Evening star., 1903-07-02
FLAGS BIRTHPLACE
HOUSE TO BE PRESERVED AND
ENCIRcLED BY TREES.
Home Of Betsy Ross to Be Purchased
and Presented to the Fed
eral Government.

In quiet way there has been waged for
years determined war between patriotism
and commercialism; on the one side the
men who push, shove and jostle each other
in the race for wealth, their eyes ever on
the nimble dollar: on the other little
band Of lovers of the nations flag. who
have devoted their lives to the preserva-
ton of small and insignificant-looking
structure that is almost buried from sight
in the heart Of Philadelphia, but in and
around which center the most interesting
scenes in the history of the nation.
1t has shocked countless thousands of
pilgrims to the house where Betsy Ross
made the first flag of the Union to find
that the hallowed house has been SO en-
velcped by business structures and the
of commercialism in the neghborhood that
at times it is difficult to see the modest
little structure through the bewildering
mass of trucks, trolley cars and miscella-
neous vehicles. The first thought to sug-
gest itself has been, What If fire occurred
in one of the buildings adjacent to the
birthplace Of the flag? The answer Is that
the flag house would have about one chance
IN hundred of surviving. That the dam
ger is a most serious one is shown by the
fact that no less than III fires have oc-
curred within a radius of two squares Of
the house in the last four years.
Future Of the Home.
1t will be good news to all patriot pill
grjms who have visited the birthplace Of
the flag, therefore, well as to seventy
millions of Others living beneath the nag,
that the plan to purchase the Betsy Ross
house and hard it over to the federal gov
ernment has rcat he'd point where success
is in sight and only few thousand dollars
remain to be raised to complete the pur-
chase price. With this happy. consumma-
ton so near. the question of how bes: to
preserve the birthplace of the stars and
stripes is being earnestly discussed.
The directors of the American Flag
House and Betsy Ross Memorial Assocl-
alton, who, by their plan OF ten-cent sub
scriptions from the people, practically have
saved the flag house, now desire so to re-
construct and isolate the structure as to
make 1t a thing apart from the desecraung
hand of commercialism, fenced off and
protected from the croaching tide OF bus
mess life by which it has become hemmed
in. Charles H. Weisgerber. the artist, has
made suggestion based upon the belief
that the property owners Will sell the pulld-
ings adjoining the Betsy Ross house. and
that the entire square in which the histori-
cal little structure stands will be set apart
as a park for the flag house environment.
Some favor the transfer OF the building,
brick by brick and stone by stone, to some
point remote from the heart of the busi-
ness district but others are averse to this,
as it would sever the association with
the spot on which the house now stands.
Before laying brush to canvas the artist
carefully studied the history Of the famous
flag house. burrowed into its underground
rooms and examined the b'ickwork- for
traces of change from the original design:
AS result the picture he has prepared
shows his idea of the house Iexactly as it
stood when Betsy Ross exhibited to George
Washington, Robert Morris and George
Ross the design which was afterward
adopted as the first flag of the nation.
Trees of the States.
An interesting feature of the suggestion
by this artist is that contained in circle
of trees to surround the house. 1t is in
tended to have each of the thirteen original
states represented by tree that Is typical
Of the particular section of the country
from which 1t is transplanted A systematic
effort has been made to learn the name Of
the botanical specimen that each state
regards it's emblem. The United States
Department of Agriculture has furnished
a list of the trees that would be appropriate
to plant around the restored flag house as
the emblem of the thirteen original states
Here is the list:
New Hampshire. white birch.
Massachusetts, American elm.
Rhode Island, gray birch (Betula populi-
folia)
Connecticut. shellbark hickory CHicora
ovata).
New York, sugar maple (Acer sacchar-
um).
New Jersey. Jersey Or scrub pine Pinus
virginiana)
Pennsylvania, hemlOck CTSuga canaden-
sis).
Maryland chestnut (Castanea dentata).
Delaware, white oak (Quercps alba. The
Treaty Oak at Brandywine Springs, fam
Gus and still living.
Virginia, Virginia or oldfield pine (Pinus
taeda).
North Carolina, short leaf pine Pinus
echinata).
South Carolina, cypress (Taxodium dis
tichum).
Georgia, pitch or long leaf pine Pinus
paluStriS).
How long it will be before this idea is
realized and the birthplace of the flag re-
stored to it's original form and placed IN a
setting worthy of it's historic importance
rests with the people. The fund to purchase
the little structure and hand 1t over to the
federal government has steadily grown on
lO-cent subscriptions until only $3 800 re-
mains to be raised. In a large safe at the
flag house are the names of all the sub
scribers to the fund for saving the struc-
ture No subscriptions of more than 10 cents
is received from one person, When the
fund is completed, the sheets on which are
inscribed the names of the vast army of
1O-cent subscribers will be bound together
into huge roll of honor and preserved in
the restored flag house.
Foreign Subscribers.
1t is interesting to note that no less than
66O names are enrolled of subscribers liv-
ing in foreign countries OF these France
contributes 100; Greece, so; Republic of CO.
lombia 60; Australia 60; Cuba, go; Italy,
30; Germany. 30: Montreal, 30, Nova
Scotia 80: Ontario, 30; South Africa, 30;
England, 30; Scotland, 30, and China. 30.
The national character of the movement to
save the Betsy Ross house is shown by
seven-eighths of the total subscriptions hav-
ing come from outside of the Quaker city.
If a visitors book had been kept at the
flag house, it is probable also that the great
ma ajority of the hundreds who visit the
been found to come from other cities and
other states. Even the flag with the thtr-
teen stars that floats day and night, in all
kinds of weather, outside the little house
is supplied from New York. An aged pa
triot named Sallie McFadden of New York
furnishes two flags a year to the Betsy
Ross house -on condition that the banner
be never taken down until it is called in
/