CHAPTER VI 



THE POSITION OF WOMEN A SURVEY 



THE position of women is a very sure index of the 

 inward prosperity and outward organization of the 

 community to which they belong. To read the signs 

 aright would probably give a clearer insight into the 

 destinies of a nation than many years spent in the 

 study of blue-books and Foreign Office despatches. For 

 while the work of men is almost invariably directed to 

 the improvement or maintenance of the conditions of 

 present-day environment, the natural duties of woman 

 infallibly lead her to look into and provide for the 

 future of the nation. Many a man may hope to see 

 the result of his daily labours in the course of a few 

 months or of a few years : much of the best work done 

 by women in giving birth to and bringing up children 

 will not bear fruit until thirty, forty or fifty years have 

 elapsed, and the effects of a well-spent life may be 

 most striking many years after the owner thereof 

 has passed unmarked to her rest. It is possible for a 

 man to receive from his fellows a just recognition of 

 his efforts on their behalf. A woman's work can 

 rarely be appreciated fully during her lifetime. Social 

 conventions have unconsciously recognized this funda- 



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