6 DECEMBER 1919, Page 2

The first British woman Member took her seat in the

House of Commons on Monday. Lady Astor was introduced by the Prime Minister and Mr. Balfour, and is said to have been more self-possessed than those hardened Parliamentary veterans. Now that a woman has broken down the tradition which ex- cluded her sex from the House, it will probably be found that the change is imperceptible. The Mother of Parliaments has received and absorbed so many new elements in the course of centuries that the admission of a few women will not materially affect the habits and usages of St. Stephen's. At the same time the cause of the working woman, who is now faced with the opposition of the men's Trade Unions, will gain from the presence of a Member of her own sex in the House of Commons.