WOMEN'S INTERESTS

Hokitika Guardian, 31 August 1933, Page 3

WOMEN'S INTERESTS

THE MER GIRLS.MARRY

OPPOSITES OF AFFINITIES

Barely does a gin marry the type of man she eulogises in her college days, chiefly for the simple reason that sn h a specimen would be difficult to find, for. lie would probably need t 0 combine the poetry, of Omaf Khayyam and the di i. e of a Mussolini with the. chivalry of a Raleigh, the adventurous spirit of a Ruttledge and above all, the appeal of a sentimental “movie” star,, (thus a writer in a northern exchange). -

The girl who solemnly declares that she could never “bother-her head” about anyone but a farmer often sails down the aisle eventually on the arm of a ladies’ lingerie designer, having discovered:his effeminate calling is the very antithesis of his character. So the farmer .falls .to the .lot of the artificial hot-house type, who dreads that he might trample rough-shod over her frills and furbelows, Bv tile time, she is acclimatised and, dungaree-clad, is revelling in-.“feeding out,” or “tramping the’'stack,’’ : her husband on. occasion. delays, even the purchase of a new pirn for the konaki wheel;; or a inUc.lineeded. pross-put-saw, to bring her home some dafrtt^eCG&of?.

,The'.;,fepkl^^l'tV^^’f^,.i^ uli;b?:r ' lunch” type of girl almost ihyariabiy pairs off .with a : man ’>vho is a stickler for having “his- house, in -order,.” and •when the .accounts run “sky-high”. she confides in surprise to a friend that there is the “very, devil to> pay.” Trying to moderate .-■ the transports' of a .mischievous puppy, a seed-scattering canar-y. and divers, dripping taps and flaring electric bulbs,;,he is callad a “fussy old woman” for his trouble. Tlie wife wonders i,ust. why she njarr-ed him. /Arid yet.they weather tjbe storm!

There ' is' Icompfaceiit satisfaction among the assembled relations if they can whisper of the, bridal coiiple, “they have so much .in , common.” The: lffi.de, too, feels, .confiderit,, jiraginirig ,all must ' go : luerrily ’ iyjth p.: Husband,. chosen for his endha yhrtety tof. .inthreats, ranging , . aiiyjyhere,.., from the . Douglas Credit System or new art, to dalil'.aKpceialisiy&dn jig-saw-pu'ides. Unsuspected, -the .trouble' .often..begins.:here, for, whyn* the topic j-s;-, exhausted , of bogies, air-pockeLs, political economy, knapsaykh• 4P r 'wh-atever happens to be •the mutual- hobby, .the wife discovers tjiat:. her-ciiusbArid-c/l'ins-'aaf' irritating '.family:'tendency •'. ito. deposit his peach stones in bis saucer, splash” shaving scap to the ceiling, .bring .a twonv borne to dinner when 'he knows-it us “chop” night, . or-Soirio 1 : other equally; heinous villainy. He too finds-that Iris wife has ; into tears that she persistently ''“i'St.‘T‘ hjS "cigarette box,” or talks---“drivel-abbut- fifty-fifty nllow--nres.” For very contrariness she mav vet fall in dove with h?r husband and “much in .common”’ is forgotten in di?co.verihg ’ t tli'fe perscrifility in the background.' ■ ’’ From time immemorial, tall man or short, cave man or aesthetic, ..generous soul or parsimonious,' for everyone there s a girl willing, for "Spicje""solfkiiown reason, to t a kef the” “ vow.”' In suite of the “inconipatibijity failures,” marriage is the surviving 'institution of the world. ' Apparently the cheerful olvilosopher believed soy when' she sigh: cd-over her, newly-wed daughter. “Ay She no likes fter nibn’ but there’s allers something. ■

DISTINCTIVE SPORTS CLOTHING The sports- girl is the most successful creature of modern fashion. The best brains of the dress would have coricehtrated on designing" blotlreis for her benefit in which , practical comfort is blended with elegance. The change! from the rather rugged".Dianas of the days (not so far back...,either) .when women first began to pay serious attention, to sport into sopife ,pf r .. the, best-j dressed of their sax '"is amazing!' "

There are three points tp, remember when planning a successfuTisports out-, fit. ' A beautifully " iailore.il... suit in some novel and original ipatelial will look well whether playing games or merely attending as a spetator. Frocks for sport &pd country .wear must ,be both simple and practical, with novelty added by means of a chic ..belt, unusual sicarf, or gay coloured hat. . Mlil.inery, even if only a knitted cap, should be immaculately smart, close-' fitting to form a continuous line with the head, and with n 0 superfluous trimming to flutter untidily in the breeze.

At the other lend of the picture wellcut shoes should be stout and serviceable, and to-day even, the heaviest shoe need not disfigure the foot; while stockings should be equally sensible in one of the smart mixtures of silk and wool, or silk and cotton. Fine gauge silk stockings are not only unpractioa] with heavy shoes—they are poor taste. A top coat 0 f some sort is a necessity for sports,.or, indeed any country wear. The three-quarter , coat hanging loosely from the shoulders, and cut with a moderate flare . at-tK? hpm is, perhaps, the newest coat of the moment, .i Other .loose coats . in. blanket' cloth and tweed continue to hnvO 'large reveres, -.storm andyprrtch poelcets and belts that give -them the appearance of . military top coats,

Mints from Moms and Mbroad.

The,newest tailored skirts are slim and simple. Some are made with a wide “wr.ap-oyer” ~ in. front, neatly darted on the hips so that no suggestion- of a wrinkle-is possible. . ... -. Others are made with a panel back ,and.front that releases concealed fullness by means of pleats just below the , knees.

A third style is cut on the cross, giving a circular. effect without much fullness, a.nd with yoke pieces at the sides to give a flat, snug fit over the hips.

changes-IN OUTLOOK. MODERN MEN AND WOMEN. Between the, pre-war era and the postwar there is a .gap, that is in reality a gulf both wide and deep, says the ■well-known -writer, M-'ry Borden. So wide that the ..youngey /generation cannot look back to the other side,, while those who straddle it, .like myself, have had ian iawkward.„time. -0f... -it adjusting ourselves to new .fashions in manners -and -morals. ...

.For ..we all, changed, hut <the wqman changed in-forie..w,ay and -the... meg in another during that four years’ interruption. And-n-if you want to push on with the aualqgjKqf stepping, I: would says,that the 'woman {stepped/out while the men stepped (back, o-r-.thpt woman ibegan to Move- faster while -the men’s gai>:- slowed down. • ■'...

■ The pre-war woman still exists,'-1 0 the, amazed delight ’of the young. -She still takes .-a -meticulous interest in her house, her kitchen, , her linen cupboard and her dining-room. She still does the flowc-vs, still - "spends hofers every day writing 1-orig ’newsylAitei’e to her friends, st-ill gits at home of a winter’s evening by the fire with -her "needlework! •

Sport, politics, business, adventurous exploits? No. She has no desire to olim'b , Mount, Jsvere§t ; iro intention of j earning her , dwji living, no - ambition (God forbid) to become a member of Parliament and she doesn’t even care much for . games. A rare specimen? .Yes, jshe.-is rare, - all tbo „r;re from the man’s point of view,: for they like her. ;She them feel they , are fine tel-, ■lowft ; she .fil) s them ..with a i lovely. protective tenderness - and she leaves them in undisputed .possession of-their own \yorld. f .Young • men • may say that .they, prefer a .wpm.nn. who’s a .p'l ; ib ut they admire reluctantly. .'She mako s them uneasy when it comes to her earning her own living in the city or in oiie. of the professions, they admire, her : only, .so long .as she . ; s mended jo another .man ; or perhaps it would he more acc.urrte to say that they den’f want to admire in their wives .that admirable' efficiency, which makes them seem less: efficient themselves-. .. . • , ~.t

.The ; post-war. woman is in tune with her time, ..but she?-is (riot in step with her men. The. modern girl often' - takes for.. granted thi- t she .-should keep her job when she marries -and contriubte to the expense of Hiffir joint enterprise ; but the. man,'-if vnico man, doesn’t want her to, -and hates it when &he ,ihas-to. -and if, cs happens only too of teg ir.owadcys, he is unlucky and loses his job whil-e.r.he gets is humiii. ated, wretched and pppbably ,resentful.

•Mokt o-f re -are really!-on his side. We still cling, in our hearts to the o-ld idea that . Hitler is trying to re-establish by compulsion Pys ; a ’working'basis of society. It can’t be done. The world Iv's .moved - too /..far. and too fast since 1814 land it lias .learned the, women- with 'ff. They’ve been -.obliged to fend for themselves. They • learned -of necessity •to ’be s elf-ffeUanfc.-:There aren’t' enough men in the world to look 'after the women, and there aren’t enough -mKri’s. •job,s -for the men who are ready and willing. ‘ • i ; Are .the women, then,, to be made to . suffer b’ecau'se the relentless i onwi i ’ i rd march !of . events and the deluge- of iuj 'wontcons" hay© ; filled tlje world with lriaehines that do men’s work. If Herr Hitler wants to succeed-in hi s policy for women, he’d {better■ set h-iis to work smashing all the machines in Germany. 1 ” }

i put it to you; If i man rnd woman join, 'hands in the modern struggle for existence, they must ‘.do so as equal partners./ God forbid ; that nVip.n should «@it complacently by the tire with tapes-: try on their, kpees, .while ther,. wives sweat at office doors an the city or chance spare wheels in garages. That would be too disconcerting and too yseI'hss, No, tov hlea is merely for a little more reasonableness among- men toward the women who have almost become reasonable beings.