The Birmingham age-herald., 1917-07-20
. ECENTLY there has come to hand K a communication from a most

] 1M ECENTLY there has come to hand | IN< communication from most SS cultured and loyal southern wom-
 an enclosing a clipping" from, as she
 expresses it, the much read and much 1 trusted New York Times on the day of all days, July 4, entitled. "Once They Were Different" which calls forth right eous Indignation from any and all warm hearted, true -blooded southern women.
 The article is quoted as follows:
 "A recent visitor to one of the south ern states-hmself a southerner of long descent, and therefore certainly un- prejudiced against the dwellers in that part of the country-reports the exist ence in the state he visited of curious
 and mystifying condition of affairs, or
 rather of minds, among those whom he affectionately calls my own people.
 The men he says, he found to be well
 informed in regard to the causes and ob-
 jects of the European war and of the
 present participation in it of the United
 States Of that participa tion the great
 majority of them expressed warm ap- proval and, with negligible exceptions,
 such as are to be seen ill other sec tions, they were proving their willing nuess to risk their lives in what they felt to be their country's good cause.
 As regards the women in the same state, the situation was entirely differ ent Not only did most of them reveal themselves as vehement pacifists, but they were characterized by a seemingly complete lack of information as to the facts of the war, and an indifference, also seemingly complete, as to its out come in victory or defeat for the allies. Between the different antagonists they manifested no preferences, but instead vehement inclination to join them all in a common condemnation for fighting at all for any reason. And it was impos- sible to convince them that Americans were under any obligation to join either side in carrying on the wicked slaughter
 This is a puzzling phenomenon Whether or not it is confined to a single and narrow area in the south must be decided by those whose observations have covered more ground than did those of this traveller. And how queer it is that these surprising women ap-
 
 Congress than do the southern men who are enlisting for army and navy service in such large numbers!
 In sending the very unjust, miserp- resenting article. this loyal southern woman, who has just returned to the east after a tour of the south for one of the most influential and well known schools in the country, expresses herself in this manner:
 "As southern woman my indignation is aroused a the Gin my opinion) unjust misrepresentation of the present-day spirit of my countrywomen which ap pears in an editorial in the much read and much trusted New York Times on the day of all days, July f. I found the spirit of southern women very different in all the cities I visited recently Charleston, Columbia, Atlanta, Brming ham, New Orleans and Memphis-and 1 also met women from Norfolk and Rich mond and Charlotte, N. C., and I found that they were particularly well in formed on world conditions. I rather pride myself on being well informed, having attended regularly all winter lectures on current events given by va rious distinguished women. among them the noted Janet Richards of Washing ton and having heard also Frederick \ Palmer, Ian Hay Beith and other war lecturers I found that I could get an intelligent response from all the women talked with in the south on any world and national question, and certainly from the demonstrations I saw in Bir- as we'll as in other southern cities, the southern women are doing their portion of Red Cross work and