CURRENT TOPICS.

Lyttelton Times, Volume XCVIII, Issue 11334, 30 July 1897, Page 5

CURRENT TOPICS.

WOMEN AS FRIENDS OF WOMEN.

The lack of sympathy on the part of women for their erring sisters has frequently been commented upon, and with some reason. It would

now seem as though there would have to he added to the indictment the further charge that women are the greatest enemies to the advancement of their sex to a position of equality of opportunity and treatment in every sphere of human activity. It is well known that a committee of men appointed two lady doctors to a Melbourne hospital, over. a year ago, with the most .satisfactory results. Since that successful demonstration of woman’s fitness for hospital work, a vacancy arose for an assistant surgeon to the midwifery department of the Melbourne Women’s Hospital, and a few days ago the committee met to consider the four applications lodged for the position. The applicants included three male doctors and one female. Miss Janet L. Greig, M. 8., 8.5.; while the committee consisted of sixteen ladies and two gentlemen. After the candidates had been interviewed and their testimonials read, Colonel Goldstein, one of the “mere men*” on the committee, expressed the opinion that the committee of a Women’s Hospital ought to be glad to obtain on the maternity side the assistance of a lady doctor, especially when one was presented to their notice bearing such high testimonials as Miss Greig. He was proceeding in this strain when he was interrupted by a lady member, who said it was “ not proper ” to listen to speeches in favour of a particular candidate. The champion of the lady doctor continued his remarks, whereupon two ladies rose to go, and one asked that she might be allowed to vote at once, as she really could not stop any longer. After a rather acrimonious scene, in the course of which it became apparent that several members of the committee had come with a preconceived determination to appoint a male doctor. Colonel Goldstein was allowed to conclude his remarks, which took the form of an appeal for a postponement of the decision, so that the ladies of the committee might consider the matter and possibly be induced to vote almost unanimously for a lady doctor. But the ladies would brook no delay, and upon a vote being taken as between the four candidates, a male doctor was appointed by nine votes, as against six given in favour of Miss Greig. Here, in Hew Zealand, a fear is sometimes expressed that the emancipated women will form a combination antagonistic to men, but in Victoria the unenfranchised sex is apparently swayed by an opposite tendency, even when required to fill situations which seem marked out as peculiarly suited for women to occupy.

A terrible traffic.

In order to end the trade in human flesh within her own dominions, England

put forth all her moral strength and spent millions of money. In thus going to the rescue of the weak she gave a great object lesson to the rest of the world and covered herself with much honour. And yet, even to this day, there is hardly an English community in which human flesh is not dealt in to a deplorable extent and under conditions of revolting inhumanity. It is true that this is not done under the law, after the manner of the old slave trade, but it is done in spite of it. Sew Zealand has its share of the fearful business, and as population increases it will have more and more of it, unless the reformers who are now in various ways trying to prevent criminal selfishness from becoming chronic, succeed in their efforts. What has to be apprehended is shown by facts which have lately been brought to light in Melbourne, and it is probably no exaggeration to say that precisely similar illustrations could be drawn month by month from every fairly-sized town in the Queen’s dominions. It is this appalling circumstance which crowns the atrociousness of the whole bad business. The followin'-' return of eases of child murder in and around Melbourne was obtained the other day from the morgue of that city :—Dee. 9—Unknown child found suffocated at Auburn.. Dec. 17— Found at Grey Street, East Melbourne; strangled. Dec. -6—Found Eastern Market; suffocated. Jan. 9—Found at Moore Street, East St Kilda; strangled. Jan. 20 Found at Fawkner Park; suffocated. March G—Found at Exhibition Street; suffocated. March 20— Found at Lonsdale Street west; suffocated. April 18—Found in East Brighton manyire depot; suffocated. May 2 Found at Auburn ; strangled. j uno g Found at Beaconsfield Parade, St Kilda west. In all those cases inquests were held, and verdicts of wilful murder wore returned against some person or persons unknown. The police made inquiries into each case at the time, but the difficulties of tracing the murderers in such cases have usually proved too much for the police, and during the last ton years only one or two of tlie ordinary child murders have been cleared up. The origin of these tragedies is simple

enough. Unmarried girls, anxious to hide their shame, seek out nurses, and then, having paid medical and nursing fees, they scrape together money to get their babies adopted by some unknown friend of the nurses. This part of the transaction is generally carried out at tho nurse’s suggestion, and tho “ unknown friend ” is, apparently, as a rule, tho nurso herself. So far as the baby is concerned, tho last act in its pitiful history is its murder or abandonment. In cities and large towns this goes on month by month in spite of tho law.

NOT MURDERED BUT ABANDONED,

In cases where murder is not resorted to, the business of child abandonment is practised with considerable ingenuity. Some instances are recorded by the Argus

as having happened lately in Melbourne. On March 10, Dr Ramsay, of Prahran, found on his doorstep a young infant, that someone had cast upon tho world, with no better equipment than a wretched dress and a feeding-bottle half-full of curdled milk. Two days later a little boy, five years of age, was playing in a right-of-way off Perry Street, Northcote, when a woman with a baby in her arms asked him to hold the child while she went round the corner to find her little boy. Tho youngster did as he was told, and went on holding tho child till he got tired. Then he put it down, and, failing to find its mother, sought out his own. She in her turn looked for the police, and the State was burdened by another nameless foundling. On March 22, at Brunswick, Lucy Norton, twelve years of age, was also asked to hold a baby for a strange woman, and, after half an hoxu* of waiting, another mother was suddenly confronted with a child she had not calculated upon, and was determined not to be saddled with. In that case a paper parcel accompanied the child, and, upon being opened, was found to contain a feeding-bottle with some milk. This time tho milk was good. Towards the middle of May, a woman, carrying a young infant, mingled with the worshippers at St Brigid’s Roman Catholic Church, North Fitzroy. She disappeared during prayers, and the infant was found on the door-mat at the inner entrance. About the same time, Maria Talty, ten years of age, was in Oxford Street, North Melbourne, when a woman prevailed upon her to hold an infant “ just for a moment, darling.” The woman promptly hurried away, and the little girl, who had been promised a reward of one penny, waited for nearly an hour. Then the police wore appealed to, and another addition was made to the State burden. The last case was on June 3. On that day May Gay, aged eight years, was tricked by a 1 woman into holding a baby at the corner of Amsterdam and. Church Streets, Richmond, Once more the woman failed to return for her infant. To avert the tendency towards the evil that lies behind all this inhumanity has become, also in New Zealand, a duty of paramount importance. Action along many lines is doubtless needed, but those who wish to make the fathers of illegitimate children bear socially and publicly tho consequences of their behaviour aro undoubtedly on tho right track. At present they escape, while the ’ mothers aro harshly treated in many ways and the offspring too often share a fate akin to that of these baby martyrs of Melbourne.