Abilene weekly reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1888-1935, 1915-07-01

The people in the New England col
onies were bitterly opposed to the
Cross in the flag. In 1885 some OF tne
troops in Massachusetts declined 70
march under this flag and the military
commissioners were forced to design
other flags for their troops with the
cross left out. The design they adopt
ed has not been preserved. In 1907 a
mint was established In Boston
Money coined in this mint had the
nine tree stamped on one side OF II
The pine tree design was also useo
ON New England flags, certainly oy
17O4 and possibly as early as 1889,
At the outbreak of the Revolution
the American colonies had no nag
common to all of them. In many cases
the merchant marine flag OF England
was used with the pine tree suostl-
tuted for the Union Jack. Massa'
chusetts adopted the green pine tree
on a white field, with the motto: An
Appeal to Heaven" Some Of the south
ern states had the rattlesnake nag
with the motto Don't Tread on M
on a white or yellow field. This nag
had been used by South Carolina as
early as 1764. Benjamin Franklin oe-
Tended the rattlesnake device on the
ground that the rattlesnake is found
only in America, and that serpent en-
blems were considered by ancients
to he symbols of wisdom.
In September, 1775, there was dis
played in the South what was BY
many believed to be the first distinct
ively American flag. 1t was blue with
a white crescent, and matched the
dress of the troops, who wore caps In
scribed, Liberty or Death"
The colonists desired to adopt a
common flag; but they had not ye'
declared independence, and were not
at first seeking independence. They
took the British flag as they knew IT,
and made a new colonial flag by divld'
ing the red field with white stripes
into thirteen alternate red and whlte
stripes. This is known as the Cam
bridge flag, because it was hrst un
furled over Washington's headquar'
ters at Cambridge, Mass, on January
1, 1776. 1t complied with the law OF
1907 by having the Union Jack on H.
it also represented the thirteen colon
les by the thirteen stripes.
AS the colonists gradually became
converted to the idea that independ
ence from the mother country was
necessary, they began to modify the
flag, first by leaving off the Union
Jack and using only the thirteen horl
zontal stripes. The modified nags
we're not always red and white, bu'
regularly consisted of combinations o.
two colors selected from red, white
blue and yellow. The final modifica
ton was the replacement OF the UnloI
Jack by the white stars on Dlu'
field.
The stars are the only distinctive
feature of the American flag. Tn'
charming story which credits Bets!
Ross with making the first nag q
stars and stripes is still accepted D!
historians. When Washington sue
gested the six-pointed star, she demon
strated the ease with which "a nye
pointed star could be made BY fold
ing q piece Of paper and productnI
one with q single clip Of the scissors
Some writer's are of the opinion tina
both stars and stripes in the ma
were derived from the coat OF arms Q
the washington family, but this the
ory Il not generally held
The onlcial adoption Of our first ma
was In l7T7. On June "a Of that yea
the Continental congress passed q
act providing that 'the hag Of N
thirteen united states ha thirtee