On Friday, August 5th, the House of Commons debated the
question whether women should be admitted to all grades of the Civil Service on the same terms as men. In the end a com- promise was accepted by which women will be admitted by selection instead of by competitive examination for an experi- mental period of three years. After that period the conditions apparently will be the same for both sexes. Sir Robert Home's explanation of the experimental period was that men have better educational facilities than women have, and that selection would therefore be fairer to women. The logic of the explana- tion escapes us. So far as we know, the women's leaders demand nothing but " equal opportunities " with men. To be treated under a kind of " most favoured sex " 'clause must seem to them to be rather disagreeable.
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