To the Editor of the "Norra-Cuina Dainty News."
S1r,—I am not a member of the W. L. nor identified with them in any way, nor have I any desire to be identified, with them or any other body of welfare workers in Shanghai or elsewhere, but because, like most of us, I do not possess the dogged spirit required for such work as is undertaken by the M. W. L. in Shanghai, For many reasons their task is more Gifficult than in almost any other town in the world, chief of which being that the "flesh-pots" almost form a part of the social life of the place through long practice; fact, conversation during the greater part of the day amongst the younger male population is divided between the proposed game of tennis, etc., etc., and the merits of some of the more notorious women. But why in the name of creation: some people feel it necessary to lift their pens in the defence of a community of parasites whose lewd vocation is the downfall of many many men and boys in this town dnd scorn the efforts of a body, one of whom at any rate, is generally known both on the cricket and Rugby fields and in many other sports as a "good-fellow," is beyond my conception.
It is not reasonable that anything can be said in support of prostitution. One may be willing to admit that the -vil will always be with us, but that is no reason why its sirens should by lauded martyrs to a system. Most of the Jetters recently published have been, when summed up, a defence for these creatures who infest the town and in my opinion the letters are an outrage on decent Society. The correspondence has
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.