Spray courier. (Spray, Or.) 1???-19??, 1915-08-05
GREAT EMPIRES FLAG
COMBINATION REPRESENTED IN
THE GERMAN BANNER.
Council Appointed to Select Suitable
Emblem Had Hard Task--Prus-
Sian Delegates Finally Set
tied the Question.

When the present German empire
was established by uniting the sew
eral German states into one realm.
the question arose as to what flag
the new empire should fly. AS 1t
happened, each state wanted its own
special standard adopted, and no two
OF them were alike, though as gen.
eral thing each was composed of two
colors; thus Prussia had black ana
white, Bavaria blue and white, Sax
ony green and white, and every other
state, no matter how small, possessed
a flag.
When the great German empire be-
came an established fact, naturally
1t was necessary to adopt banner
that would be distinctive, and include
all the states, as every government
Insisted on being represented, A
council was appointed to take charge
Of the whole matters and the diff
Guilty 1t encountered In coming to a
decision will be better appreciated
when 1t is remembered that there
were at least 40 combinations to be
made. II all were to be satisfied with
the arrangement
The larger states, the Kingdoms,
proposed that their flags should be
united and thus form the national
flag, but the delegates from the small
principalities objected SO strongly to
the ignoring of their claims to recog.
milton that this plan was voted down.
Another proposition was that all the
smaller states should be represented
on jack or corner of the flag. and have
a series OF stripes, each repre-
senting the FIVE cities Of larger
states. This was also rejected as too
cumbersome an arrangement. Again
1t was suggested to have each state.
large or small. represented in the
body of the flag, a method Of por-
tioning out the surface In squares,
so much to each state. This in
convenient and inartistic plan was
also rejected.
The Prussian delegates, however,
next prepared a combination of col
ors and, of course, black and white
we're not cast aside. The idea was to
adopt flag composed of black and
white and red. as this latter had
always been considered an imperial
color. The other kingdoms objected
fiercely to the predominance of the
black and white of Prussia over the
blue and white and green and white
Of Bavaria and Saxony. but the Prus-
sian delegates found allies in those
from the smaller states, who, recog-
nizing that there was no hope of
having the flags of their own little
states adopted, felt willing to have
the claims Of the larger overbearing
states ignored, as well as their own.
so they voted with the Prussians.
and the black, white and red was ac-
cepted.
Then again, the smaller kingdoms
Insisted that each should keep its
own flag to fly at the head of its
own particular contingent in the
army. This proposition was voted
down, as it was decided 1t would
give valuable information to an
enemy as to the number of troops.
i great mistake In war times. An
,ther proposition, that of hanging
black, red and white stripes parallel
o the staff, was decided adversely,
IN the ground that the red. white
md blue stripes of the French flag.
being hung in that manner, the two
lags might be confused in the midst
If battle. This ended the question.
md tie Prussian flag, with the ..ad-
lition of the imperial red, was adopt
I'd as the national standard Of the
whole German empire.