WOMEN’S DIVISION

Taranaki Daily News, 13 October 1934, Page 19 (Supplement)

WOMEN’S DIVISION

Egmont Village: The Egmont Village branch held its meeting on Wednesday afternoon. Mrs. Meuli presided over an excellent attendance. A letter was received from the Women’s Division exchange mart secretary, New Plymouth, notifying members of the fact that the shop was closing for the summer months. The balance-sheet for the dance held recently disclosed a nett profit of £3 9s 9d, of which the meeting decided to forward £1 10s to community chest funds. It vzas decided to hold apother social evening for branch funds soon and arrangements were made. A vote of thanks was accorded Mrs. W. Bishop for mounting the peggy square quilt which is to be donated locally. The competition for the best jam tarts attracted six entries which were judged by Mrs. Taylor, who awarded first prize to Mrs. Adamson and second prize to Mrs. Barnes. The president then introduced Mr. Zinsli, who gave an interesting demonstration upon the care, management and usesAof various attachments of a sewing machine. Afternoon tea was served, the hostesses being Mesdames Tebbutt and Stapleton. Awatuna: There was an excellent attendance, presided over by Mrs. Coxhead, at the monthly meeting of the Awatuna branch on Tuesday. A popular seedling exchange took place. Seeds, plants and cuttings were done up in packets and bundles and numbered, members then drawing for them. A roll call of gardening hints brought forth many useful and practical ideas, one being the boiling of lettuce leaves and then spraying the juice on to plants to keep away the white butterfly. Mrs. R. J.- Morris, Mangahume, gave a demonstration on arranging a small and a large bowl, showing the harmony obtained in colour schemes. A competition for the best-arranged vase of flowers was judged I by Mrs. Morris, who made the following awards: Mrs. Gargan (Riverlea) 1, Miss Collins (Te Kiri) 2, Mrs. Crawford (Makaka) 3. The first prize was given by Mrs. Coxhead. Members’ children have entered into a competition for the most white butterflies caught by December, the winner gaining a prize. A parcel of clothing from the glory box was distributed among the needy. The hostesses were Mesdames M. W. Barker, A. Barker, and H. C. Duckett. New Plymouth: A large meeting was held recently. The president, Mrs. McPhillips, welcomed three new' members. A demonstration on raffia work was given by Mrs. Johns and Mrs. Avery. A sandwich basket was begun with reed and raffia, several members practising the stitches. A demonstration on floral work is to be given at the next meeting. The hostesses were Mrs. Frethey, Mrs. Dunn and Mrs. Street JEAN BATTEN NOT AFRAID. UNTIL SHE SAW A RAT. After crossing the Appennines, flying unscathed through blinding sandstorms of the Syrian Desert, facing the savage tropical downpours of Rangoon, landing at Calcutta with only three quarts of oil, and conquering the Timor, Miss Jean Batten, the daring New Zealand aviatrix, got the first fright of her trip at Camooweal, states a Brisbane writer/ ' ' ' She saw a rat. In a trice she was standing on a chair, her skirts folded closely around her legs. At the time Miss Batten was sitting Ln the dining-room of the hotel, and was telling an interested audience the story of her flight. Some one asked if she had been frightened when crossing the Timor Sea. She replied that she was very pleased when she came to that part of the journey and she enjoyed the crossing. She did not feel at all frightened, even though she had no lifebelt or collapsible boat. She had just completed the answer when her quick eyes noticed a rat running across the dining-room. With a scream she sought safety on her chair until it disappeared. Even after she had been assured that it would not be likely to come back she kept glancing nervously about the room. CHARMS AND MAGIC. PERSISTENT BELIEFS. Attention is directed by “Notes and Queries” (London) to the remarkable persistence of belief in charms, as shown by Mr. Edward Lovett’s little book “Magic in Modern London.” Among the charms in which Mr. Lovett found belief were:— Potentilla root to be burnt at midnight on a Friday to regain the love of a defaulting sweetheart. The luckiness of a “left-handed” whelk shell. A horseshoe as a protection against nightmare. Fossil shark’s teeth against cramp. Sundry mascots —among them a farthing sewn on to the left brace, considered to be “over the heart,” which was worn by many men in the Great War, and the “lucky domino.” Fishermen and seamen generally will not mention rabbits by name. Blue glass beads are worn to cure or prevent bronchitis, not only by women and children, but by a number of men, especially road labourers. The beads are worn under the clothes, and are never taken off. It is remarked that most of the "magic” is old; the astonishing thing is its stubborn continuance. NEW POTTERY. WALL PLAQUE MASQUES. The clear deep green of upland sward, the rich hues of blooms from a herbaceous border seem real, shown as they are in colour mosaics on beaker jugs and flower centre bowls, on plates and candlesticks, teapots, honey-jars, and great plates for fruit. These are some of the new English pottery designs from which the Queen recently selected a tea-set of field flowers, poppies, cornflowers, and daisies, on a soft blue-speckled ground. Here also, among the new ideas were hollyhocks and delphiniums with their foliage forming the graceful handles of jugs and centrepieces. Cake plates had a centre of chintz in realistic colouring so as to Look like real material. A gay chintz-patterned tea-set showing tiny roses suggested the notion of having one’s country cottage or town home refurnished for the spring with chintz to match such a brand-new tea-set! An amusing new notion at this stand was a tea-set in a pattern inspired by crazy paving. The irregular design was faithfully reproduced; yet another suggestion of the country garden which has influenced the pottery creator’s mind. Other new ideas in pottery include tiny . egg-shaped pastel-tinted condiment sets, | wall roses in raised coloured designs and I wall plaque masques complete with modern Medici bandeaux, and even ear- 1 rings. - ' 4