The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1914-08-10
WARSHIP BUNTING;
1t Takes a Lot of Flags to Fit
Out Uncle Sans Navy.
USE CoL0RS OF ALL NATIONS.

rive ffunored Ensi9nS or Various
Kinds and Sizes--Severe Tests to
Which the Material Is Subjected.
Something like $4,000 year Is re-
quired to keep Uncle Sans many naval
vessels properly equipped with flags.
In addition most every other depart
ment Of the government appropriates
various sums for flags for buildings
and ships under its control. In all,
1t is safe to say the United States
spends S125.000 year for flags.
The largest factory belongs to the
navy. In large room, called the flag
loft" at Brooklyn navy yard half a
hundred skilled needlewomen and quite
a few men are kept constantly at work
Officially it is the naval flag making es-
adjustment.
Thousands of fings are required to
supply the hundreds of vessels. from
battleships to launches. On entering
the flag loft the visitors first impress
sion is a blaze of color. Rolls OF bright
bunting are heaped everywhere. Long
lines of electrically driven sewing ma
chimes, with women operators. are reel.
ing Off and putting the finishing touches
TO American and foreign ensigns of
many different hues and sizes. In addi-
ton to our own flag. the navy has to
keep q supply of every other nation in
the world which has coast line.
scout In the navy requires about 900
flags to outfit It's flag locker properly.
Heaped up. they make pile shoulder
high and twenty or twenty-five feet
long. The foreign flags. incased in can
vas bags. bear the name of the coun-
try stenciled on the end. The remain
der, including flags for ordinary use.
signaling. etc. are wrapped without
bags and numbered at the end. Each
flag has its separate place in the flag
locker. A quartermaster would be re-
buked severely If one became mis-
placed. Each ship follows the same or
der in this. so that any one familiar
with the flag locker on one ship knows
the location Of every flag on any ship.
Uncle Sam pays about $500 TO outfit
ench ship in the service. This mutt
piled by the number of ships viii show
that flags are not an inconsequential
item OF naval expense The foreign
ensigns are all made twenty-five feet
long and thirteen feet wide. They are
used whenever an American warship
enters port OF another nation. The
flag of the visited nation is hoisted ut
the top OF the foremost while the
American ship salutes. Ii is also hoist
ed when returning salutes of foreign
vessels In American ports.
The most snowy and expensive flags
although the United States has two
flags that are close rivals, the fiags of
the president and vice president They
require the longest time to make of
any flags. II takes one woman month
to finish each one. The presidents
flag is blue ground with the coat OF
arms of the United States IN the cen
ter. The life sized eagle with out
stretched wings and other emblems are
all hand embroidered in silk. The silk
used costs 50 a pound. The vice presi-
dents flag is the coat OF arms on
field of white. Both flags are mnde In
two sizes. 10 by IA feet and 3 by 5 feet.
The larger is used ON ships and the
smaller on launches and similar craft
The largest flag made is the United
States ensign No !. which is SO by 10
feet. IL costs $40.
The bunting used In dag making Is
put TO severe tests before the fing maxi
ers use IL One day sample bundle is
washed in soap and water. The next
day the same process Is followed with
salt water. 1t Is then exposed TO the
weather for ten days. thirty hours OF
which must be In the bright sun. II II
doesn't fade in that test the govern.
ment experts pass H. Then two inches
wide of the warp Is subject to pull
ing strain of sixty-nve pounds Even
with all those precautions n ship is al
lowed new set of flags every three
years. while the signal flags and ship
and boat ensigns in frequent use must
be replaced every few weeks.
One dag or pennant. rather. most
used by the navy and least known TO
the public is the commission pennant.
IL Is hoisted TO the masthead OF every
naval vessel when 1t goes into commits
sion and Is never removed. II Is "A
long, narrow streamer. blue at the
staff. with thirteen stars In the field.
arranged in one line. and the dag d.
vided into two stripes. red and white.
the red at the top. When ships long
on foreign stations leave for home n
new commission pennant Is always
hoisted. Usually It Is one made and
paid for by the crew. In some cases
those "homewar1 Founders" stretch
out 900 feet and. made Of silk. cost
pretty penny.
The thousands OF white stars used In
our own and many other ensigns are
made by an electrically driven ma
chine which cuts ihrm ~ nsiy or
hundred lots Eight different sizes Of
stars are used.-Kansas City Star.
cunerfuifv