Evening star., 1913-12-07
ST. PELAGIA'S SHOE.
The Tragic Side of Childhood
Plain Girls Who Come to Grief.

FROM tnc
few weeks ago heard a fragment of
conversation in Oxford street which
seemed to me at the time very horrible
and base. The speakers were two girls
of the factory class. slouching, ugly,
anaemic. and, as regards their garments,
not to be handled in kid gloves. One OF
them said, in tired and yet savage tone
of voice, 1T serves her right; l haven
got no pity for her-trusting everybody
that says kind word to her." And the
other rejoined, wearily and cynically, Its
always like that with girls from the
country
This conversation returned to my mlno
yesterday. / paid visit to nome Ioi
girls in the north of LONDON, ana so"
something like eighty or ninety 4ouns
women for whom the factory girl OF OK
ford street would feel no pity. and lot
whom, perhaps. only dozen people GU.
of all the millions in London entertain
kindly thought. The fragment or cynicai
conversation revived in my mind because,
home. there was really not one; NOT
single one, who looked bad Further. the
great majority of them were distlhctly
plain and commonplace: there was no.
one I think. whom the most charitapis
minded could describe as pretty or at
tractive Some of them were very ugly
and misshapen. A few were mentally
afflicted. All of them were marked Dy
sorrow.
We are too inclined to think that the
girl who gets into trouble IS hlshty,
ogling and philandering little wretch. In
PLAYS and novels she Is always pretty ana
coquettish. fascinating in mind ana 10TH,
in real life We make up our minds thdt sue
is light and frivolous, that she is empty
headed and vain. that she thinks of notii-
ing but hats and frocks: We say TO our
selves 1T serves her right But the
tragedy of this matter. the bitter, cruel
tragedy, let me beg You to believe, lies III
the fact that the deceived and abandoned
girl is generally ugly. one who, knowing
herself to be plain and dull. goes like a
somnambulist to her ruin ecstasied, IN
toxicated by the delusion that she Is
loyed-loved by a man 50 good and hon
crable that he loves her for herself; loves
her. plain and dull as she is. above all
other women and will certainly marry
her when his wages are raised. IL Is a
tremendous thing for an ugly girl TO feel
that she is loved. Accustom yourself to
the thought that the few rescue homes
We possess in London for helping these
broken hearted and disillusioned girls are
filled with young women VINO are the very
contradiction of chorus girl. Assure
yourself that these deceived women are
really very plain, often quite ugly, and in
many cases deformed or afflicted. Do this
and you will surely feel compassion Tor
them, surely wish to comfort them in
their distress. and help them to recover
their faith in humanity.
St Pelagia's is a Roman Catholic con-
vent Of whose existence. very few Of the
Roman Catholic iaity in London are
aware And yet for five-and-twenty years
the nuns at this convent have been rem
derng a great service to the community
they have received broken-hearted women
of every church: comforted them with
tenderness. provided them with work, and
taken care of their babes: for five-and-
twenty years they have saved hundreds
5, of women from ruin and helped their de-
fenseless infants to start life with at least
as much health as their little bodies can
support, and with memory of kindness
! and love in their dawning minds; they
themselves the purest of pure women
women vowed to a life of the greatest
| self-abnegation, have opened their clean
hearts to those whom we call the un-
chaste and the vicious, and have be-
slowed their consecrated and sacrificed
| instinct for MOTHERHOOD upon the un-
wanted child of the unmarried mother. >
| And London is not aware of their eX-
| istence Roman Catholics. / am told, ex-
press surprise when they hear of this
| convent and it's work. 1t is only known,
one might say, to the broken hearted and
sorrowful. So easily is a work of great
| love lost in the multitudinous littleness of
London.