YOUNG WOMEN'S WAR WORK

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23949, 26 April 1941, Page 12

YOUNG WOMEN'S WAR WORK

Sir,—On behalf of the youngm' group of women, may I be to criticise the criticism from Miss Kdith P. Tennent, director of the Voluntary Aids for the New Zealand Hed Cross, made by her about the indifference of the younger group of women toward service to the community, and published in the If kuai.d on Thursday. Miss Tennent says: "The voting women could not think of interrupting their round of social activities to help their country by preparing themselves to serve efficiently." Either Miss Tclineut is not a good judge of age or site lias not noticed the thousands of working girls throughout the country who give up spare nights to take classes in first aid, in home nursing, in A.R.P.. in motor-car mechanics, in orchardists' classes, in signalling, in cooking in large quantities and in office work. Perhaps she has not noticed either the young married women who have gone back to work when they had no need to. or the hundreds of girls among the so-called leisured class who have given up fresh air and sunshine and golf to give their services for long hours during the day and evenings, and for no monetary reward.

These girls have not "interrupted their social activities," as Miss Tennent puts it; they have given them up altogether! Hundreds -of them have gone into training schools for nurses, and not as V.A.D.'s, but for the full nursing course. Marie Conlan*.