The Richmond Virginian. (Richmond, Va.) 1910-1920, 1914-05-03

Before the Declaration Of Tndepend-
enee the flags of those colonies which
now form the United States Of Amer
lea. were very various. In the early
days Of New England 'he Puritans OBJ
5ected to tho res cross Of st. George,
not from any disioyalty 10 the mother
country, bat from a conscientious oh
lection TO what they deemed an ido
atrous symbol By the year 1900
most OF the colonies had devised
badges 70 distinguish their vessels
from those Of England and Of each
other In the early stages Of the revo~
luton each State adopted a flag ~
its own; thus. that Of Massachusetts
bore n pine tree. South Carolina dis
played a rattlesnake; New York had
white flag with black beaver. ana
Rhode Island, white Tag WITH
bine anchor upon H.
Delaware has never had leeall"
established State flag. The emtlaln1-
ment on the reginental cetors OF the
state apst--As.a -haen usually -the
arms Of the State. but with such 9TH
er devices as those preparing the flags
choose to select.
Even after the Declaration OF INDIE
pcndenCe and the Introduction or the
Stars and Stripes the latter under
went many changes in the manner OF
their ARRANGEMENT before taking the
position at present established. In
1776 committee was appointed to
consider The question of single nag
for the thirteen States 1t recon-
mended that the union ha retained IN
the upper corner next TO the star, the
remainder Of the nag to be Of thir-
teen horizontally disposed stripes. nj
ternately red and white.
This flag FuTiDuSlV enough. was
precisely the Same as the old Hon
Durable East India company.
ON the 14th Of June. 1777. congress
resolved THAT the flag of the United
States be thirteen stripes, alternate
red and white that the Union be thlr-
teen stars. white in ii blue field. repre-
senting a new constellation, This
| was the origin of the nat9nal flag,
but al first. as the number Of tho
stripes were unequal. the flag very
often varied. sometimes having seven
/ white and six red stripes, and mt 9TH
/ er times seven red and six white, and
| il was not for Home considerable time
| that IL was authoritatixely laid down
/ that the latter arrangement was the
| one to be adopted. 1t had also been
! held that the Stars aud Stripes OF tha
! American national flag, as we'll as the
eagle, were suggested by the crest and
+ arms of the Washington family. The
latter supposition il absurd. for the
Washington crest was raven.
The Washington arms were a white
shield. having two horizontal red bars.
and above these a. row of three red
stars, This might, by stretch OF
imagination, be supposed to have in
spired the original idea Of the flag,
/ which vas that each State in the
Union should be represented in the
national flag by star and stripe.
Naturally, other States coming into
the Union expected the same privi-
! leges. After Vermont, in 1891, and
Kentucky. in 1872, had entered the
Union, the Stars and Stripes changed
IN number from thirteen to fifteen
Later on other States joined. and soon
4 the flag came TO consist Of twenty
stars and stripes. 1t was, however,
Z found Questionable to he constantly
altering the national flag, and in the
wear 1878 II was determined to go
back 70 the original thirteen stripes
but To place star for each State In
the blue canton in the top corner al
the flag next 10 tho staff Thus the
stars always show the exact number
Of states that are in the union, while
tho stripes denote the original mum
her of the States that formed the
Union.
A little girl. seeing Old Glory haul
ed up the staff for the first time. said
10 her father "Oh. papa. God made
that flag. See the stars" Every
loyal heart echoes the wisdom anG
beauty Of the childish exclamation
No other flag carries such n conbi-
nation. the bfue OF truth. star~ bestud-
ded as all truth IS; the white. symho
Of that purity which nations as wei
as individuals must possess II they
would become od-directed leaders
Of conscience. az ideas. of freedom,
the red of sunset skies. as well as OF
the carnage of battlefelds, telling q
the quiet Of victory through strife and
4 tribuatiur,
Like Topsv. this nag "srowed
Flying as loyal English colonies the
colors of the mother-land, We retain
ed even after the beginning Of the
Revolution, the union" with Its tive
| crosses of St George and ST. Andrew
because we asked only for the rights
of colonists, not for separation. The
stripes were first used by Philadel'
phia light horse troop in t7T4, and
congress in 1775, on tho recommends
ton of Franklin. Lynch and, Harrison
adopted them. retaining the British
union" and this flag was hoisted for
the first time on the I'd. Of July, l776
over the camp at Cambridge. But
later when independence proclaimed
was becoming, through struggle, 8
reality, the stars superseded the Brit
ish crosses. and on June Ia, ltti
congress. sitting in Philadelphia
enacted that the flag of the thirteef
States he thirteen stripes, alternate
red and white. that the union be
thirteen stars, white in blue field
representing a new constellation"
At 23g Arch street, Philadelphia
Betsy Ross made the model flag from
"A rough draft. on which General
+, Washington with n pencil substituted
a FIVE pointed star for the one IN the
drawing with six points. and at the
battle OF Brandywine, September !
1777. II was raised as the national en-
sign and received its baptism Of blood
4 There II 600 men. for the sake OF lib.
erty and justice, opposed $4,000, and
though compelled TO fall back while
the blood of 1000 patriots dyed the
soil. they carried back their new flag
with a sagacity and promptness which
prevented defeat Though four more
wears II waved over fields of triumph
and fields Of disaster, but carried FOR
ward by those who knew no Vanquish-
ing It at last reached Yorktown. &c
! wave triumphantly over free land.