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THE COUNTRYWOMAN A C.W.W. Calling Lady de Soysa, new." Area yiec.l>resident, Asia, has just been litinou -d [or the public work she has been doing for so many years in Ceylon. Her Common. wealth decoration is the 0.1m. (Order or the Britiin Empire), a 'ElrLlL'tl in the January lg56 New Year's Honours Lis. Previously |lit: Governor General of Ceylon had awarded her the gold medal for the hen social worker' of the yeai, and had used these words: "Ladv de Sovsa is a great wife and mother, but a greater scrviiiit of Ceylon." 'A life time of social work' was the title of a newspaper comment which declared: "it is a notable event when a voluntary worker is hailed as a 'scrvatit of Ceylon'." > _ I Lady Worsleyrrayior is viceChairman, AI.C.W.V\'. Executive, and has represented both the English Con. stituent Societies--first the N.F,\V.It and now the \Vomen's Farm 5: Garden Association. Members will be glad (0 know she has been awarded the 0.111;, (Companion of the British Empire) in recognition or all the public work she has done for so long in the county (If Lancashire. Miss Elizabeth Christmas was Warden at Denman \V.I. Collette from the time it opened iliitil recently. Many AIC.W.V\'. members i lung lingland and the College will remember her with aEection and be pleased to hear that ltcr name also appeared in the 1956 NC", Yea s Honours List with the award of an 0.13. NLts. Column, .1 past treasurer for fifteen years of Cliilham \V.I., Kent, England, recently visited their 'link'iBaskct Range C.\V,A. Branch, 5?th {\ristralia. She anti her husband had been staying with their married daughter in New Smith wales and were on their "av baclc tn England. Contacts had been made so that C.\\',r\. membch met their ship when it reached Adelaide and drove them up to llflsltct 'Rantzc 'a distance of about 27 mil i into the hills, which were: looking their best and hriehtest with the Sprint: foliage and masses of broom. Further up, along the range or the hills. there were orchards white with cherr' and pear blossoms. Like CliilhanL Basket Range and the sur-- rotrnding districts are mainly fruit grow-mg country A reception and supper had been arranged, where the English guests met almost all the Australian members and their husbands. It was a wonderful opportunity to discuss matters of mutual interest and to compare the work of the resuectivc organisations in the two countr Mrs, Colman received a hoauet of native flowers and a mm. Badge and was asked to present a c.W.A. suear spoon to the Chilham W.I, on behalf of the Basket Rance C.W.A. Branch, as a souvenir of this ham-iv occasion. Miss Canto. of Texas. USA. was in Britain in rose and is eraterul to the many Women's institute members who helped her. t- .omethine otrheir work. Now she sends a most interesting account of Home Demonstra tion Clubs: "At present Texas has more than L000, with more than tattoo members enrolled in ahour 200 of the 143 counties. Eat-h countv has a county home (lCmonSlrt'L tion council. composed of two representatives from cm], community home demonstration club. These meet Printed and mild: iyi Gm" Britain hy 'associatioti itself, coon 1h: Black/Herr Puri- Ln! monthly to trail act business county-wide in nature Ir - 'llien there are District organ ations known as District Home Demonstration Assucarions in each of the 11 districts into which the state is divided. These gm"? are composed of representatives from the community clubs in each county. they promote programmes of " dislrlttrwldt nature. Distriit groups meet once Wail)" Over the 3,000 clubs :00 county holnt- tlcrnonStrau?" councils and i: (llsil'lL'l litinle dcnlunstlatioll tlssOCla' trons, there is a Statewide organisation knulvn as El" I'exas Home DCH'KHL ration Association. Its excfiumc committee meets set ial times during the year. The V 4 itised «if delegates each repl'esciit' mg a specified number of club members 01' hnmc demonstration clubs, riieets once annually Home Demonstration organisations are channelS throuin which rural women have brought to them 1' time economics educational programme provided by git: v.5. Department of Agriculture and state Ln,nl rant Colleges. The Department division rrIiiC handles tli s l [ r 1 it vi as the C0 '1 as 7 0 i nme s n g t or ' live ixte is on Sen chmmi S. tee in Agriculture and Homc "emu" J. rtrtc land grant colleges State govern- .. 'lullty governments -- - V' ' '1'" Umcrwisc I Lotipeit'lte hiianciall) . . In the n: resemplo as corinty home demon indicate that there are rtion as a whole nearly thtCC y one or more borne econfim'SIS sit-anon agents. Late figmf; ' ~ I "(I\\' "late than v 00 can" ippr'evglrefipstisit'rattgti agents and subject militia SPEC" than 3,000 (Jim "I: out'filprio communities with more [km dubs. men in community home dcmousflfl' work . otue demonstration agents also I through girls and boys 4H 61""; r c with county agricultural Elfin": educational work irimacfif mm "Heath "WW "mug buys I h V The Viericultui'e wrth farm men 3" mum agents headquarters are usinll in the y seat townsi" i i y Miss Camp descrihes 're appearance in winter and although in the southern tip a and grows citrus tru s and in Te s has interesting woodl disrricts - r . « eon .t of last level plains where Wlltlt'ltt Qmm' sorghurns a it cotton 1 c ( n st rt Sb 5 l I i r ' ' I i n I are S w] qt ill extenri el t C ' _ the beef 1 - ' 1}" [hm/ed. ' _' ' cart e industr has HIW' livest 'i'm'dl {Ermine has been al yl hi1C "'6 . oclt industrv is "Va'm' w I sDrCt'K I ' - A ' I 1h": .tr as of other districts 1mg ""0 d" Rama] fan] s and its somewhat hlenk its relatively tew "CC" lnagic' valley is irrira'c' nrr~r vegetables, and Eflsi arid sections. Noi'll'cyn Re r' A.C.W'\'Vn'flslfrom the countrywoman ' material L'lad for member societies 'gitixefi't ., ' ' lllll'lI" v" " z" i [5mmde liter. (rckrrnwleldg:(y'llll: m the" Xi'fimdun members -rr 5" ' » t C also - 4 s ' rc' lirnvlded they I'90 to use it in their locfll )7 ,5 _ SC' - r' mmuoncd. _ c that die source of the mam \J :HE COUNTRYWOMAN """"' 5"brm'ptr'on 4/.5rrritne or 51"" 1» S ' _ t nuih Damn: Rand. Lerrnrrr. Emil" COUNTRYWOMAN SUPPLEMENT MARCH, 1956 Houses and Homes "ll rates a lot oi liring in a. i t house a hum 7 ll ltil lil' llulnallit '. a [tile ol' tinc't. fellows . . . So we trill build a house it we lime the money, but it let-s tune and lore to make a home." (Ctlunll 'ntuan in r\c\\' Srititli \\':lles). it is uulortunatt- llliil tri-d' in p ltillly eiel'y eouur- in the world ii on more to build a house (up to mo'dt u standards) than the lower income group {alirilr can allord. wit/lull] or taut-e rwht-thcr to own or rent): 'l'hen are, of course, L'VCEptlriils, such as a s7) hou -d 'gned lately liy a Filipino! it can he limit by the settlers then hes. on virgin laud. standing on piles or uusawn runner, to pl'olitl' a cool cirtlllillion of air under-u uh. it lr - a small annexe, standing away rrotn the main structure, tor etrohiu- As the llools and wall. are of lo tl nhoo. with a thatched root, the huilding materials rc rirtually ircc. Meeting the cost The lllieriiiiliollill Sllrlev published by United Nation in i955 tells us that lice World \Vilr II stand» ards [or housing lune risen particularly in rural urn/S, where previously the peasant tamin ins espeetetl to house ilstlI as best it could, "illIOIIl t:_\|L'i'II(|l help or re ulzllioii." tlost uoternmeuts. irrespective or their political or economic haeLguruntl, now pl'rilitle some kind of linancial help l'trr house ctmsu-uction. 'l'heir objects are llsuallv to mere the total supply of irons and to see prices and rents i not beyond what the majority can pay, Ithough sometimes the-u- help is combined with soc il planning, An interesting example is the FairIari plan adopicd iii llilly ill i349. It was intended to reduce unemployment and r 14, the'shorlage of housing for \l'iii'kt'l. it is nuanced by special contribu-- tions from all prn-ate employ from ur- rly all employed work 'llitl from the State. Its SC'VCll year construcrion li 'gct lli . not been reached. but it is con- Sidured that e n a single 'Ii'linflli'i' house in it sinilll town, may sene 's a model for improving the quality of local Ciillstl'llctiuil work. The plan indeed aimed at introducing higher standards and more nioderii ideas than previously prevailed in popular housing in Italy, French employers too, since 1953, are ohligt-d to invest t per cent of the alarms they pay. it they employ more than it persons, in the building of dwellings. They can choose between contributing to building societies or inter-professional housing committees, and crying direct in us or subsidies to their employees. In England and Wales (-lct'letl local authorities have. since ")45. received gtwermnent subsidies alid been responsible for the great bulk of housing CUIISl'rlli'Ilnnr Ill llll' Netherlands trio, subsidies have helped both local government building schemes and private builders of the smaller types of houses ill the pe iud since the Via . The Norwegian Cul'ei'nlilcilt encourages ere, family to on, its own dwelling through cheap loans and subsidies. Although most building ope 'tillolls are initiated by individuals in the United States, the Government is encouraging prirate building by a national mortgage insurnnre scheme. through which private building lit-comes government. itled. Cmclllnicnl help is ol'ten must note ary in under tlt-relriped uillilli'it . as the building industry is not sufficiently organised to meet a large demand for hurls In hid it l'ils soon found Planning Coninlisr slons were not enougligl ins and subsidies had to be forllltull'ililg for all types of house . In Burma and in 1. tin America National llou ing Departments and (irn't'l'llll'icnl Agencies in lutlrorised to produce build- ing mart-rials and Ill promote industries allied to Illc building trade. latel increasing encouragement l- » been giren to hot sliiiilding by indiiidunls or C(i-Opei'iltnes lot pllr.ltc ownership and occu ion in the USSR. by Int'unS of lo\ ilil st State loans. It is indeed stated that most ot' the ru .1 population or the Us. .R. and liasrt-rli liilrupe hits in priidtr- one-faulilv houses coli- strueled on local initiative. ' Rr-ut controls hare lit-tome hands of many governments. both as clriergcncy alld - cial security rircasuies. (Itrrnptrtali e figures show what pr-r entage of its income a family is likelv to be paying in the t n- of rent in a number or d'irrert-nt countries, largely as a r \lilt of this legislation: halt a per cent: \vtst Centrally to per cent; Switzerland about i: pt- cent: Belgium l8-I9 per cent: and Great Britain at» tti 30 per cent. A llousiug Allowance helps French t to pay a sullicrently large 1): It rs only arailtrble fur those who me be family :rllorv- anclt-s, Illtl there is a similar g'ant payable to the aged .[rll'iztmlrpilt'lLi-i. "l'é'r'lt'pfs fll'r'efitlicrents Full average no more haw "Qt bum] WM .1 V '1': :pcnt iulie. thcse Slll>SltlICS c \ c dinrttl. The housing laws in Greece and T ",0 per (CHI of social insurance funds house the insured. or to be invested in tivt . .tcnsll'e rise of insurance. security and labour union fluids. to cti-opt- r'HlYt" have, in fact. made individuals. in many own homes. ' lrtuig beiipoiis in the ilmilic-s who l we in of their income in ien' rrrltey provide that should be used to housing co-opera. pension, social gethcr with housing ' it possible for man' (llflCl't'll! ctiilntrl . ln birild their Designs for Living \l'henplr ' scalt' planning lrir political eundit V ions give rise to larve m formerly 3' uninhabited or sparsely