y them with it. During the week following the
declaration of war more national flags were displayed in the South than
had been shown in the memory of the oldest resident, for except on
public buildings the national flag has not been commonly displayed. At
this time houses which had never shown a flag were draped, and merchants
were chided because they could not supply the demand.

Quite as a matter of course the president of the Daughters of the
Confederacy became president of the Red Cross Auxiliary which was
organized at once. Women were eager to receive instruction in folding
bandages, and knitting became the order of the day. Women threw
themselves with all their energy into various activities. Canteen work
was organized if the town was a junction point, and every instalment of
"selected men"--for the word "drafted" was rejected almost by common
consent--was sent away with some evidence of the thoughtfulness of the
women of their home town. Women have been prominent in raising money for
the Red Cross and the Y.M.C.A. and have done valiant service in selling
War Savings Stamps and Liberty Bonds. There has been some shaking of
heads, and some exponents of the sheltered life have criticized this
invasion of what had been supposed to be the sphere of men, but the women
have gone ahead. Indeed their alacrity has seemed to indicate that they are
glad to have an excuse to throw aside the restraints which have hitherto
bound them. Women and girls have approached men whom they did not know on
the streets to ask for contributions or to urge the purchase of stamps or
bonds, and only those who know the South can realize what a departure from
traditional standards of feminine conduct such actions indicate. The
business woman has been a familiar figure for years, but she was sheltered
by the walls of her office or shop. On the street she was held to a
certain code and was criticized if she failed to observe it. But here also
the old order is changing and giving place to new.

The power of public opinion is very great in the South. While this may
be true of rural or semi-rural communities in any part of the land,
nowhere else does collective opinion exert such overwhelming force as in
the Southern States. Perhaps this phenomenon is a survival from
Reconstruction days and after. Since certain attitudes toward the negro,
for example, were defended on the ground of the necessity of protecting
womanhood, a certain standard must be dem