TOPICS OF THE DAY

Evening Post, Volume CX, Issue 118, 14 November 1925, Page 15

TOPICS OF THE DAY

*■■! (By M.H.C.) '•, Nev'Zottland Women art not yet to •• have .direct representation in the Par- ' lianien^df their own country. Miss '.:•■ Ellen Melville, after a gallant effort ! in an acknowledged almost hopeless ', constituency, has polled over 5000 votes. ■-',Splendid, but not enough.,] ■ There are' many who will be sorry, and y for a numtjer. of good reasons. , .The „.■'■ story, oj^ tw achievements of Lady ■ Astor anil her companions in the Brit-. ish Parliament, with its. record of 'f: kindly tjelp to women and children, as -: r well as' Mho good consideration given' :* t6 subjects in general, has l*en -well ■ :'■ followed up by, : Miss Preston-Stanley ';■ in the New South Waioi Parliament.' ; It is mentioned;that at her meeting '. \ the night before^-tho election that Miss Melville had^an audience of over ■ 1500 alher meet;iig"j and was received .'. with tfro greatest? enthusiasm, though Grey.liynn i* t a'';Stronghold of the Lab- ■;. our Party, abd.,Miss Melville, has had ' a'groat■;dba|.'!sr-troublesome interrup- ■ tion to put rip7j\vith at her meetings. •'■' However,. the party against her was ■ too strong, and/ with sucb a record, it :•.' is to be hoped that she will have a better chance given her next time.Jt is quite ;hopeelss for members of op; poiite sexles to see "eye to eye" on ■ subjects which intimately concern one , ; of them, but" each is open ,to argu: : ment — at least the sensible members • are—and what strikes those women i who attend Parliamentary meetings •';■ or Parliament itself,'is that time and-. ':,, again mistaken ideas are put forward, '*' with no one to ; contradict, or im- •■■ portant points are'missed from lack of intimate knowledge and experience. s Take, for instance, the recent Bill put ;/forward by Lady Astor which .makes for the better-protection of "those ;, saddest of all specimens of humanity, ■'', the /'women of the street.*' At pres- '•' ent the law allows' these people to be .''• taken up (and inevitably punished) on ■. the word, of the.-police: alone, .and un'i supported by any complaint f rom in- •'■•' dividuals ; accosted.''' Lady Astor' pointed out that;.the.conviction of a '■.. well-known man. who was accused of ... accosting women in one of the Parks, '; and: found'guilty^ on the word of-the police, was upset on the ground of want of supporting evidence. The , caia mi one'ithat caused a scandal, - and the pollei had watched the man because of to ,' them. But none of the women came t' forward to give evidence, and the Y. conviction wai quaihed.,;LadyrAstor, . therefore bring* forward another:,en-; deavour :her own sex, 'albeit' : in the form of the moat unfortunate of all, and wishes it to be made law .'. jthat the men whom theie people ac- ; cost must come forward* and give evlt dence that they were "annoyed." If .;' 'they: ;wire; giving encouragement. to. the women, or intending to consort .■^with them, •they-arr eq«allycto*blamei' i says Lady Astor, and if men all turned dOwisneh people, they would cease ; to exist, and would; have to .turn., to : Boma othef way 1; of ■livelihood. 'But the law was pressed most hardly •> on - these persons always, although, the : men who keep them going in their horriole.trade go scot-free. . This is ; jnst one instance of the" unevenhess ' of things in i the world, and it takes one of the same sex to realise it first, I and to take the time'and trouble to bring it forward for discussion and alleviation afterwards. There is not ■ the same need, that there was to urge i women to be ;loyal to each other, 1 though there; are times and occasions 1 . when women are not only hard on each other, but absolutely betray > their own sex. • ;;Still, these-instances ; are sufficiently!.few. to make,them rey t markabie, and nbw-a-days others will ' be found to be righteously indignant ' v with ,the Qffendergj; which is .something i to the good, as the slavish :>p.t- ---', titude of women "as shown by the writ- , crs of about a century ago. : A-'nUmDer'of'matters . whicli' haVe. i been brought forward by social serrice societies' in-England.are worthy, of consideration in. other parts of the I world. While broad-mindedness; is a j' fine thing, those- who pride themselves 1 on possessing'thk,j/attribute should. • take caTe that it does not degenerate. .; into coarse-mindedness. A person I who retailsv.';'broad joke's" is not '; one' wW gains- any 'sort of,, respect, 1 although Jie., or she,- may be looked. ■'.' upon' by s'bnte" people as '' amusing* i And ths broad-minded^person^.whjte -, much superior, should keep* a-watch I against coars9ness of outlook. Thq -* Association of Lay-readers iv Tork-: :'• shire-isßtied a.'protest to the Drapers^ \ Association on" account of their-show- ? ing' life-like,'-life-size waxen figures' ; for''the. purpose of exhibiting wo- • men's lingerie; iln ; another part of. | England, another association of men J remonstrated about the scanty bathing costume's ."ivorniby:both sexes. As : a rule this port; of remonstrance comes ie from w6m?nV sb6ieti"es, but^ these / have been 1 so'-'-'scoiaed'^'by indivul- ! uals and newspapers for. ■ "narrow's mindedness" jthat -they have with- \ drawn discouraged," though some of ;■ thorn know the harm-.' done to the ■ weak and coarse-natured by such <hsplays. . Howevci, the men arc now • taking up these matters, and it is to '' be hoped that' they havo bettor success and Iqsa abuse. The, Drapers' ;, Association "is said t,o have replied I withmuch indignation that; the waxen. ; figures are., necessary for the. success j cf business!' Well, it may be so, and . those who are not .drapers do not feel able to give' opinions; but, whaf. ■ everybody knows .is that sexual crime :. is stiirihmentably in evidence, and, with'; the -'Tic'wcr realisnt'"-" "of what it means:to;,tlie victims, people natur- { ally lqpk around to see what can be I Jono to' help" the Vealcer folk' whose % minds''have never been anything else i* but cparso'and.uncontrolled. It will :-. be intoresting to see what the "new ' recruits" for decency will accom- | plish. ',:, ■■■ -.-:■• . ■

;; "Ba'tti Salts.*'—One pound of car- '•'•:■ bonate of soda-crystals, one-teaspoon oil of lavender, one tablespoon pure ' spirits of wine. Put the crystals in a wide bottle and'sprinkle a" few :, drops of oil over. them. .Do this very ;■ gradually, a'-littie. at a,,time,' for" a I week, till' the bottlo is filled up. ; Then •; cork'tightlyy and •leave a few months i-,:before .using. -, „■..-.•■ . „,j :-..;.