LADIES' GOSSIP.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCVII, Issue 11181, 1 February 1897, Page 2

LADIES ' GOSSIP.

[“ Canterbury Times.”] “A. thin vein of humour" is. all that may be conceded to women, so said Barry Pain when speaking on “ The Humour of Women ” at the Pioneer Club quite recently. This “ thin vein ” lies/ -moreover, “ near the surface,” and is to be met with in conversation rather than i a literature. So clever a humourist as Barry Pain might have been expected to say something original on the question of womem’s humour, but evidently the subject was lacking in inspiration, for ho had to fall back on dull commonplaces as nerveless and vague as those of an after-dinner speech. The views of biologists as to the want; of originality aud variation in the female s ex throughout the whole animal kingdom vrere, of course, quoted, as well as that most absurd conclusion of Professor Lombraso, to the effect that “there are no women of genius.” To the male, belongs, said Mr . Pain, the special privilege of variation—mentally, morally, aud physically—hence Caere are more criminals among the male than among the female sex. Mr Pain grunted that some humorous writing had been done by women, but he did not believe they could ever produce a female George Meredith. That a female Barry X'aiu should ever appear is, of course, utterly unthinkable. Altogether, the address ;was disappointing, being marked by a curious want of humour that was surprising in a man of Mr Barry Pain’s reputation. It is to be-wondered .at that factory girls should be permitted to- wear their hair loose during working hours. The danger of such a habit was made very apparent by the painful accident to a young woman in a boot factory some tiime ago, and there can bo no doubt that if the hair was tightly braided the danger of being drawn into the machinery would be greatly lessened. There are, off course, many other advantages to be gained from neatly kept hair. The appearance of the women themselves would be vastly improved, and probably, their intelligence also, for it is a fact that hair drooping over the forehead dulls the perception of children, who gain in quickness when the hair is brushed smoothly back from their brows. Teachers have noticed this repeatedly, and now they insist that girl pupils snail wear no fringe of any kind. In factories, whore the air usually contains a quantity of dust and fluff, loose hair or a curled aud frizzed fringe forms an excellent dust-trap for catching and retaining all floating impurities. The harm' these must do to the health of the worker can easily be guessed. In factories where comestibles such as chocolate creams find sweets of all kinds, pickles, &e., are made, it is absolutely necessary that the hair of the girls should be fastened, for the impurities caught by the loose locks are apt to be shaken free into the food manipulated by the girl, as she bends over it. Such a matter comes well within the province of the Lady Inspector of Factories, and certainly merits her attention.

“ How can a gentlewoman help to raise the tone of domestic service ? ” queries the editor of Woman. The reply is comprised in two words, “Gentlewomen servants,” and though the term is a contradictory one, it probably contains the solution of that most vexatious problem—the domestic servant'question. There seems to bo no doubt that gentlewomen object not to the work, but to the position. One lady, whose plan for raising the tone of domestic service is eminently practical, proposes that some such leag'ue as a “ Gentlewomen’s Domestic Service Association” should be formed, the annual subscription to which would enable members to use the Association as an ordinary servants’ registry office. The members should bind themselves to observe certain rules clearly defining- the position and treatment of domestic assistants engaged through the Association. Then, as servants would be supplied’ to members only, a sensitive, refined woman would find the conditions unobjectionable. As the lady points oiit, “ many a cultured gentlewoman daily peri'oi ms the most menial duties in the care of home and children in order to make ends moot on a limited income. But what she does willingly for husband and children in her own home she would shrink from doing for strangers in the capacity ox servant.” These words suggest a remedy at once. Let ns remove the idea of inferiority from the domestic worker, and the difficulty will vanish for ever. The same writer suggests further, a training school, and this is a most important detail of the scheme. I would go further still, and grade the workers, giving them, certificates for examination and length of service, exactly as Government school teachers are graded and certificated. By this means the status of the workers would bo raised, and the position would become an honourable one. The scheme may take many years for its development, but wo must certainly work up to it in the end. Even to-day one hears of mistresses who are humane enough to care for their domestic’s comfort—who allow her a neat and pretty bedroom—who see to it that she has sufficient rest and recreation, and take a kindly interest in the woman to whom so much of the household’s comfort is entrusted. Such kindly-naturod women reap their reward, and find it adequate. Their maids are willing and whole-hearted, and very often become loved and trusted friends of the family, having their whole interests bound up in those of tlieir employer. All honour to the flunking- men and women who are slowly but surely perfecting our knowledge of child-nature and of its needs ! From the days of Pestalozid and Proebel teachers have endeavoured, by studying the mental habits of the child, to discover the most natural method of instructing them. That kindergarten methods come nearest towards satisfying the child’s necessities all are a greed, though, of course, much needs development even here. It is exceedingly interesting, therefore, to know that Mrs Hailmann, a New York kindergartener of much experience, considers it a mistake to tell fairy tales to children. Healthy, vigorous children from three to seven, she says, do not dream 01see sprites in flowers, or ogres in the forest, unless older people have given them such notions. Their eager, active minds arc too much absorbed in the wonders about them. They do not speculate, and they do not require to have their admiration for Nature stimulated in any way. These notions remind one somewhat of those which ruled the education of John Buskin. He was an only child, yet was allowed no playmates, and his toys were limited to a box of wooden bricks, besides any that he could make for himself. The consequence of this was that the lad discovered the beautiful symbolism of Nature at first band, and not, as so many people do, through the medium of other peoples’ eyes and brains. Mrs Hailmann, in the course of her observation and study of the child, has arrived at a similar conclusion to that held by Buskin’s mother. To force upon a child of early years the ideas of other people is to make it precocious, arrest its development and rush it into degeneracy. Early childhood impressions should be “ pure, clean, direct and complete.” At this period the child needs sound instruction and beautiful sentiment, but no myths, for the young mind takes everything literally, and harbours superstitions which they cannot easily get rid of later. A case in point is that of a young child, who, being allowed to read at will in her father’s library, became so fascinated by the Grecian mytho- , logies that she came to believe most firmly

in the ancient gods and goddesses, and when she came to read the Bible she for some time thought it to be a myth, and her favourite Olympians to be the real deities. There is so much to be learned that we cannot afford to waste our time, even in infancy, by learning what must only be unlearned later on. Besides, it is in infancy and early childhood that the mind is most sensitive to impressions. How zealously then must we guard against allowingwrong impressions, which undoubtedly inflonce the whole after-career of the child! ' The wheel of Fashion has brought us once more, in its revolution, to the mode of the narrow skirt and shapely sleeve, and we are thankful accordingly. The width of the new skirt need not exceed four yards, and now wo have again the prospect of finding our draperies much less weighty than those we have been wearing for some time past. Coat basques, too, are suffering a change, and now the fan-like extensions below the waist are not to be suffered any longer. Instead of this, basques are to be made as plainly and close-fitting as those made for riding, so that dainty figures will once again have a chance. The princease dress, the most graceful stylo of dress we know, is reasserting its advantages, and dressmakers at Home say that this style is growing In favour, especially for evening toilettes.