Another scare was about the drinking of women.  Soldiers’ wives were attacked in this connection and the same kind of wild accusation made, so much so that a committee was appointed to go into the whole question (1915), presided over by Mrs. Creighton, President of the National Union of Women Workers.

In my experience a great deal of this talk was caused by the fact that many women, who had never done social work, and who knew nothing of real conditions, started to go among the people and were shocked and overwhelmed by what were unfortunately normal wrong conditions, and lost all sense of perspective.  Some women did drink—­true—­but I found they were generally the women who always had done it, and who perhaps in some cases, having more money of their own and no husbands to deal with, drank a little more.

The findings of the Committee showed this clearly and they made some recommendations, especially recommending that the Central Board for the Control of the Liquor Traffic proceeded to do on its creation, restriction of hours of sale.  Our restrictions make the sale of liquor legal only from 12 noon to 2.30 and from 6.30 to 8.30 or 9 P.M.  Our convictions for drunkenness for women have fallen very low and for men, too.  There is very much less drinking in our country and things are very much improved.

These attacks on soldiers’ wives were naturally much resented as their work in the homes and industries, with their men away, and all their difficulties, has not always been easy.  We find there is a little more difficulty with the boys.  They miss the fathers’ discipline and there has been some trouble through that, but such magnificent agencies as the Boy Scouts, who have helped us everywhere in the war, do great good.

The problem of dealing with the prevention of immorality has been a big one.  The Women Patrols and the Women Police have been used in London in Waterloo Road (which had a bad reputation) and in parks, etc.  The G.R.  Volunteer Corps of men who meet the soldier arriving in London at the stations do a very good work.

In the Army and Navy excellent leaflets and booklets were issued dealing with the question in a very straightforward and admirable way.

The Council for Moral and Social Hygiene and the National Council for Combating Venereal Diseases has been doing a great work.  The latter, which is a body set up as a result of the Government Commission on Venereal Diseases, had done a great deal of educational work and has set up an organization over the country.  The Commission recommended much fuller facilities for free treatment for those suffering from these diseases in every town and district.

A Criminal Law Amendment Bill has been brought in and it improves our existing law in many ways and strengthens it.  There has been much controversy about certain of its provisions, some dealing with power to send young girls to homes.  There is a very strong feeling among many of our social workers that Rescue Work in our country altogether needs overhauling and change, and new experiments are being tried.