The Birmingham age-herald., 1924-12-13
Forum Of The People
As To Southern Traditions.

To the Editor of The Age-Herald:
 At the present time there is quite dis cussion over the lifting of hats on the eleva- tors. Some are for and others against The one great point seems to have been overlooked in this matter. Primarily the first thought Is the desire to show the woman the respect that Southern men have shown her in all parts of the south. The Southern woman has al ways been shown more courtesy and atten- tion by her menfolks than the women of the North.
 There is reason for this distinction. Not that the women of the South are any more deserving than their sisters of the North. It is because the Southern woman has been reared under different environment and older traditions. Her ancestors come from the nobility of England and France. The tra- dtions of ancient nighthood-when chlvalry meant ything-have been lnculcated Tn ner life She has been reared in an atmosphere
 of good breeding and culture.
 Under the English law the elder son in herits all the landed property. This left the younger sons to seek other means of making a living. Regardless of the elder brother i'll heriting the land, these younger sons were reared in refinement, and chivalry was taught them from babyhood. The discovery of Amer ica opened an avenue for these younger sons. Through the influence of their titled fathers, they were given large grants of land in VIr7 ginia, the Carolinas and Georgia. To this Inew country they came and established them Iselves. Their descendants, eventually cover ling the entire Southern territory, afterwards divided into states.
 They brought their traditions with them. It was part of their very nature. The chlv- airy that had been inculcated in them they taught their children. From generation to
 generation these traditions were handed down
 until the South became more aristocratic than England ever was. Her women were placed
 on the same plane of the English women Of the upper class. No Southern woman was allowed to go out into the world and make living.
 School teaching was the only avenue that women could enter and the majority of the school teachers were imported from the North.
 This was the condition of affairs when the Civil war came on. At the closing of the war the South was flooded with men from the North. They were men who had been Northern soldiers and had seen the great prospects of the South. These men were the decendants of the working class of England
 and Europe. They had worked all their lives
 and knew nothing of chivalry only from hear say. They settled the north and came soutt
 after the Civil war.
 These Northern men married Southern gilis.
 Under the refining influence of these gills
 their husbands picked up quite bit of Sort th-
 ern ways and the girls taught their sons the
 traditions of the old South The rich pos abilities of the South continued to attract the men of the North. They began to come and bring their wives and daughters with
 them. new South was born. Northern
 ways and Northern methods began to fight lf for the supremacy. AS the North overwhelmed
 the South in the Civil war so the North con
 tinues to pour its hordes into the South and
 will eventually, overwhelm Southern chivalry
 and its time-honored traditions.
 A very few of the old guard arc still on hand and fighting for the traditions of the
 old South. They are usually the ones who give their seats to lady in the street cars and lift their hats in the elevator. But they
 are being swamped by their Northern brother
 and the younger generation. In all probabll- ity the time is coming when woman will have to fight her way into an elevator, if
 she gets in at all. The discarding of the hat
 pin has robbed her of her most efficient weapon therefore, she may have to resort to football tactics to assert her rights. W. H. PARKER.
 Birmingham, Ala.