THE Church of England Men's Society, we regret to see, is being
exploited for purposes for which it was not called into existence.
In a former issue we called attention to a meeting of the Society
at which representatives of the Marriage Law Reform Union were
permitted to appear and to discuss the question of divorce as
though it were not a question definitely closed for Churchpeople.
Now the Suffragists are making a desperate effort to capture it for
their propaganda. A flagrant instance of this was furnished by the
circular that was made to appear as though the C.E.M.S. sanctioned
the appeal in support of the Bishop of Kensington's meeting of
protest against forcible feeding. We were glad to see the indignant
letter in which the Revd J. Watts-Ditchfield expressed his
disapproval of this unwarrantable proceeding. As an official of the
Society, Mr Watts-Ditchfield was able to say, without the
possibility of contradiction, that there was no justification
whatever for what was done. As for the meeting itself, we cannot
congratulate its promoters on their unanimity, nor the speakers on
their consistency. . . We think we have the right to say that,
whatever other steps the Suffragists may choose to take in pushing
their propaganda, they ought not to sail under false colours,
flying the flag of the C.E.M.S. as though it were their own.