The Alleghanian. [volume] (Ebensburg, Pa.) 1859-1865, 1861-08-01
The Stars aEad stripes.

The most interesting incident connected
with the battle of Saratoga was the unfurl-
ing for the first time OF the Stars and
Stripes at the surrender of Burgoyne.-
Bunker Hill was fought under a red flag,
bearing the motto, ''Come if you dare =
but on the 14th Of June, l777, the Cont
mental Congress resolved ''that the flag OF
the thirteen United States be thirteen
stripes, alternate red and white, and that
the Union be thirteen stars, white on Il
blue field, representing a new constella-
ton" This was made public on the Sd
of September following. Previous to this
our national banner was the Union flag,
combining the crosses Of St. George and
St. Andrew, (takcn from the English
banner with thirteen stripes, alternately
red and white. The banner of St Pat
rick 0reland' S emblem) was not combined
with the crosses of St. George and St.
Andrew in the standard Of Great Britain
until 1901, the year of the union with
Ireland.
The stars of the new flag represented
the new constellation of States, the idea
tax n from the constellation lyra, which
sig rifnes harmony. The blue Of the field
WAS taken from the covenanteI's b. nner
in Scotland. likewise significant oi the
league and covenant of the united colonies
against oppression, and Incidentally im
volving vigilance, perseverance and jus
tice. The stars were disposed in a circle,
sy,nbolizing the perpetuity Of the Uni"' !,
the circle being the sign of eternity The
thirteen stripes showed, with the stars, the
number Of the united colonies, and demo
ted the subOrdiEation Of the States to and
their dependence upon the Union, as well
as the equality among themsc.Fe. The
whole was a blending of the various flag
previous TO the Union flag, viz: the red
flags of the army, and the white ones of
the floating batteries-the germ of our
navy. The red color also, which in Ro-
man days was the signal OF defiance, demo
ted daring, and the white purity.
" hat eloquence do the stars and stripes
breathe when their full significance is
known. A constellation; union; perpetu-
ity; covenant against oppression; just
ice; equality; subordination; courage; pu
rity.
BY the United States law of January
13, 1874, it was enacted THAT from ana
after the 1st of May, 1875, the flag Of The
United States be fifteen stripes, alternate
FED and white and ''that the union 0e
fifteen stars, white in blue field" This
was our national flag during the war Of
1872.
On the 4th Of April, 1918, Congre
altered the flag by directing return to
the thirteen stripes, as follows:
"Be it enacted, &c, That from and after
the 18th Of July next, the flag Of the
United States be thirteen horizontal
stripes, alternate red and white; chat the
Union be twenty stars, white in a blue
field
"And be it further enacted, That en- the
admission of new State into the Union,
one star be added to the union of the fac
and that such addition shal! take effect on
the 4th of July next succeeding suck ad-
mission"
The return of the thirteen stripes was
by reason Of the anticipation that the ad-
dtion of stripe on the admission of each
State would make the flag too unwieldy.
The old number Of stripes also pcrpetu-
ate the original number of States Of the
Union, while the addition of the stars
showed the Union in It's exising state
The flag planted by our troops in the
city of Mexico, at the conclusion OF the
Mexican war, bore thirty stars.
The size OF the fac for the army is six
feet six inches in length, by four feet four
inches in width, with seven red and six
white stripes. The first seven stripes
(four red and three wlite) bound the
square of the blue field for the stars, the
stripes extending from the extremity of
the field to the end of the flag The
eighth stripe is white, extending partly
at the base of the field The number OF
the stars is thirty -four.