MISS MAUDE ROYDEN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXV, Issue 19956, 26 May 1928, Page 20

MISS MAUDE ROYDEN.

MESSAGE TO N.Z. WOMEN. Slight, small in stature, with brilliant eyes and a most expressive face, Miss Maude Royden looks what she is—magnetic, and a personality that is vividly alive in intellect and emotion. "My visit to New Zealand," she said in the course of a talk with a Herald representative, "has more than exceeded my anticipations and I have enjoyed it most thoroughly. The hospitality of New Zealand people is a very wonderful thing." What seems to have made a strong impression upon Miss Royden is the allround capacity of the women of this country. "They do so much," she said, "and. combine so many things with such success. 1 do not know how they manage to achieve so much." One of the things that puzzled Miss Royden was the fact that women in New Zealand had as yet not put women into Parliament. "\Y;ih all tne weliare work fur whicil they have been responsible, directly and indirectly, it does seem rather surprising that you have not yet put them there." .Discussing child weliare work in particular, she said that very inspiring and very enthusiastic though he had shown himself to be Sir Truby King could not have achieved all that he had without the co-operation and initiative of women. The fact that women's public work, sinco they were given the franchise in New Zealand, had had little about it that had been spectacular was not a thing to deprecate. "Had they started by wanting to tax bachelors out of existence," said Miss Royden, laughing, "then everybody would have sat up and taken notice, but just because they have worked along such sober, useful, undramatic lines people are inclined to say: 'Yes! But what have they done?' Behind the lines, she thought, they had done wonderful work." The conversation turned for a moment to the keen interest that women in Britain take in politics. "With them it is almost a passion," she said. "It seems to be in the blood, and they are also taking a greater interest in international af fairs. The war had done much to change their outlook. Other events, too. had helped to develop that interest. I do not think that anyone outside Britain knows what it has cost the people, knows what they have gone through in the great effort to restore the currency. They have suffered terribly. Some people blamed this for "unemployment, but I am not an economist or a financier so I cannot say. All I know is that it has tried them out to the uttermost, just as the war did." That Miss Royden was delighted at the result of the "Flappers' Bill" goes without saying, for she was one who fought for the granting of the franchise to women in the early days. "Possibly there may be a certain amount of danger about it," she said, in answer to a question. "There is always danger about any great step, but I do not think it is any more dangerrms giving'it to women of 21 years of age than to men of 21. It is an amazing achievement to reach for a people so conservative as are we in Britain. We cannot help ourselves," said Miss Royden, with a laugh. "Conservatism is in our blood and we simply have to move slowly. It is our strength, and at the same time our weakness." Miss Rovden's last words as she left were: 'Tell the women of New Zealand that just because I admire them so tremendously I do want them to step out and take a more direct share in the public life of the Dominion—to take public office more than they seem to be doing."