Dame Adelaide Anderson is portant' mission, Komen. whi "ere ivid recital of her rife and work by For and admires her.
Dame Adelaide Anderson, mature years, sound in judgment and withal, full of the milk' of human kindness, is to, return to China as tone of the Commission of two appointed by the International Labour Organisation of the League of Nations at the request of the Chinese Government to act in an advisory capacity in questions re-{ating to the enforcement of Factory Legolslation in China. Her invitation must be to her the crowning point in a life which has seemed to tard higher and wider for service of her Dame Adelaide became a person to me in 1923, though her work in the Home Office as Principal Lady Inspector of Factories in His Majesty's government made her name known to any person concerned with the regulation of industeis conditions in any part of the wor! For over twenty-seven years she hi worked largely in the interests of women and girls in industry during period when women factory inspectors were called upon to pro She rose in that time Inspectors, and to her ling qualities is due in no small wre the full recognition given to-day to the value of the con: tribution which women have to make in their capacity as in-Her story of those twenty seven years 1s vividly written liber in her book, published in 192: entitled "Women in the Factory.' She quotes In one place, I recall, the Annual Report of @ Chief Inspector of Factories early in that period of wanty-seven years, expressing his buts as to the usefulness of women min this work, Side by side with this she is able to quote the w riding and generous, but absolute sincere statement' of anther, Chief Inspector of later year, in. nature of the To this den-
Jappreciation of a task well done. She determined to use it for the|Br study of the industrial conditions in countries of the British commonwealth of Nations.
First she visited South Africa, invited so to do by the Chief Inspector of Factories of the Union for the study of the field with its special native and Asiatic labour problems. Dame Adelaide, when she travels, by the bye, within the far reaches of the British Common-weath, virtually goes to a home away from home, For her brothers men who have made outstanding contribution in several of the dominions. She herself is native of Australia, though early she moved to England, One of her brothers was head of the Orient Company in Australia, and later, in the world. Another, in New Zealand, whom she Inter visited also, though invalided, was one of the most distinguished and most beloved of the citizens of this small country. In South Africa, too, she spent her time yet another of her Tt was while she was in South Africa, that, out of the blue, came jan invitation, from the National Christian Council signed, by Bishop Rosts, inviting her to come to China jand prolong her stay for the in-of industrial conditions the Council as to its virtually unknown to indicative of her cour. Jage that after slight enquiries in quarters where information might be expected, she cabled her accept-Jance. Twice in the past ten years, Shanghai has sent to South Africa {for help. In each case it has obtained service of outstanding calibre. The urgency of her call from Shanghai Jeurtailed her subsequent stay. in Australia and New Zealand: but there, nevertheless, I met her and my first admiration for her jen years saw the first beginnings of international action where standards of labour are concerned. I heard her once in Hangchow sell a story of the occasion when she, ag_representative of Great Britain, went to Berlin in 1902 to the conference called by the German Emperor to obtain international understanding upon the minimum age of employment of Children, When she emerged from the first session of the Conference it was to find German women great ly excited because she had occupied front seat in proceedings at which Sounds strange, in view of the Gor representatives were largely men. It
many of to-day. But Miss Anderson's answer was indicative of the conception she placed, upon the British Civil servant, "I was Hi Majesty's representative: of course T should take a front seat."
I might dilate upon the respon: sibilities which were hers during the war years, which saw the great infiltration of women into dangerous munition trades, with the necessity of regulation on a scale and in spheres hitherto undreamed of. I might speak of the use of the instrument of "Welfare Orders" which the Home Office was able to use for the protection and preservation of the health of the armies of both men and women.workers called to Labour in unaccustomed tasks. But important as this contribution on her part was, to her came, in fashion which is quite-unusual, opportunity to make her greatest' contribution to the world after the close of her official life. To the majority of people, the retirement age of sixty: Of Civil Servants is the signal for letting down, for "taking the well curned rest." Not so Dame Adelaide. Tt was for her but the beginning of the wider international service in Which she is still engaged, based upon valid and long experienc haired, bat full of amazing mental mall of stature, and then grey-
and physical energy, she was eager for all that could be seen. Wha' were the results in the lives of the people of the so-called advanced industrial legislation Which Australia had for some years, For to her, this is the valid test of legislative success, What were employers doing voluntarily, beyond the region of the requirements of compulsory legislation? I was with her when two employers, directors of one of the largest firms, drove her on a beautiful day to' the lovely Blue Mountains, a hundred miles from Sydney, to show her the Convales-Jcent and Rest home which they had established. Shrewdly yet kindly Ishe sought to find what understand-jing of the philosophy which shoutd govern relations between employers and their employees was behind this ti fort of their, hastened on from to the new task ing her in China. Thad hoped that she would wait yet another month, and then it would be possible for me to accompany her: for by yet another strange coincidence, I'had planned to go to Europe for study of modern approaches to questions of industrial relations, and planned to go by way of China and Japan, to see with my own eyes the effects of coming industrialization in the Orient. But was good to know that Dame [Adelaide would be here in China upon my arrival, and engaged upon familiarising herself with conditions generally, so that there was pros-Beet that I' could be with her as she did-so, So it turned out!
With all her seriousness of pur-'Dame Adelaide has a remark ity for play! That I dis covered on the first night of my stay in China—Christmas Eve in 1923: it so Nappened that several Australians were in the party in which we both were, and Dame the national sphere. To her came Ad lo was proud to claim her two signal honours as she Laid down Poirth right, strengthened by her her official duties in the Home Office: recent visit: Th a demonstration of jon by hor sovereign for the ithe "Fauna of Australia" she made of a quarter of a century in 2 most excellent Kangaroo!
Me service by bestowal of the honour But soon she got to work. She Dame of the British Empire." Ant was ce-opted by the Child Labour 8 gift of £1,000 from many friend: Com mission of the Shanghai Mun-and fellow workers as symbol of cipal Council then sitting, and for
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.