male relative was responsible for her state. There was nothing that could
be done in most cases. The age of consent in England is sixteen years,
but a man can always claim that he thought the girl was over sixteen.^40Such stories confirmed for Emmeline what she already knew, that social reform
and the parliamentary vote for women were urgently needed in order for women
to have a fairer deal in society.
Since Richard’s death, Emmeline had always kept alive a spark of her interest
in political activities, especially through her membership of the ILP, and now, in
the autumn of 1899, her old fire began to rekindle on the outbreak of the Boer
War in South Africa. She saw Britain as an imperialist aggressor, bullying a
small community of Dutch settler farmers who were defending their homes and
land. The Fabian Society’s refusal to oppose the war made her so angry that,
with a group of fifteen others, she resigned her membership in March 1900. Her
brother, Harold, an actor, was touring South Africa when the war broke out,
and when he returned home, his tales of the atrocities further aroused
Emmeline’s ire. Her opposition to the war, reiterated by her children, brought
some reprisals. Harry was fiercely attacked outside the school gates by some of
his fellow pupils for arguing for peace; his schoolmaster found him unconscious
on the roadside and carried his limp form home. Adela, for a similar stand, was
struck in the face by a book thrown at her by a girl in her class at the High
School; although a teacher saw the incident, no reprimand was given. Sylvia, in
a report for the School of Art magazine on a lecture given by Walter Crane,
innocently included his comments on Britannia’s trident, ‘Let her be as careful
to respect the liberties of others as she is in safeguarding her own!’ Another
student not only demanded that the objectionable essay be deleted but also
threatened to break the windows of 62 Nelson Street.^41
Despite such unpleasant incidences, Emmeline would not relent in her
stand. Her gradual return to political life became further noticeable during the
general election of 1900. One October afternoon, the elderly Mrs. Rose Hyland
came into the shop and told her, ‘Keir Hardie is elected for Merthyr Tydfil.’
Elated by such news, Emmeline hugged and kissed the astonished woman,
crying out, ‘That is for bringing the news! He is a good man.’ Later she wrote to
the newly elected MP, ‘Parliament will be more interesting to us now.’^42
Emmeline was pleased when, as part of his victory tour, Hardie came to
Manchester’s Free Trade Hall in late October and spoke on the Boer War. With
other members of the NAC, including Bruce Glasier and Ramsay MacDonald,
they all dined together at the Wheatsheaf Hotel.^43 Earlier, Emmeline had been
asked to stand again as an ILP candidate in the November elections for the
Manchester School Board, and had agreed. This time she was successful.
Emmeline’s experiences as an educational representative strengthened her
feminist convictions. She was indignant when she discovered, as a member of
the Manchester School Board, that male teachers in comparison with their
female counterparts had ‘all the advantage’.^44 The men had higher salaries than
WIDOWHOOD AND EMPLOYMENT