Newark evening star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1909-1916, 1911-06-14
sEELY
TALKS Of WHAT
FLAG DAY MEANS
Grand Army's New Patriotic
Instructor Tells the Tale
of Old Glory.

Flag Day--the birthday of old
G~lory'-means a great deal more to nv
of US than we generally imagine"
Uriah Seely, who received his APP
pointment yesterday for his fourth
term as patriotic instructor of the de
partment of New Jersey, @. A. r., from
Department Commander Appieget' toid
an Evening STAR reporter today what
| the flag had meant to his comrades anu
himself. and what the veterans OF the
Civil War wish the flag and Flag lay
to mean to the children OF today
THE origin of the flag in this coun-
try. what 1t was in the early days.
what it was to us in the time OF war.
and what 1t is today-this is what my
comrades and l will talk about today
at the schools.
when we we're BOYS the flag was a
very different thing to what it Is now
There were very few of them. Only
from public buildings did the Stars and
Stripes fly. A great many of our boys
who went to the war had scarcely ever
seen the flag before they saw it on the
battlefield. And yet today we can marc
ly imagine such a thing.
81 have seen Catholic and public
schools in which every pupil had a
flag In his hand. At one parochlal
school where | was speaking-there
was probably about two hundred in 1t
every boy and girl had a flag. and, ris'
ing. recited as with one voice the Get
tysburg address of Lincoln.
THAT is just our work as patriotic
instructors--to instill o and respect
and devotion to the flag and to all that
makes that flag worth honoring and
loving.
1.-The first flag to unfold to the breeze
of the western continent was the CO.
lumbus flag, a white emblem with a
green cross and the letters F. and Y
Ferdinand and Ysabelle-upon it. That
was brought over in 1892. Then Cabot
brought an English flag, and since thai
time many flags have been used, and
many changes have been made.
"Other flags belong to his or her ma
.jesty-the stars and Stripes is IL flag.
Oldest National Emblem.
1.-The other flags are changed to suit
the conditions under which the individ-
ual rulers govern; consequently our
flag today is the Oldest national en-
blem in existence. 1t has remained I'M
changed.
"'Old Glory was born in 1I16. Since
then it has been carried on many a
battlefield. We tell the school children
that when we were boys 1t had tbs
dark stain of slavery upon it. But
try not to create any feeling of preju'
dice or animosity against those who
are under the same flag in the South
today.
''In Georgia the other day one of the
most striking examples of the new
solidity of our flag was made when
Mrs. General Longstreet. the widow Of
one of the greatest Confederate gen
erals. presided over a meeting held by
Union veterans to decorate their COM
rades' graves.
There, with Mrs. Longstreet in the
| chair, an ex-Confederate, one leg shot
away, recited the Gettysburg address.
These lines of Henry Watterson. a
Southerner, in relation to that speech
of Lincoln, were read.
Wherever in the splendid land
south of the Potomac patriots come to-
gether to recount the colossal deeds of
the nations crucial hour, that they
may realize more truly the travail
through which our country struggled
to stronger life, they should read again
and again the classic of all ages and
nail it with our country's flag just be-
meath the c~ross--undying words spoken
by the greatest one who has walked
upon this earth since Christ came to
show This world how good it was to die
for men,
This meeting was a beautiful ex-
preston of this new unity of ours.
No More Bitterness south.
~ have travelled through the South
a great deal, and this last year l have
particularly noticed this spirit in re-
gard to the Civil War. I have spoken
at the old Georgia State Home for Con-
federates and at Bavour, Miss, JEFF
Davis's old home. which has been con-
verified into an old soldiers home. and
the feeling of animosity has subsided
there is no longer bitterness. Enmity
is fast falling asleep. We are one coun
try, under one flag.
1.-THE object of the patriotic in
structors is to visit the schools through
out the country, with a thoroughly
systematized method, and while we
speak, no doubt, of many things the
pupils already know. yet, coming from
veterans. they are more impressive
Mr.. Seely had to hurry away to speak
at the Elmwood School. in East Orange
At 1870 he was due at the North Sew.
enth Street School, and after that he
would attend the Lincoln unwilling at
$3.50.
Captain George oughletree is going
with me. We have patriotic instruc-
tors visiting almost all the schools to-
day. OF course. we put In ais many
tablets of Lineoln's Gettysburg speech
as possible. There is one in the City
Hall, n in most of the municipal
buildings throughout the State. Their
we have small Photographic tablets In
about four-fifths Of the New Jersey
schools. We have put six large bronze
tablets in the principal schools of Mont.
clair and two more are promised
Orange has several large tablets, and
every school in East Orange has
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