As We Are and As We May Be

The struggle of educated women to earn a living gives Walter Besant a starting point for examining social reform. He describes applicants desperate for paid work and argues that general education leaves many poorly prepared for specific occupations. Agricultural decline and the growth of the cultivated classes help explain the hardship he observes. His sympathy for these women accompanies firm judgments about their training, employers and position in society.

Elsewhere, Besant scrutinizes the finances of St. Katherine's charitable foundation, contrasting spending on officials and buildings with money reaching useful purposes. The collection also addresses art, popular amusements and shared social activity. Its foreword explains that the essays were written at different times, accounting for repeated arguments and changes in circumstances. For readers studying the history of philanthropy, the book offers practical proposals alongside the assumptions about class and women's work that shape the author's vision of public service.