376 



The Review of Reviews. 



IN PRAISE OF THE WINDOW-SMASHERS. 



By Miss Elizabeth Robins. 



Miss Elizabeth Robins, the most brilliant literary 

 exponent of the tatties of the militant Suffragettes, 

 contributes to the Cunlemporary Rfview a fervid defence 

 of the window-smashing campaign. She is full of 

 " thankfulness that, in spite of provocation, women 

 so far have not, in their struggle for freedom, emulated 

 the more violent deeds of men." She exults in the 

 success of the militant tactics in doing away with the 

 tolerant amusement with which the claims of women 

 were formerly regarded : — " They are the tactics which 

 have rallied the greater numbers and the larger financial 

 backing to the Cause. They are tactics which have 

 breathed new life into the very societies which denounce 

 militancy." Stone-throwing has not only broken 

 Vv-indows ; it has broken apathy : — 



If you believe that you are fighting, not only for the 

 oppressed, but for the final triumph of civilisation, you are 

 ready (for the achievement of ends so momentous) to make some 

 sacrifice. There are women who would even sacrifice a (ew 

 panes of glass, if the crash of that breaking would break the 

 spell that has bound men under the upas tree of an evil 

 tradition. 



Women, says Miss Robins, are kept closer to reality 

 and common-sense than men. Whatever the cause, 

 man hypnotises himself with what he calls the 

 Philosophy of Life and Science of Government, and 

 is the bond-slave of outworn forms : — 



In 18S4, in defence of Mr. Chamberlain's threat to march 

 100,000 men from Birmingham to London in support of the 

 P'ranchise Bill, Mr. Gladstope put his views on record in these 

 terms : " I am sorry to say that if no instructions had ever been 

 addressed in political crises to the people of this country, except 

 to hate violence and love order and exercise patience, the 

 liberties of this country would never have been attained." 



"I am not," said Burke, " of the opinion of those gentlemen 

 who are .against disturbing the public repose. I like a clamour 

 whenever there is an abuse. The fire-bell at midnight disturbs 

 your sleep, but it keeps you from being burnt in your bed. The 

 hue and cry alarms the country, but preserves all the property of 

 the province." 



When dealing with women's application of these truths, the 

 judicial sex shows lack of a sense of proportion. 



The woman's act w.as of the same nature as the breaking of 

 the glass-case, which you must do before you can ring the fire- 

 alarm. It is the accepted preliminary to warning per.ple of a 

 danger that threatens the community. Precisely so the stone. 

 Not to injure anyone, but by way of sounding an alarm. .V 

 thing done to draw attention. How well the women aimed ii 

 proved by the result. The stone succeeds where all the other 

 means have failed. 



No creature was hurt by any of these stones. Women 

 are pursuing a policy of pin-pricks, hoping still that a 

 prick may rouse the men of the nation. Roused them it 

 has, no doubt, but it can hardly 1 e said to have roused 

 them to support the cause in aid of which the stones 

 were thrown. Of this cause Miss Robins writes with 

 eloquence and emotion. Men maintain armies and 

 navies, they say, in defence of the home. But armies 

 and navies 



aic useless allies in that confl'ct in which uncounted thousands 

 yearly suffer and die. They die for liick of proper housing ; for 

 lack of uncontaminated milk ; for lack of segregation of con- 



tagious diseases ; through the absence of State-trained midwives, 

 through the dangerous ir.ades, In the sweat-shops are the 

 struggling legions who do worse th.in die — they breed disease. 

 .And there is the legion «ho do worse than die in unspeakable 

 dens of infamy. Innocent childhood and honourable eld age, 

 the Holy Places in our pilgrimage — to rescue these from the 

 Unbeliever is the go.al of the New Crusade. 



She concludes by quoting Emerson's dictum that — 

 "every project in the history of reform, no matter how violent 

 and sut prising, is good when it is the dictate of a man's genius 

 and constitution." 



Very probably Emerson, as well as Burke and Mr. W. E, 

 Gladstone, might hesitate to include women among mankind. 



The Creator seems not to have hesitated. 



AINT CHRISTABET' 



C/iarlcsR. Sy/ta.] {Reproihtced hy permiision rj the " Bjslatuur." 



To Miss Robins everyone pa\s the homage due to 

 an earnest and devoted woman of genius, who has 

 consecrated herself to what she believes to be the 

 noblest of tasks. 15ut a policy of pin-pricks, like all 

 other policies, can only be justified by results. And, 

 so far, the results of window-smashing seem to ha\-e 

 only profited the enemies of the Cause in the promo- 

 tion of which the windows were smashed. 



