The first national gathering of women belonging to trade unions or other labour organizations, which had been convened by the Women's Trade Union League and the Women's Labour League, took place on Saturday at the Golden West Exhibition, Earl's-court. Some thousands of women, representing 70 different professions, trades, and industries, joined in the celebration, which comprised meetings in the afternoon and evening in the Queen's Palace; an industrial pageant, in which the women carrying banners and emblems designed and made by members of the Artists' Suffrage League for the recent congress of the International Women's Suffrage Alliance, paraded through the grounds in the evening by torchlight; entertainments in the Queen's Palace, and a sweated industries' exhibition in the Princes-hall, organized by the National Anti-Sweating League. Various industries were represented in this section, perhaps the most striking of them being that of chain-making. A girl from Cradley-heath illustrated the method of making chains. For her labour, it was said, she received payment at the rate of 3s. 3d. per cwt. of chain made. The most she could make in a week was 2cwt., and out of her total earnings of 6s 6d. she had to pay 2s. for fuel.
Miss GERTRUDE TUCKWELL, president of the Women's Trade Union League, presided at the afternoon meeting, at which CANON SCOTT HOLLAND, introduced as "our great Christian Socialist," delivered an address on the evils of sweating, and said they were there to insist that every woman-worker should become a full citizen of the State and be given a chance of making her influence felt in the trade or occupation in which she was engaged.
Mr. ARTHUR HENDERSON, M.P., spoke of the advantages of organization, and said that where it did not exist or was weak they found lower wages and inferior conditions. It seemed to him that women labour should be as highly organized as was the capital against which women had to compete. If they were to receive that justice to which they were entitled it was necessary to organize, not merely for trade union purposes, but in order to see that the laws when once placed upon the Statute-book were administered in such a way that the great mass of the people would receive all the benefits they were intended to convey.
Miss LLEWELYN DAVIES, of the Women's Co-operative Guild, spoke on the advantages of co-operation; and Miss MARY MACARTHUR instanced some of the evils of sweated labour, and said that in some trades, particularly that of the chocolate-makers, the conditions which existed were a scandal to our boasted civilization. Mr. CROOKS, M.P., and Mr. POINTER, M.P., also spoke.
At the evening meeting, which was presided over by Mrs. RAMSAY MACDONALD, the speeches were especially devoted to the political side of the movement. Mr. CLYNES, M.P., expressed the belief that the advent of women into the sphere of political activity would enable them to do better than men had done, because they would be able to profit by the many mistakes which men had made in the past.
The fete concluded with a display of fireworks.
.lcSweated labour: working under poor conditions for very low pay. Note that women's industrial representation was tied to the issue of their political emancipation.
