest thing in the world, ■especially when there ia a certain |amonnt of ignorance mingled, wfSh It, iand those who feel "bursting wfth. fceneEg^" and with of time to spate, -wonH sorely be welcome if they icaioe forward aa practical helpers in the [matter; Anyone can make BUggEßttais. ffhst-isj'flnite easy.

•i »' . » X . ' . *: i In~-a"*bbo£T^chirfi' Jiae been anmeroaslyi WBBi&xned,"' aiid in -which liord AyeIbnry esjfeuns Bis ideas of "Tho Use of lEife," is gisseaj, a marvellous summary jaf; ■Ste^'way to be- unhappy. It- is quite" Sai ©an, and well worwi reading. He Isaysa '"W* -sB. Jmow how to mafco onr-, Isshaes'inisesaMeL That is simple enongb; iße seffisb; take offence easily .; think too hhk& of joargelves, and too little of joflieas!; 1j» «staaaragant; rtm into debt; itake^too-.tntwh. to,«at:aad drink, and too ifi&le- adr and exercise, and you will be jntmecatSa enon^i." Lord Avebnry adds iebg'ljk "Hittin-aris -we can easily see haw jjfo became happy." B> is a Ettle phil!Oßosiy of"^Kfo Wmch' -isl worth, remember- v mgi and"-can easily be-appfeL It is a ,strange-<9aßg that the majority of -people fattach bo modi importance to trifles, iitndl-SD.'.EHae -to Ore realty vital matter of i&B buitding of. chazacter,. /which goes mir-nntil ■She last day of Kfe, and. -which. coants at "the settiv.g ,of flb^-isnn.'" Everyone recognises that '■Jiust: am lifts got to set, and tbo fact t&nu all feeir life they ha-ve 'Ac opr-".;----•traity to biriia, so v tiiat when that tiinj | , cemes-'&ey mjjy'b© happy in meeting! it,-1 fbetrfate it seems passing strange ihatj fi©tey"shpald waste t% parecicms moments j ■in. '^Jver-MJiessiiig', 'eating, sleeping, heap-, nig- "np Siat which' they can't take with! them, or, as Lord Avctary says, in tak-, ■ing. offence. The "woTth-wMle" tnmgs, >of the world axe so many, and m the ianks of the "worth-whilers" co muck loomdor more people. , . I -

, 'It*3ppears, from' an English writer, {that-one of the. difficulties which' arise in Shis modem life is found by those woanen who, after succeeding in some walk Of business or professional life, decide to get married, ..and/have to choose whether they will continue'to be known by thekri own name or by that oi their hnsband. x It appears, as if it were simply ccistomary for women to change their names-on marriage, and that there is no legal force used in the matter. For convenience sake, and for other obvious reasons, when Miss A. marries Mr. Z. [they become "the Z's," ancl their cbil"tLreri "the little Z's," the latter being particularly suitable, as they do not belong to the mother at all if she is legally married. One of the latest to he added to the ranks of the married is the well-known Miss Helena Normanton, and who has advertised recently that '■'Mrs. Helena Normanton" is her only and legal name,', both in public and rjriyatS life, •—in -some- cases—professional women, have- added the nams^of the hqsIband to their own,, and, that seems the best and 'most reasonable course, and one which provides for all contingencies. Kiss Florence Underwood, secretary of &c Women's Freedom Leagne, siinnly dirges that isaimen will do one thing or ■fee other. She deprecates any chopping and changing, as causing confusion. She instances Miss Ellen Terry as one (who has consistently stuck to her own name though she has been married ihreetimee, and asks how many, among Ibe great numbers of people who know the .charming lady, cciuld tell the name of'any of her hnsbands? The 1 matter is quite an interesting one, for ifc is a 2act thai the new name and signature is one of the attractions to some girls jwhen considering the question of mar'liago;

Just" recently a writer who had in'tamate acquaintance with Mr. and Mrs. (William Ewart Gladstone has'made public tbe wonderful ■ work which they carried on through most of their long and honoured lives among fallen women. ,They never held their hands from help ■to these sad ones; ,and time after time, ■■jwiten they coold induce them, to come iin from the bitter streets, they shelitered thcin within their own doors. fTbey rescuer! many and many a one a-nd the story, if it could ever be told 'in its entirety, would be one of the most wonderful in the world. This ',waS done, too, at a time when there a recognised and permitted "double standard" of morality; also a mingled attitude of Pharisenism and ignorance on the part of women in general. Both Mr. and Mrs. Gladstone were in danger of "Mrs. Grnridy," ytho flourished power/rally at thetime, and it is stated thai Mr.- Gladstone, .was . .approached politically, and asfced if he did not think that bis efforts to help such peomight not be misunderstood, or used to his detriment and that of his wife. ;His reply was oae which, might have 'been expected from such, a man, and jghfrrgjorig-sjent -pa.