The Washington herald., 1920-12-22

tually> run by women clerks during
the war. and the women are bitter
over the fact they are now ex-
pected to handle the routine won,
while inefficient and unframed men
are placed over them. The nrh,
for equality in civil service A, one
OF the most bitter of the whole
campaign for economic Justice. The
women clerks arc chiefly under
thirty and consequently withou,
political power. but one of them
threatened at feminist meetinr
recently that ''the 10000 women in
civil service would use the indus
trial weapon rather than see the
women go down in the ight."
strife Between Male
and Female.
Mrs. Oliver Strachey. head of the
bureau for women's service. de-
clared recently that women "were
being bounded out of the profes-
sions and Of business
She added. however, IL was No
longer a question Of doubt a. 10
women's ability. but determination
that they should not utilize II.
1t used to be-" she said. men
said to women, You can't build /.
house Now they say. You shanr
ouiid this house: want 10
bWld it,"
Viscountess Rhondda. who is
president of the British women's
Industrial League and the best
known business woman in England.
said recently she considered the
question of equal pay for equal
work one Of the most important be-
lore the country. since IL affected
the industrial welfare Of both men
and women.
Even women musicians have suf-
tered from the anti-feminine senti-
inents. A famous London orches-
ira recently ousted all its women
players, who had been members
since the war. DR.. Tthel Smyth,
the composer, came 20 the defense
OF the women musicians with the
accusation the action was due 10
the fact that women read better
at sight than men, are twice as
Keen and work fifty time harder. {"
The Englishman OF teday." she
added. "dislikes hard work. That
NhS ouI traoe ls gong 10 BEL
gium and France"
In business and the professions
the position OF women is extremely
linicult, but in industry it is des-
perate. Women who went into
factories during the war were sum-
marily dismissed, and some zoo. 900
Of them were left to crowd back
into their postwar occupations.
Tho . L.. L.
have lessened even that form of
employment. In London hundreds
OF penniless women and girls are
walking the streets in search OF
employment. Queues are lined up
daily outside the labor exchanges.
Labor Party Grows In,
Political Power.
The Labor party is partly blam-
ed for the situation. and il may
explain why the Labor party, in
spite Of the growing strength OF
the trade unions, has not come
nearer to political power. Theo-
retically the Labor party has stood
for Sex equality. In practice IL has
never given the. women a chance.
When the war ended the trade
unions demanded that the women
get out" Men. threatened 90
strike II the women workers were
retained. sThe trades were closed
to women. They were told by the
unions, in the same tone as they
were told by the government, to
get back to the poorer paid jobs.
The effort to open the trade
doors" to women preceded the war.
1e movement is'gaining in force.
but the defense has been given
force. too. by the state OF unem-
ployment among men.
Miss Lindaf Hageby, one OF the
well-Anown English afeminists.
charred recentlv that the Iahor