Virtual
War Memorial
Australia

Among several speakers at an enthusiastic recruiting meeting at Mount Barker on Saturday night was the Rev. T. J.Riddle, a Presbyterian minister. In the course of his remarks he announced that during the previous week four residents of the town had received, through the post, white feathers. He was one of the victims, and the others were Dr. M. L.Scott, and two well-known inhabitants. In the cases of the doctor and himself, he remarked, the feathers were quite undeserved, as they had both offered their services a month previously. He denounced the persons responsible for the sending of the feathers as cowards, who should be tarred and feathered—although such a course would necessitate a waste of good tar and an insult to the feathers. "Such persons," the clergymen added,"are unfit to be called British subjects, and are certainly not worth fighting for.
The recipients of the White feathers are all married men. At a St. Peters recruiting meeting on Monday night, the mayor of the municipality (Mr. J. ..Ford, jun.), who presided, said he had received an anonymous letter and a white feather. The writer of the epistle had called him a coward. He wished to state that he did not know the gentleman who had sent him the letter, hut he desired to inform him that he had never been a coward in his life, and he was not going to be one now. Since the outbreak of the war he had never ceased to realize it a seriousness, and he had done everything he possibly could in organizing work to relieve distress caused by the war. He had certain responsibilities to consider. He had a wife and three children, and had home responsibilities, but if the occasion arose before this war ended when he had to choose between, his wife and three boys and his country, then his country would get his services. He had had experience as a citizen soldier, for he had served three years under Col. Catt, and he would be prepared to follow him again when the necessity arose.

Observer Saturday 14 August 1915 page 33