"ALIEN'S" LETTER FROM ENGLAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 2856, 9 December 1908, Page 75

"ALIEN'S" LETTER FROM ENGLAND.

ffpwially Written for the Witness Ladies' Page.)

- : - " ~ LONDON,; October 23.: , A.n ovel scene' was witnessed at Bow: Street . Police' ,Gqur,t when the adjourned case against Mrs Pankhurst, Miss Ohrisjtabel I& jikhuTst, and ' Mrs Drummond, the ihrWVeuffragette leaders who were charged * with 1 "inciting to riot, was--hea.nl before '_ the magistrate, "Mr Curtis Bennett, who 1 , on taking His seat, told t^em that, the charge '. against them was that of "inciting the public to- do a wrongful act — namely, to 'rush-" the House of Commons on October !

13." ' The contention 'of - Miss Pankborst

, of, their right to trial l>y jury was with- ; out avail, and the case, which has beeu several times adjourned, has attracted great interest-, for Miss Pankhurst — the Portia of the suffragettes, as she is called, — wtlo is contiacting fox- the lsulies, called ' two Cabinet Ministers, Mr Herbert Gladatone and Mr Lloyd-George, who arere in the crowd on the occasion of the siege of N St. Stephen's. Under a long examination ■ the youthful. Portia strove to make these gentlemen admit that she and her suffragette sisters were justified in adopting the course 'they did, thas, as it were, supporting the case against fhe Government of which they are prominent members. " Portia" has won golden opinions for the able manner in which she conducted

the case for the defence, and even these who do not sympathy with her militant tactics as a suffragette cannot but own that she has a knowledge of the law that would not disgrace many practising barristers. With smiling face Mr Gladstone submitted tc the "nimble tonsnie" of Mies PanknuTst, as also did Mr Lloyd-George. The examination of these gentleme^ by Portia makes good reading. ■Mr Lloyd-G % eorge was called first. "Mr Lloyd-George," then said Mim Panknurst, "you are Privy Councillor and the Chancellor of the Exchequer? Mr Lloyd-G«orge nodded assent. Were you present at the meeting m TrS«j|ar square on October 11?-I was there for about ten minutes. Did you see a copy of the bill which was being distributed to members of the Tdifnce?-Yes. I was riv« one inviting • mV to rush the House of Commons. • aid you interpret the imitation conveyed to you as a member of the audience? ■ -I thought Mrs Pankhurst gave the inter- ' pretation you desired to put upon tne docu- • m^ o bill says: " H«lp the suffragettes to xush\£ BbK of Commons." I want you ' to You &n cln^ofler rd a £&»£ TL word

I canH enter into competition with Cham- J is another meaning - attribuid tTtt. word. Another dictvanary , gives the meaning "eager demand. wouia fou hay« felt that if we asked you to help the suffragettes to make an '«»g« d « m^ 1( , I at the House of Commons that they should civ© votes for women that we were calling Son Jo? to do *n illegal act?-K is not f °Cad%£ 5S "m. at .11 what words you - he*Ta*-Mx», Paokhurst use in Trafalgar . BqS?-* could not, really. If you msast upon' }hs\gvnaS m y v *S ue recollection 1 1 Wi sid a °yc£' hmrfuKF weaker threaten any . violence to you .or any member of tne ( Government?— Wo. • * J There was iao .suggestion that jublic or • private .property should be "to- «y way - damaged?— l h«ard nothing of that kind. What did you anticipate th«t the conse- • quenoe would be to yourself personally if , . the public responded to the o inv i lt *J?*J n to . rush the House of Commons?— l did not think it was v«ry formidable. : Will you tell me whether the speeches were inflammable and likely to incite to violence?— l should not like to express an opinion as to that. People were invited to , »ffect an entrance to the House of Commons, and I should have thought you could not do • that without some violence. # j ' Mi»s Pankhurtft: The. same sort of violence ' that you advised at Swansea, when you said ' fhat women should be ruthlessly flung out • of your meeting? ! The M*gißtrate-s That is quite irrelevant. Miss Pa-nkhurst : Listening to the speeches, what did you gather as to the object we had in view in planning to TUsh the House of Commons?— l didn't galher anything ex- . cept that you wanted to force an entrance . to the House of Commons. I Continuing her examination, Miss Pank- - huret elicited from Mr L'.oyd-George that he • was in Parliament street on October 13. ( Were you alone? — No. My little girl was , • with me. You thought it quite safe for a child of tender years to be among the crowd that . day in spite of the contemplated rush? — , Yes, in view of the police arrangement*. Were you yourself attacked or assaulted in any way?— Oh, no. , ... i Does it occur to you that the authorities, in choosing this form of procedure, de- ' Hberately wished to deprive us of the right to be tried by jury? • The Magistrate: That is not a question to be put to the witness. , I Miss Pankhurst: Am I to' understand you regard this as a very serious matter?— Oh. yes I think so. Can you tell me whether ther« were any disturbances in connection with previous movements for the franohife? — I should have thought that wa« a histoTica-1 fact. ! Have you yourself taken part in such dis- _ turban res' , J The Magistrate: That is cross-examination, f - He is your -witness. I Miss Pankhurst: Is it not a fact that you . • yourself have set us the example of revolt? The Magistrate: You need not answer that . question. ' Miss Pankhurst: Did you not advise people to break into a churchyard and disinter a [ body? — I gave sound legal -advice there. That was proved in the Court of Appeal. ] Are you aware that Mr Chamberlain in '' 188t threatened precisely the same action 9—9 — No. You don't know -he threatened to march ' 100,000 men on London? Do you know what action was taken against him by the Liberal , Government at the time? — I have already eaid I don't remember the incident you refer to. ( Mr Herbert Gladstone was next called, • * and walked round the court into the witness-

WITH TH3L WOMEN. , .. . . . ..„

' box, Miss Pankhurst again .«nd^ictin& jfci« examinatiort in-chief. -. ,; ■ „ % By virtue t& you, office as Home' Sepretary have you not immediate conifcrol-over Hie Metropolitan Police ?-r-Not exactly immediate control; the, Commissioner has that. And he is responsible to. you? — Yes. " You are therefore ,ujtim*te,}y,, n^spoiw^le foe the proceedings taken against ji's?—K6-spons*le-,in,iPatliament. ' . - ■- „ Mi Ourtis Bennett here objected to several questions put in succession ,'by.. Miss Fankhucst, who inquired i Sx r Gladstone rbstrucied 'the ' Commissioner "of ' Police to' tak^ proceedings against them, whether .the *s a "whoile was responsible, and '"wheraer '%c lmd giVen any infftructions to Mir Horace Smith in regard to the sentence of Miss" Brackenbury. Miss Pattfchurst: Can you define the word " rush " ? — I can hardly give a definition of it, but rushing implies force. Does it imply* speed rather tha,n force? — Speed generally involves force.

It is possible to rush the House of Commons without" hurting or injuring anybody? — If you ask me that. I k> not think it is.

Di<r you think public property was in danger as a result of the issu? of ihis bill? — I thought it was quite possible.

Did you think that the public would be violent — that ther c might be a riot? — I thought there might be.

Then you were agreeably disappointed on the morning of the 14th when you found no harm had been done? — No, I was not. The police stopped anything serious.

Would you have x been attacked but for the presence of the police' — T do not know what object the crowd had in attacking me. It was not a question of my personal fears at all.

You saw a portion of the crowd. Did you see it attack property oi any oerson ?—? — No.

Can you tell what harm has r'-si>lted from what took place on the 13th? — All I can say is there were £7 arrests and 40 complaints of lost purses and watches at Scotland Yard.

Continuing, Miss Pankhurst asked : Are not women entitled to go in person to the House of Commons? — Do you mean «s members or visitors to the House of Commons? — I mean as persons who appeal for justice. — Yes, and ample facilities are given under the necessary rules of order. Are we not attempting to carry out the advice given by yourselves? — I wish you would take my advice.

"" Mies Pankhurrt read extracts from a speech in favour of women's suffrage made by, the Home Secretary, who replied : " I think it .was a, most excellent speech." — (Laughter.)

Miss Panklmrst: I agree with you. Why didn't you give us a vote, then? Mr Gladstone did not answer, and after answering further questions by Mrs P«nkhursft and Mr 9 Drummond he left the box. . Before Mr Lloyd-George and Mr Gladstone left the court Miss Pankhurst said : " May we tender our warm thanks to these two gentlemen foi coming here as witnesses?"

The court was, of course, crowded with interested people, and among those present was Mrs Herbert Gladstone, who listened to her husband's evidence with evident amusement. • Both Mr Gladstone and Mr Lloyd-George seemed highly entertained at the ordeal to which Miss Pankhurst submitted them, and 'the day was certainly a triumph for Portia. Meanwhile other interesting women are taking part in less aggressive public functions. Mrs Winston Cliurchill appeared in public in London for the first time since her marriage to open a bazaar in the Horticultural Hall in aid of the funds of the Robert Browning Settlement, where her little speech was given a very warm reception, and two tiny children— tlie grand-nephew of Mr Herbert Stead, and Miss Elspeth Stead — presented Mis Churchill with a magnificent bouquet of lilies of the valley almost as large as themselves. Mrs \ Churchill , in declaring the bazaar open, assured the ladies and gentlemen that she appreciated the honour of taking part in such an important and interesting event in the life of the Robert Browning Settlement in Walworth. This settlement is one of those philanthropic schemes for lightening the burden of the |.oor that London so much needs. There are the Browning homes for old people connected with the settlement, the country holiday scheme for girls, the boys' brigade, and numerous other departments for the well-being of the people. Mrs Churchill was much admired in her Directoire coat and skirt of black cloth embroidered with gold thread, and her large hat of mauve with gold wings. She seemed quite to enioy this introduction to that part in public life which, as the w ife of Mr Winston Churchill, will be hers of necessity.

The Countess of Mar and Kellie yesterday opened a" bazaar at the Hampshire Town Hall in aid of the Aged Candidates' Guild, the object of the association being to grant annuities to gentlefolk who have suffered the loss of health and fortune and ar« incapacitated from earning a living. There is a larg« number in England of these woinen — a class who ale perhaps more to be pitied than the lower class of poor, who have no hesitation about making their needs known. Fiom this time onward till the winter is= over the poor will be always with us. clamouring foi bread. Even now, though October is not yet orer, the cry is loud in the land. The sudden change from sunshine to chill has driven the homeless from their haunts in the parks, and the becgars. professional and genuine, are becoming importunate. The great charitable movements are in full activity, endeavouring to be prepared in measure for the tax upon their reeources later on, and that vast charitable section of the public who give co ungrudgingly both of their money and their skill and* their energy for the relief of the unfortunate will be, it is prophesied, irore than usually taxed this winter. For the great unemployed question is as yet unsolved, and seems likely to puzzle the Government for some time to come.

The autumn marriage season has been more fashionable than ever this year, and

not a day during OctobeT but has witnessed more than one wedding of interest. There have been an unusual number if young and pretty brides this season.' A registrar's opinions, given lately, in a district of- London, is to the effect that the widow's chances of remarriage are on the decline. "Thirty years ago," he asserts, "out of ever^" hundred marriageable people six. would marry, in any 'year; now the number is_-leas- than five.- But the widow's chances have declined, far ,more than the spinster's.... JFrom 1873. Jx> 1877 she carried all before her, this authority says. There wag in- those • years a sort >f rogue., in. widows. Thirfy^yeare a;go" she was very popular, but the popularity now lies with the spinster. -An -explanation of this is doubtless the fact that physically and men. tally the girl of to-day is a more suitable mate than the average' girt of ,30. years ago. The registrar in question proceeds :

Now the great marrying ages for women are' from 19 to 28 or 30. Yet in spit e of that fact, at the time I speak of no fewer than 10 out of every 100 of the year's brides were widows, "\tfhat is the numbei now? Just six. The widow of 1906 is only half as popular as -the -widow of 1876. Here is a. little table that shows how the widow has steadily declined in favour: NUMBER OF WIDOWS IN EACH THOUSAND BRIDES.

"Who is to blame for this — the widowers or the bachelors? I think it is the widowers. The fact is that the great majority of widows are middle-aged or elderly. Now tlie bachelors pick up, so to speak, nearly all the young widows, but when a. widow comes to the age of 45 or thereabouts her man chance is with the widowers.

But these widowers are shirking 6, second marriage more and more every year. In fact, the decline is greater among widowers than widows. If we go back to those booming widow years of 1873 to 1877 it appears that out of every 100 bridegrooms 14 were widowers.

In England the widow-bride is most fashionable in London, Yorkshire, Hampshire, Durham, Lancashire, Cornwall, Devonshire, Wiltshire, Leicestershire, Suffolk, and the South of Wales, and least fashionable in Kent, Suraey, Sussex, Middlesex, Oxfordshire. Bedfordshire, Huntingdonshire, Rutland, and Westmoreland — according to the figures. We- presume that the elder Welter's advice to his son is not publicly adopted. But of all the young widows the great mapority go to the bachelors. Of widows under 25, for instance, ten times as many wed bachelors as widowers; from this age to 30- years about five times as many wed bachelors as widowers; during the next five years about three times as many; and during the following five years about one and a-half times as many.

Then the widower* begin to compete with ■the bachelors. From 40 to 45 a. widow is more likely to have a widower bridegroom than a bachelor; from 45 to> 50 she is twice as likely to ji«rry a widower; from' 50 to 60 four times as likely; during the next 10 years six times as likely ; and *fter she passes the age of 65 she is tea times as likely to marry a widower as a bachelor.

Perhaps the most romantic of all the romantic weddings of the season was the double marriage a few days ago of two aged brides and bridegrooms, who were married at Bexleyneath, Forresters' Homes, where the four had been living and formed friendships of some years' standing. T. Bennet, widower, aged 78, married Mrs Styles, widow, aiged 72, and J. Thorn, widower, aged 76, married Mrs Milton, widow, aged 74. The combined ages of the two couples total 298 years. The battle of the big hat seems to be almost over, and hats are to assume more artistic proportions. The enormous and

exaggerated "cart wheels" that have been seen upon the stage lately have perhaps killed the mode, for larger headgear it would be impossible to wear and pass through a doorway. The reaction has naturally set in. for as soon as a fashion is vulgarised the best-dressed Teject it,, and the good news lias gone forth from the best Paris and London houses that the hat of 60in circumference .is entirely past. The fashion has never _, been becoming 'io Englishwomen, tlie women, oi -short statlure having the appearance, of Joeing under an extinguisher, although a Frenchwoman* of the same size, as one has had ample opportunities "of observing this summer," ran »ifiai. ib?i same, hat with 'HiftbTehb^sSixk, altogether- '.'The -mBd«o»s«5»d r h4r*aaa''fiie toque will be the fashionable headdress in England during the winter, 'and very soon the matinee toque will rejoice ".the

hearts of those sitting behind it in tKa theatre. There are many whe will regret the disappearance of the large hats, especially „he woman no longer young. A ! fashion expert says : — "You may not have the enormous round, flat hat any more, says Paris. Regret it? And quite justifiably you may. The jroman of S( looks *he giri of 20. in ih. : thiSt, ana . will go further a»# say that the woman of -50 adds 10 years to her age when discarding tlie picturesque lines- oi. the broadly? ■ brimmed hat for the -insignificance of jthe little turban, in which her face show§ every line exaggerated."" ~~ ' t < — The custom of 'poking h*nd» |gjjg beeji traced back to thSQaays of the ancrent . Israelites, and was'> intended to signify j peace, to swear friendship, to promise* " alliance, or tq™|Jive •Security. \. " • I;

Fear . . Widow-brides X"ear tVidow-bndes Year . . . . Widow-brides year .. .. kVidow-brides '72 99 '82 88 '92 82 '02 68 '73 101 '83 89 '93 80 '03 66 '74 102 '84 89 '94 77 '04 63 '75 102 •85 88 '95 76 '05 63 '76 103 '86 86 '96 73 '06 62