Ten Years of the Woman's Vote
iN February, 1918, British women won a partial -I- enfranchisement. The Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act passed in December, • 1919, opened many doors of opportunity to them. That famous and, as has been proved, terribly porous Act says that women shall not be barred either by sex or by marriage from the holding of any public office. It is still inoperative in several directions owing to employers, both private and public, following the lead of the Government in evading or ignoring it.
Although only ten years have passed since the enfran- chisement of women and eight since their entry into parts of the professional world, they have entered in great numbers into some professions and have even attained to eminence in that brief time. The Diplomatic, Consular, Army, Navy, Air, and some Administrative Services are still closed to women. Law opened its doors in 1920, and already in 1927 nearly a hundred women were in practice both as barristers and as solicitors. As many of these women passed the required examinations with consider- able distinction one may reasonably suppose that when they have years they will also have honours. Medicine opened its doors, grudgingly, before 1918, so that it is no matter of surprise that by 1926 a woman reached the Council of the British Medical Association and that many others were established in the highest ranks of the pro- fession. That marriage has been used as a cause for the dismissal of women doctors employed by public authori- ties has of course lessened the numbers holding the higher public positions. This is one of the larger holes in the Act.
The other professions, coming under the broad head of business and commerce, are too numerous to detail in one article, but, bearing in mind that it was not until after 1920 that in many of these professions women were allowed even through the door, there is an astonishing number and variety of successes to be recorded. The Stock Exchange still keeps its doors barred, closing a very wide avenue, but it seems true to say that every- where where women have entered they have done well. Those in private businesses showed rather a high per- centage of failure and bankruptcy at first, but by 1926 a big decrease in such cases was marked. We find women already members of several Chambers of Commerce, one in 1922 a chairman. In 1925 we have a woman chairman of one of the largest catering concerns. There are women managing 'directors of advertising firms as early as 1926, , of motor firms, of engineers and machine makers. It' sounds small to say in 1928 that there are under thiee hundred women among 27,000 men directors of limited companies, until one compares the ten years of women's opportunity with the long ages of the men's.
One often reads that this, that, or the other occupation is peculiarly suitable or unsuitable for women. The shortest study of either the professional or industrial occupations of women in 1928 sends that idea scattering. Architecture has given the most recent and notable example in the choice of a woman's design for the Shake- speare Memorial Theatre at Stratford-on-Avon. Many can still be heard asserting that architecture is not a suit- able occupation for women. It is difficult to find now a professional occupation without a woman in it—of course, excluding those arbitrarily closed to her. Like the 800 directors among 27,000 she may be in small numbers, . but she is there and doing well.
in Lead -Government, women., are still great _ minority. Among Councillors, County, Urban, Rural, and Town, the number is increasing, reaching in 1928 tb over 1,000 from under 800 in 1918. High civic honour, has been quickly won by the women who have chosen - enter this field, and from one woman Mayor in 1908 to four in 1928 and on to thirteen (plus one Lord Mayor) in 1927, is a creditable record. .
In industry the position is not so good. Women are barred from employment by two things : one, trade- union fear ; the other, philanthropic grandfatherliness. The one says there is already not enough work for men, therefore we can admit no women ; the other, filled with an out-of-date sentimentality as to the fragility of women, says they must not work here or there, or at particular times. Limitations are placed upon the Industrial woman worker from which her male • competitor is-left free, and although she is in industry in her thousands, she is as yet curiously powerless. There are roughly between two and a third and two and a half men employed in industry to one woman, the rate of increase for men being, also greater, but showing less distance between each year. There is little sign of equality, whether of pay, oppor-, tunity, or status, for women in industry.
In the Arts, while perhaps no thrilling genius has arisen; a vast number of quite brightly shining constellations' are apparent.
Of the effect of the enfranchisement of women upon legislation, one cannot do better than quote the words, written by Dame Millicent Fawcett in 1927: '" Before women were enfranchised it was possible, after many years of hard *work and persistent effort, to get thrOtigh Parliament changes in the law favourable to the position of women. But this process was not rapid ; and. it absorbed the labour of a large number of able women. During the first eighteen years of the present century four such measures were carried, or one in every four and a half years ; whereas in the nine years since women have had the vote the rate has been speeded up in a' rather remarkable degree." She then adds details of no levier than twenty-one such Acts passed since 1918 and of three others, including Equal Franchise, pending or hi process.
While the horizon of women's occupations has widened remarkably, it is curious to note how the old wish to keep them restricted and separate continues to show itself. This is noticable in two directions ; one is the tradition growing up that a " typist " must be a woman ; the other that the Order of the British Empire is a nice place in which to keep women. Humanity seems to find it so difficult to leave sex to itself.
Nevertheless women are everywhere ; they have rushed at each opening door, shaken off each breaking shackle, and in the brief years of their new-won freedom have made progress and commenced a record of which they may well be proud. Although their salaries and wages are still, in the great majority' of cases, below that of men and have, on a lower line, followed the rising and falling curves of the men's, there is improvement from their economic position in 1918 (excluding war rates) and 1928. No doubt when they are established in greater numbers and in greater eminence in the professions, and have learnt their power in industry, they will turn their attention more effectively to the financial inequities. They themselves have no illusions that they have arrived ; they know that they are still apprentices at many things ; but they begin to know their own power, and each day ' sees them holding their heads higher and treading with more confident step.
HELEN ARCELTULLE.
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