During the Great War men who weren't in uniforwere persecuted by the white feather harridans. Ninety six years ago this week (in 1918) "Lady Kitty" of the Adelaide Observer let fly at these "malicious skirted creatures".
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"In the general scheme of things, you know, it is the anonymous letter-writer who ranks next to the worm, but coupled with that might well be the decadent female who sends white feathers to men whom she takes it upon herself to judge should enlist.
"One has almost as great a contempt for her as one has for the shirker since both are cowards. It makes one ashamed to think any one of our glorious sex could be so lacking in right feeling.
"She should ask herself 'Am I doing good?' and 'Am I doing harm?' Do these creatures In petticoats ever realise the harm they do?
"There has come under my notice the case of sensitive boy, just 18, breaking his heart, because on his birthday he went to enlist, strong in the desire of his manhood to play the man's part and do his bit for humanity's sake, and was decisively rejected. It was the greatest blow of his life and he was inconsolable. Then on Princes Bridge one morning two skirted creatures (one could not possibly dignify them by the name of women) approached, and each slipped a white feather into his coat pocket. Comment on such a gross outrage of a spirited boy's finest feelings is quite unprintable."
