The Necessity for Education.

White Ribbon, Volume 2, Issue 20, 1 February 1897, Page 7

The Necessity for Education.

One of the subjects that will be discussed at Convention is how, in view of the next Local Option Poll, we may educate (i) ourselves and (2) the great mass of indifferent women who last election voted against us. Miss Powell, our N. Z. Corresponding Secretary, has communicated with the various branches, asking them to consider this question, and be prepared with suggestions for methods of work. There is another matter of very great importance which, we think, should be considered, viz.how to get hold of our young women, those who are too old for our Rands of Hope, yet not old enough (they may think) to join our Unions. At this stage girls require special training in matters moral, physiological, and hygienic, and Scientific Temperance instruction is necessary to help them to take an all-round view of the Temperance question. Whether this work ean best be accomplished by organising Ys Unions (Young Women’s Christian Temperance Unions) or by holding special meetings for educational purposes in connection with the parent Unions, is a moot question. Probably both methods might he adopted; special meetings might be found to succeed best in some places, and the establishment of Ys Unions in others A year or two in a Y Union would devolop a girl and give her more

confidence in her own powers than double the length of time in a parent union. Y’s Unions would be sources of strength to the parent Unions, training schools from which the latter might expect their numbers to be augmented as time went on. It is to be hoped that the importance of the subject will be recognised.