Upon recommendation to the State Council of Defense by F. M. Griffith, Judge of the Switzerland Circuit Court, the following named persons were chosen in June, 1917, to constitute the Switzerland County Council of Defense: Charles E. Danner, F. A. Griffith, Mrs. L. H. Bear, E. F. Hufford, John W. Johnson, C. S. Tandy as Chairman, and James S. Wright as Secretary. Mr. Tandy continued as Chairman, and James S. Wright as Secretary. Mr. Tandy continued until Chairman until January 1, 1918, when, on account of poor health, he resigned, and Leonard E. Smith was chosen to fill the vacancy.

The objects of the Council of Defense were as follows: To promote the patriotic spirit. To educate as to the magnitude of the task ahead in the war. To assist in carrying out the enrollment for the army by conscription. To assist in getting idle workers and boys below military age to work on farms. To call on persons of means who refused to contribute money to war causes. To investigate all reported cases of pro-Germanism, in an effort to make such persons realize their real duty as Americans.

    The County Council of Defense might be termed the Senior War Board, for through them and their recommendations were all other War Boards and Committees pertaining to war work selected and appointed.

    The work of the County Council of Defense was never entirely disclosed to the public for the reason that the Board felt that publicity might be detriment to their work, and time had shown that they were right.

    The largest single task the County Council of Defense had to contend with was the handling of those who failed to do their duty towards the Switzerland County War Chest Fund. A large number of persons who were able emphatically refused to subscribe any amount whatever to the War Chest. Their names were given to the Council of Defense and the Board succeeded in pointing out to them how they were failing to do their duty, and thereby obtained additional funds for the War Chest and secured the loyal support of those persons in all war activities. The seven or eight who failed to respond to the call of the nation and advice of the Council of Defense were named in the Vevay papers so that the loyal and generous people of the county might know and be in a position to treat them accordingly.

    While some counties had a great deal of trouble with persons making seditious remarks, yet Switzerland county, owing to the intense loyalty of its citizens, was practically free from such things. It is true the Council of Defense was called upon to investigate several cases of such character, yet owing to the minor degree of the charges no drastic action was required to stop such remarks. The investigations had a wholesome effect on those who might have been inclined to forget their duty as American citizens, and as the war continued it soon became clear to the members of the Council of Defense that their services would not be needed along such lines.

    The Council of Defense made a remarkable record from the fact that they were able to handle all questions and propositions coming before it without calling on the State Council of Defense for instructions or aid. Its work at all times was strictly in accord with the State and National Councils, requiring a large amount of correspondence, work and attention of its members.

    The work of the Women's Committees of the Council of Defense consisted chiefly of the following efforts:
    (1.)   FOOD CONSERVATION. The first drive for signers of the Hoover pledge cards to observe "Wheatless and Meatless" days was made through the Council of Defense, Mrs. Zella B. Bear, Chairman of the Women's Section, directing the work. In this campaign Prof. R. N. Tirey and Prof. Ernest Danglade rendered invaluable aid by putting the cards into the hands of the school children; the ministers over the county distributed them at their Sunday Schools and churches, and each chairman of the fourteen Red Cross Auxiliaries undertook to see any straggler in her community that the other had missed. In this way practically every housewife in the county had a chance to pledge herself to food conservation and almost every one of them did so. This was before the government undertook the rationing of the people and the matter was purely voluntary. No co-ordinated work in the interest of war gardens was undertaken, because it seemed unnecessary. The mere thought that the more food we had at home the more we could spare for our armies and our Allies was incentive enough to cause gardens to be planted in every available spot without urging.
    (2.)   CHILD WELFARE. The most arduous task undertaken in this department was the weighing, measuring and general survey of all the babies under three years old, in co-operation of the "Children's Year" movement. Mrs. A. V. Danner was chairman of the committee that had this work in charge and 862 youngsters were registered. Miss Julia Tandy had charge of the recreation department and community singing, and the distribution of educational propaganda was efficiently taken care of by Prof. Tirey and the teachers in the schools.
    (3.) LIBERTY LOANS. Miss Grace Griffith had charge of the women's committee for the sale of bonds through all five of the Liberty Loan drives.
    (4.) REGISTRATION OF WOMEN. In April, 1918, a request was received from headquarters to make a card index of all the women in the county, noting what work they were fitted for. Details of this work are told in the chapter entitled "Women's War Census."
    (5.) WAR NURSES. In the effort to register women for nurses the Council of Defense merely undertook to co-operate with the Red Cross committee engaged in the same work, in order to avoid confusion and parallel effort.