The Barre daily times. (Barre, Vt.) 1897-1959, 1912-07-10
our NAvY'S FLAGS
Each Vessel Carries Nearly a Ton
of Bunting.
EMBLEMs OF ALL NATIONS.
some Of the Designs Are Quite Expen-
sive, and, as Rule, tho Smaller the
Nation the More Costly Its Banner.
Uncle Sans Flag Emporium.

Nation tho More Costly Its Banner
Uncle Sans Flag Emporium.
J On every vessel Of the United States
navy, from the monster battleshis t.
the tlniest tug is slowed away neaHy
ton Of flags. which go to make up
the number each vessel is required to
carry for use on different occasions,
About half of this vast pile Of fiags
consists of emblems OF foreign nations.
The making of the flag equipment for
the navy costs more than 100000 a
year. Each ship carries forty-three
foreign flags. which are thirteen feet
wide by twenty-five feet long.
AS ships quota Of flags Is renewed
every three years 1t is no small under
taking to keep them replenished, and to
this end Uncle Sam keeps large flag
making establishment running at full
time the year around at the Brooklyn
navy yard. Employed there are some
hundred skilled needlewomen working.
cutting the different colored buntings
into the required widths and sewing
them together. Making the United
States flag Is not a difficult Job. but
| the making of some of the foreign EN-
blems is quite different matter, and
this Is what most of the work at the
| flag establishment consists of.
/ Take, for example, the flag Of San
Salvador. In the background there Is
| haln
lava and white smoke. On the sides
of the mountain is the green foliage
and shrubery. while directly in the
foreground is a tranquil sea of sap
phire blue. Above the volcano is a
rising sun set In design of overflow
ing cornucopias and diamond from
which the rays are scintillating in ev-
cry direction. To the left and right Of
the belching mountain are draped in
varied designs banners which bear
similarity TO the stars and stripes.
Around the whole concentration is a
wreath Of cactus branches lovingly
embracing the volcano. while at the
top the date OF the country's independ
ence Is inscribed. To make flag of
this description costs the government
$3.50. and when one of these flags is
placed on each ship of the navy every
three years 1t can be readily seen that
the Insignificant little republic to the
south OF us Is really costing the tax
payers Of the country more than has
ever been thought of.
The flag of Costa RIGA. with its seen.
&c beauty of mountains and sea, is sn-
other extravagant emblem, costing
something like $50 to complete. So IL
seems that the smaller the nation The
more costly Its flag.
The largest flag made by the United
States is the Ensign No. ], which meas
ures thirty-six feet long and nineteen
feet wide. The cost of this monster
is $40 or thereabouts.
The presidents flag, while no. The
largest by any means, takes long2st to
make. requiring the labor of one 1e,-
son for month to complete IT. /. IS
of simple design. being a blue field
with the coat of arms of the United
States in the center. The life sized
eagle with outstretebed wings and
other emblems are all hand embroid-
cred and involve the most patient |
work. The embroidery silk used on
this flag, which is fourteen by ten feet.
costs 50 pound.
Uncle Sans flag emporium is in
charge of his fagmaster, whose busi- |
ness, among other things, is to test all
the bunting bought by the establish
ment. One day sample lot of bunt-
ing is soaked and washed In soap and !
fresh water. the next day the same
process is followed with salt water II
Is then exposed to the weather for ten
days. thirty hours of which time must
be in the sunlight. This is termed the
color and fading test. Another test is
always made for the tensile strength.
A strip Of the warp two inches wide
Is placed In a machine and must stand
q pulling strain of sixty-fiye pounds,
while two inches OF the filling must
stand forty-fve pound strain.
All over the floor of the workshop +.
dIt anu
markers by the aid of which the flags
are cut out. Large stripes and GER
tain designs can be more conveniently
stitched this way. The sewing is done
oy women on machines run by cleo
ric motors. 4
1t is an interesting sight to see the
Dig machine at work cutting out stars
or the United States flags. 1t is the !
'nly machine of its kind in this coun-
~. 1t consists of a plunger fitted /:
With steel knives the size of the star 9
wanted. and with single downward
'troke it lays on a table 100 stars.
There are eight different sizes of stars 4
lsed for the different flags, and of :
curse the machine is provided with
he eight different dies for the pur-
lose. Until recent years these stars !:
we're cut out by hand. which was a
ong and tedious task. but now a days 4
work of the machine win supply stars :
or a weeks work Cd iags.-Harper's
Weekly.