Evening star., 1901-06-14
Early Colonial Banners Showed
Symptoms of Independence.
THE ONE ADOPTEDBY MASSACHUSETTS
Design of the National Emblem
Finally Chosen Slowly Grew.
THE PART OF BETSY ROSS
BY the rude bridge that arched the food,
,I,,l.ir mill Lra.az, IN q r. -.

And fred the shot heard round the world
The flag referred to in these words of
Emerson, inscribed upon the statue of the
n1inute-man at Concord bridge, was not
the stars and stripes. 1t was two years
afterward. June Il. 1777, that Betsy Ross.
the Philadelphia mlliner, made. not de-
vised, the first flag of our country, the
star spangled banner.
Trumbull. the celebrated painter, of the
historical paintings in the rotunla of the
Capitol, in the picture of Washington cross
ing the Delaware, has represented the rev.
olutionary commander as bearing the stars
and stripes, taking a poets license, per-
haps, and this inaccurate historical tab
leau embellishes The fifty-dollar national
bank notes.
The older flags Of different nations al
most invariably bore some religious device.
They had come down from the days of the
crusades when most wars were religious
and church and state were united.
From the topmast of the Mayfower
foated the banner Of st. George, the kings
colors at that time having been given the
English king by the pope of Rome st.
Georges banner was & red cross on field
of white, the blood-stained cross of Christ
and the purity of mis- life being thus SYM
bolZed. Many would think the flags used
by the American colonies prior to the sepa-
ration from England, would have been
those OF. the king, but such was not inva-
riably the case.
FIRST Trial for Defncing Il Flag.
Only fourteen years after the landing at
Plymouth and more than 14o years before
the first star spangled banner was made,
one Endicott of Salem, Mass, was tried
and convicted of defacing and mutilating
the kings flag, not because of disloyalty
to the king, but because the flag had come
"a nor nf iC SQi1 hp
agitation at Salem was initiated by Roger
Williams and his followers, who loudly
proclaimed No popery. The ministers
of the Massachusetts bay colony held meet
ings and debated the question as to whether
lit it was lawful to carry cross on the
flag"
1t soon became evident that the coming
American flag would not bear q religious
device. because the different religious sects
could not agree upon one and, further, for
the reason that the indications were that
church and state would not be united,
since the Puritans had declared that they
came to America to seek "a country with
out king and church without a bishop"
Massachusetts Colony Flag.
The Massachusetts, colony asked that
they be permitted to put red roses on the
flag instead OF the cross. Not much atten-
ton having been paid to this by the mother
country, the coIonists devised a ffag of
their own-a green pine tree on field of
white. Pines were then abundant in Mas
sachusetts, and Maine the pine-tree state,
was then a part Of that domain. This was
the principal colony flag, though there
were many others, and the pine-tree flag
was probably the one used at Lexington
and Concord yet there is some controversy
as to just which colony flag waved on.
those memorable occasions.
There was the fattlesnaie flag, having
thereon the picture of the snake in a men7
aciug attitude, underneath which were
these significant words: Don't tread on
me- Another flag was called "An appeal
to Cod" having thereon these words: ''Qui
transtulet sustinet" GOOD, Whs transports
ed it hither, will sustain us).' This de-
parture from the authorized English flags
early evinced a feeling Of indep. .udence.
Liberty poles were common throughout
the colonies, and very aged people today
usually cau a flagstaff q liberty pole. the
Old colonial name. Upon Lexington com
mon, where the first revolutionary blood
was spilled today stands p very tall lib
erty pole, upon which IS inscribed, THE
! birthpiace of American liberty"