Crowded Meeting at the Consulate—The Association's Purpose—
A Residential Club and Social Amenities—A Safeguard Against Loneliness—The Draft Constitution The preliminary meeting in con-. nexion with the establishment of the British Women's Association was held last Friday at the_ residence of Sir Everard and Lady Fraser. The very large attendance perhaps exceeded the anticipation of ladies who organized the meet-j ing, and indicated that the scheme is assured of excellent support. Lhe provisional Committee respon: sible for calling the meeting ex. tends an apology to those ladies. who were unfortunately crowded out. One over-flow meeting was} held, and even a second might have been arranged.
Lady Fraser, who was voted to the chair on the proposal of Mrs. Barrett, seconded by Mrs. Everall, said she was much honoured in being invited to take the chair at, this important meeting. The proposal to band together all the British women in this Settlement in the interests of public service was indeed a high ideal, and she wished it unlimited success. Lady Fraser then called upon Mrs. E. M. Gull, one of the originators of the scheme, to address the meeting on the aims and objects of the proposed association.
Mrs. Gull said in part Lady Fraser and ladies, The object of this meeting this afternoon is to invite you actively to cooperate in forming an Association of all the British women and girls in Shanghai. Judging from the cordial manner in which the idea has been received in all parts of Shanghai, it seems almost unnecessary further to emphasize the desirability, the necessity of banding ourselves together into an association with the great and com-! mon object of social service in its widest sense and for our own mutual benefit and welfare. What) social service in Shanghai might) comprise is—until our Association develops—purposely left a little vague. The initial idea, however, is that British women should unite in sharing the social work of the community, first, by assisting any existing social organizations and, second, by helping to organize future social efforts as may from time to time become necessary.
Tae Terrors or LoneLtness.
'There are as you all know a number of excellently maunged charity ies and institutions spread about the Settlement and I have heard the question asked "Why add another organization to those already existing?' Our answer is, I think,' twofold. By forming an association of which all British women are members we shall help to make the work of these other organizations better known and so help them in that work. In the second place we want to comprise in our social service assistance for men also. The men of our Navy are, I am given to understand, ex tra ordinarily well looked after by residents in this port. But with our merchant service men, it is, I fear, a very different matter and many of them—I was told rather pathetically the other day—stop in their ships all the time they are in port rather than come ashore and perhaps get into trouble." In any case, many of them have a very lonely time and loneliness for men and women often provides the open door to a variety of undesirable paths. Far be it from me to imagine that we can clean up Shanghai—nothing we can do will alter human nature. But what we can do, perhaps, is to get out some sort of programme of counter-attractions that may possibly save a few young men and lads from the moral degradation of having nowhere else to go to but these abominable places which we have lately' heard so much.
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.