A place young women can go

The forty-sixth annual meeting of the YWCA was held in the association’s rooms last evening.

The annual report stated there had been many changes throughout the year, and a marked advance had been made in every direction, but noticeably through the acquisition of the new recreation hall. That had made possible the development of the work and the initiation of a new department. A gymnasium class under the leadership of Mr J.V. Hanna (YMCA physical director) had had a successful season, the roll number being 75. The membership of the girls’ department stood at 260 girls, of whom 150 were club members. That number did not in any way cover the number of girls using the building, as a larger percentage of the girls using the cafeteria and lounge daily were schoolgirls and young business girls. The movement was well established in the dominion, and was one that was training girls for a larger sphere of citizenship and giving them a high standard for womanhood. Among the list of subjects taken in clubs were general knowledge, home nursing, citizenship, discussions, dramatics, Bible study, story-telling, games, contests, clubswinging, physical culture, etc, as well as the social interlude of teas and parties.

Busted by mattress bump

The spirit of adventure which exists in all boys sometimes manifests itself in an undesirable form and, when it finds expression in the "wander lust" which afflicts some people, it is only too likely to lead a small boy into trouble.

When a smartly-dressed little boy, aged 11 years, appeared in the Juvenile Court yesterday morning before Mr J.R. Bartholomew SM, as the result of an illicit expedition away from home, he was required to answer several charges of entering cribs in the vicinity of Brighton.

Constable Hamilton said that the boy left home on August 26, and he was not found until September 6. He had previously made excursions at Brighton, Waitati and Waikouaiti, and had been taken home by the police. On the present occasion he was located at Brighton by a woman who had seen a light in a crib, and, on investigating, had found a boy there reading by candle light. She went for a man, but when they came back the boy was not to be seen; he was watching the search from a hiding place. Subsequently, another crib was entered and fishhooks and biscuits were found about the floor. The constable continued his search in the direction of Taieri Mouth, and went to a store, where he found that the lad had spent 2s 6d on biscuits, condensed milk, and sardines. Following some bare foot marks he arrived at another crib, and saw the remains of the food on the floor. A search through the two rooms revealed nothing, and then it occurred to him to find an explanation for a bump under the mattress. 

The youngster confessed that he had been sleeping in cribs at Caversham and St Clair. Mr Lock (juvenile probation officer) said that the lad came of respectable parents, and he had a good home, where he was well cared for. Periodically, however, he took a notion to wander away.  It was difficult to get him to give a true account of where he had been or what he had been doing, and he never seemed to be able to give a satisfactory explanation why he went away. The lad was bright mentally and was well up in the Third Standard. His parents recognised their responsibility and had indeed had an anxious time. After a statement by the boy’s father, who undertook to make restitution of any damage done and of anything that had been removed from the cribs, the magistrate had the young culprit placed before him and pointed out the seriousness of his offences. The case was then adjourned for six months.

It was a penitent boy who left the court.

— ODT, 17.9.1924  (Compiled by Peter Dowden)