The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-08-13

the corners and the remaining nine stars
in the form of a circle, with what ap-
pears to be the letter "I'' in the center.
This flag had only 10 stars and 10 stripes,
but there is nothing to show whether or
not it antedated the act of 1894. Prob
ably they did then what we do today,
continue the use of flag even though
it may not have the full complement of
stars.
The original johnson flag is in the
rooms of the Kentucky State Historical
society at Frankfort.
The navy department has always made
it's own flags, and as early as 1878 the
naval regulations as to design and pro-
portion were explicit, and with the ad-
| mission of each new state minute instruc-
tons were issued as to the design of our
naval flags The custom in our army,
! however, has been to let out the making
of it's flags by contract, and consequently
| there was always lack of uniformity.
| There were so many different de-
signs in use in 1887 that the govern
ment of Holland asked its representa-
| tive in this country to report just what
our flag was. Similar requests were
made by other countries, and in 1851
J the commanding general of our army
asked one of his aids, afterward Gen.
Schuyler Hamilton, to investigate the
matter and write a history of our flag.
| This was done, the work being pub
| lished in 1852, and, so far as I know.
| it Is the first careful study Of the sub
| ject.
Apparently about 1S41. when our in
fantry was first given the right to
carry the stars and stripes, there was
desire on the part of some to preserve
| of the new flag.
| One of these, planted by Gen. John c.
| Fremont in 1S41-1S42 on the Rocky
mountains, has an eagle, with bunch
\ of arrows in one claw and the Indian
pipe of peace in the other, with IL
stars above and like number below.
| This is preserved in the Southwest Mu-
scum at Los Angeles, Cal.
| During our Mexican war the Fourth
Indiana volunteers carried flag hav-
| ing in the union an eagle standing on
| a segment of the globe, with bundle
| of arrows in one claw, as though in
tending to conquer the earth. This
has been preserved and is now in the
historical section of the Smithsonian
institute at Washington.
| Another flag that has just come to
light, though in badly dilapidated
condition. is preserved by the Ken
lucky State Historical society at
Frankfort. Ky. 1t was carried by the
Second Kentucky volunteer infantry
during the Mexican war The frag-
ments show that this flag also had an
eagle in the canton and that the stars
were eight-pointed.
! Another flag of somewhat similar
design and supposed to have been car
ried by one of the regiments during
our Civil war is preserved at the
United States Military academy at
West Point. N. Y.
| 1t is probable that each of these
flags with an eagle in the union was
purely personal and not furnished by
the war department.
! ODD ARR ANGEMENT OF STARS
| On July a, 1857. a resident Of Jersey
City was interested in observing the
variations in design of the American
flags then on display. He noted that
though the stripes were generally red
and white sometimes they were white
and red, and that the stars on differ
emit flags were arranged in nine diff
ferent methods. Quite number OF
such flags that have seen actual use
are preserved in the Ordnance museum
at the United States Military academy
at West Point, N. Y. They show wide
arrangement of the stars.
In fact 1t was not until quite re-
Gently that the different departments