Los Angeles daily herald., 1889-09-01
ORIGIN OF SOME FLAGS.
Various Standards and En-
signs Of England.
THE yICIssITUDES OF BUNTING
White for the Royal Ensign-Flags
of Scotland and Ireland-The
stars and Stripes.


In the House of Commons on Monday
vaek Lord George Hamilton obtained
leave to bring in bill to amend the law
relating to the use OF flags in the British
merchant service. From the year 1901
il has been the law for merchant vessels
belonging to this country to fly the red
ensign. At the present day, however, if
they are commanded by the officer of the
royal naval reserve, and one.third of the
crew belong to that force, they are al
lowed to display the blue ensign,
which is also the flag under which,
by Admiralty warrant, most yacht
clubs sail. The Royal Yacht squadron
possesses the highly priced privilege OF
dying the white ensign, which, since
1854 has been the only ensign in use IN
the royal navy. For some considerable
period before the year just mentioned
there were Admirals, Vice Admirals and
Rear Admirals of the red, the white and
the blue, and man-of-war displayed the
ensign indicated by the color of the Ad-
miral in command, and changed it, If
necessary, on proceeding to another sta
ton or returning home.
Since 1864, however, ali this has been
altered, and the white ensign has been
the recognized flag of the royal navy OF
this country. just as the red ensign has,
from the beginning of the century, been
carried, with the comparatively recently
authorized exception already referred to
by the mercantile marine. Formerly,
too, q feet was supposed to consist OF
three divisions, which bore the names
of the red, the white and the blue
squadrons, and were distinguished
signs they bore. The first notice of
such division is that which occurs in
q manuscript report by Pepys, the we'll
known diary writer and Secretary OF the
Admiralty, in which it is stated that
in the expedition of the Duke of Buck
ingham against the lie de Rhe, in 1927,
the feet was thus organized. "The
Duke" writes Pepys, 7'now lying at
Portsmouth, divided his feet into squad
rons. Himselfe, Admiral and Gen
erall in Chiefe went in We
Triumph bearing the standard
of England in ye maine topp, and Ad.
mirall, particular of the bloody colours
The Earl of Lindsay was Vice-Admira
to the Fleet in the Rainbowe, bearing
the Kings usual Colours in the fore topp
and blew flag in his maine topp, anG
was Admirall of the blew colors. The
Lord Harvey was Rear-Admirall in "
Repulse. bearing the Kings usual colours
in his mizen, and q white flag in the
maine topp, and was Admiral of ye
sousdron of white colours"
1t is noticeable that in this instance
the blue flag took precedence of the
white. Under the Commonwealth the
blue WAS relegated to the third place,
and it continued in that position until
the distinction of squadrons by means o.
the color of the ensign they bore wa!
abolished in 1864. It is clear; nvro'.-
that some such distinction WAS necessary
in the old days when fleet consisted OF az
enormous number of vessels, all told
and it is perhaps not quite evident that
it, or something like it, would not have
TO be revived necessitote ret, In the
event of such war as should compel US
to put forth the whole of our naval
strength. Here, however, it may be as
we'll to observe that previous to 1905 the
Admiral commanding in the center few
at the main, not tho red flag, but the
Union, familiarly, but enormously,
known as the Union Jack.
There ie an immense amount of lore
connected with national flags and the
manner in which they have come to be
adopted, 1t would be useless attempting
to give even an epitome Of it here, but it
may be interesting, avoiding heraldic
terms as much as possible, to devote
some little consideration to the subject.
The portion of the flag, it may be as we'll
to explain, nearest the staff, or to the
rope to which it is attached. is known as
the hoist. Then comes the center, and
the outer part is described as the
fly. We have already spoken of three
English ensigns used under different
circumstances and conditions. In each
case the Union occupies the canton or
upper part of the hoist, but whereas in
the red and blue ensigns the remainder
of the flag is of the color indicated by it's
name, the white ensign has upon it the
red cross of St. George extending over
the whole field. This was for long
time the distinguishing flag If England.
The national flag of Scotland is white
satire, or st. Andrews CROSS upon blue
Enthusiastically azure, satire, argent
and what it has been customary to de-
scribe as the flag of Ireland is red sal
tire upon white field.
Strictly speaking, however, Ireland
never had national flag. Before the
invasion of 1172 the petty king who was
elected to the chief place continued to
use his own standard. For some time
subsequent to 1172 the standard of Ire
land bore three golden crowns on q blue
field. Henry VIII substituted harps for
crowns, for fear, it is said, that the
latter might be taken for the triple crown
of the. Pope; but, as Mr.. Macgeorge
points out, the harp did not appear
in the royal standard until it was
placed there by James l. in 1903. on the
union of the crowns of England and
Scotland, the first union flag was formed
by the combination of st. Georges Cross
with the satire of Scotland, and it ap-
pears that this flag was used for ships
only, though it Was not then worn in the
ensign, but was used separately on the
sjsck STAFF on the bowsprit, as
the Union Jack, properly so called,
now is. To clear this point up once
and for all, let US say that it is
held by the best authorities that, in spite
of the usage of the War Ofice to the
contrary, the flag usually called the
Union Jack ought to be spoken Of as the
Union flag, and is only to be described
by it's ordinary title when a small edition
Of it is used as "jack, !" that is, is flown
from the jack staff situated formerly on
the bowsprit and now in the bows of a