The National tribune., 1906-06-21
FLAG DAY.
The Day Generally Observed All Over
the Country-Ol1 GIory's Birthday Has
Firm Hold on the Peoples Imagina-
tfOn-WashfnGtcn Dressed I'm Flags.


the Country-Oli GIory's Birthday Has
Ffrm Hold on the Peoples Imagina-
tion-WnshfnGtcn Dressed I'm Flags.
All the indications are that Flag Day
has taken a tenacious hold on the hearts
of the people, and the general observ-
ance of the day in nearly all sections
proves that the love for Old Glory deep
ems with the years.
The day in Washington was generally
observed. There was ripple of red,
white and blue wherever you looked on
| the streets and avenues, some of the
business houses closed at l o'clock, and
the public schools all held patriotic ex-
e-cises.
TIE little children in their pretty
Summer clothes were beautiful to look
upon, and their recitations and singing
showed that they had been carefully
trained. The speakers who went before
them had to be pretty careful of their
statements of history, and found that it
was not necessary to go so very much
| MO detail about some features of the
| Flag. for the kidlets knew the story of
Belsey and how she made the Flag just
about as well as anybody who came be-
fore them to tell about it. The Depart
ment of Potomac, G. A. r., detailed 125
members of the Grand Army of the Re-
puoIic to speak in the various public
schools. and several members of the
| Woman's Relief Corps. notably Mrs.
Julia Mason Layton, of o. p. Morton
| Corps, Past Senior Vice President of the
! Department.; Mrs Ida j. Hart, of
Burnside Corps, Past Department Presi-
dent, Mrs. Mamie G.. Davis, Chairman
| of the Department Executive Board,
and Mrs. Isabel Worrell Ball, of Lin
coin Corps, Special National Press Cor
respondent, were also detailed for this
patriotic work.
The Washington Evening Star has
| the following to say of the inception Of
| The Flag Day observance in the Distric.
of Columbia:
THE recurrence of Flag Day and
| the increasing interest in its observance
| in Washington, and throughout the
country, has led to many inquiries DIS TO
when /: was first observed b. the pubic
schools in the District. Reference t1
the files of The Star shows that the first
observance of the day in Washington
was June IA, 1895. Then Secretary of
tie department of Potomac, w. X. c.,
Mrs. Isabel WorreIl Ball, as the minutes
of that organization show, personally
visited the Superintendent of Public
Schools and asked that the pupils OBJ
serve the day and that flags be dis
! played. A visit to the larger business
| houses was also made to request the dis
play of flags on that day. The files of
The Star also show that Flag Day SER
vices were held in the First Presbyterian
Church on the night of the 14th of June,
1895, and a program of speaking and
music was presented. Gen. ]. c. Breck-
inridge, then Inspector-G General of the
Army, presided over the meeting, and
| ii Is recalled by some who were there
| that he then expressed wonder that the
day had not been before observed, and
! the hope that il would come to be one
sln.. Inrrr tl.x
F. T. Howe was also one of the speakers.
Mrs Ball arranged all the exercises and
| herself gave an address on the Flag.
Another speaker was Col. John McElroy.
A prominent member of the Woman s
Relief Corps says the Woman's Relief
| Corps stood alone in its work for the OBJ
servance of Flag Day for nearly five
years, but was always able to fill one of
| the largest churches in the city for Flag
services, and had On various occasions
the assistance of the Marine Band for
| the music"
This excellent work of the Woman's
Relief Corps has been kept up, and now
each of the Corps holds Flag Day exer-
cises, so that the whole city gets til.
benefit of the example thus set. The
| good work set afoot by Mrs. Ball under
supreme difficulties has gone right on,
and now request to the schools ana
the citizens to observe the day with
proper exercises and by the flingine tc
the breeze of Old Glory IS not necessary
II IS really interesting to note, however,
how many people and how many p:.-
triotic societies are trying to "swipe"
the honor of instituting the observance
Iof the day. The Grand Army of the Re-
public would like to claim ii, but ii Is
Is years late. To the Woman's Relief
Corps belongs the honor, and the world
may as well accept the verdict. Back
of the Woman's Relief Corps. it is true,
was that sterling patriot Col Geo. w.
Balch, and then Capt. Wallace Foster,
but the work came from their hands
directly to the Relief Corps and the
great patriotic movement has swept over
the country as the result of their direct
efforts.
, Among the speakers in the schools of
Z the city were Department Commander
!; Entrikin. Capt. Hyland c. Kirke. DIR.
Thos. Calver, Medical Director; Capt. ].
VI. Edgar. Commander of the Old Guard
Col b. II. Warner, who will be remem-
bered as the Chairman of the National
E.ncampment Committee of 1902, and
Col. John McElroy, Past National Senior
Vice Commander-in-Chief
Among the prominent Corps enter
tainments was that of George II
Thomas Corps. Mrs. Kaufman Presi-
5 dent. The ladies prominently associa. :
ed with her in the preparations for the
day were Mrs. Agnes Keeler, Mrs. En-,
ma C. Littlejohn, Mrs. Elizabeth Larg-
: ham, and Congressman Cole, of Ioyl.
: delivered the address.
Lincoln Corps, Mrs. Olive Raymond.
1 Patriotic Instructor, held delightful ex-
; ercises in one of the large churches. and
E o. p. Morton and Charles Sumner Corps.
the two oldest Corps in the city, held
joint exercises. The Patriotic Instruc-
5 tors of these two Corps are Mrs. Julia
r Collier, OF Morton Corps, and Mrs. Fran.
els Frelinghuysen, of Sumner Corps.
Mrs. Annie E. Cromwell is President of
: Morton Corps and Mrs. Julia West Ham,
ilton is President OF Sumner Corps.
both ladies serving their second terms.
Inc joint exercises of these two colore j
Corps were held in one of the largest
: churches In the city and they bilIowed