FRENCH GIRL OF THE FUTURE.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 19813, 3 December 1919, Page 9

FRENCH GIRL OF THE FUTURE.

A SELF-RELIANT SPIRIT. (By ANDREF, VIOLETS, the famous French woman journalist.) A few weeks before the armistice a. friend of mine who, in spite of his iliirty-eighi: years, was a brilliant pilot on a lighting aeronlane, and had won live palmes” for his Croix de Guerre, said to me: “ Do you want to know one of the results of the war? It will be a. general aversion to fencing, boxing, riding, shooting, camping out; in fact, for all the sports for which people .went crazy before 1911 ‘‘For flying, too. Hold; myself 1 am now doing my duly like everyone else. Ah, well. I assure you that once demobilised, 1 will never set foot again in one of these machines. No, not even for a quiet little family trip from Paris to Brussels. 1 have stared long enough in Death’s face. . . . Never again! _ ‘‘ And I am 1 not the only one to think the same. After these five years of wild ami primitive life, of discomfort, and danger, men cherish only one ideal; to marry; if they have not already done so, and to keep at home with their wife and children, read fine hooks, look at beautiful artistic things, sleep, and aream. ‘‘l wager we are going to have a generation such as the one which followed on'the wars of Napoleon, a. generation a la Louis Philippe, hating strife and glory, calm, hnnrgooisolike, which will live in skull-cap, mormnggnwn, and slippers, hale snort and adventure, and which according to the temperament of each one will either sink into materialism nr lift up to the writing of lyric pnetvv. Just wait and see!” ENPF LFILI ,El> PROP HINT. I have, waited, and until now I have seen nothing of the. kind. Indeed, I am seeing quite, Ihe reverse. There has never been so much flying, and there would he more if our machines wore worthy of ouv pilots. My friend himself lias confessed - to me ids wish of crossing some day tho Atlantic. ‘‘’What would you?” he said depreciatingly. " I think I am infected lor life with that flying microbe !” Recently an enthusiastic crowd watched the swimmers that competed in tho Seine. The immense Pershing Stado near Paris is too small tor the thousands oi lookers-on eager to clieer the world athletes and Carpentier's victory over Dick Smith was hailed as a national event. Football, tennis, fencing, are everywhere ardently leaping into new life. Never have Frenchmen taken a xetmoi interest in snorts, daring, oud enterprise. And Frenchwomen, too. For om English friends must totally revise their old-fashioned ideas about French girls. The poor little " mademoiselle V who was spoken of in England with a pitiful smile, who was not allowed to cross a street without her mamma _or her “ honue.” could not walk a mile, sat all day bending on an endless embroidery, read baby hooks, and did not think at all; the girl who did not dare to look un into a man’s face till her parents had safely, entrusted her to a husband of their own choice—this, traditional French girl is no more. Indeed the clianae hud taken place gradually and quietly for many years. But the war has hastened the evolution. All flic girls I know are working for the same examinations as their brothers. AVc bad already plenty ul women doctors and barristers; wc will soon have women engineers, chemists, electricians, architects; for all the. grant Slate schools which lead to the highest degrees and situations, and wiiirh hiiheno had been reserved to men, have from last year onoiiod their entrance, examination to women. Tho Army and Navy schools are the only ones In which they are not admitted. LIKE HER ENGLISH SISTER. Moreover, the French girl goes about alone in Paris, travels by herself. Like her English sister, she meets freely young men of her age, talks and walks with them, and. in spile of grandmamma raising indignantly her hands to tho sky, she pretends she is quite able io elect her fiance herself. Papa, who, owing to financial and economic circumstances, is not at all sure he may give her a. “dot”; mamma, overburdened with household difficulties. nod their approval with a somewhat anxious smile. But the French girl does not only play lminis, cycle, drive- a motor-ear, swim- she is also an athlete. iMv.- •■ societies aihietiques.” the best known ol which aim Academia and Fomina, sponm have been started tins year, and win with each other in success. I'lmi'e is in Wildly a feminine Glade, where you can see every day young Avian fas, • hare-armed and havo-'leggerl, in sandals ami short while tunics, racing flirongli green lawns, practising high and long jumping, throning quoits, climbing no poles. And a lew days ago the women’s athletic “ ehamnionnot ” was contested. The dark-haired Mdllc Fercoq has jumped a height of 1 metre 32 centimetres; the fair-haired Millie Lie.br,ml ha> won the 300 metres race in ITcee; and many others have distinguished themselves in various wavs. If the English girls do not take care, they will Jose their uorid supremacy for snorts. Millie Lenglen, the little tennis champion, has now here many girl followers and rivals. If (he proverb, “That which ’Woman wishes, God wishes,” is always true, the war is very far from bavin" killed Hie taste for sporls in Froncix So much the hotter for reconstruction and for the future of the Frauen race.