Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1917-06-10

u
W fore since its conception. many
4 stanch patriot will fling wide to the
breeze an incorrect flag. while his heart
swells with love Of country, entlreiy
obltyious to the fact that his flag Is
out of proportion regarding the ma
tional standard, and that in loosening
1t to the winds he is observing none Oh
the. regulations which nag etiQuette'
governed by unwritten laws. requires
In other words. he is floating nag
which neither the army nor the navy
would recognize.
since washington unfurled the Amer
lean nag. at Cambridge, M asrshsm
swarthout Of Duchess county. y =.
gave his coat to be cut into stars to. p
used on the improyised nag noisteo
i77S. down to the present day, when
its inspiring colors are carrynS q
message of hope and encouragement 70
the battlehelds of Europe. the 1acts.
accumulated around it's historic folds
nave flled many octave volumes; ano
etin the unwritten laws regulating its
use-and even Its destruction When
worn out-have found small space IN
print outside of the daily newspapers
and in the archives OF the war ana
May Departments.
n
On the I'd of April last. when millions
of -fiages were displayed throughout
the United States in celebration OF the
assembling OF the special session OF
Congress, which was to decide Ameri-
cas- position in the present war; az
least half of the flags used were not
regulation. and were not nahs ace'ro
a. 90 Md
There is q Standardization governing
the proportions OF q nag and there nave
sprung into being certain unwritten
laws regarding the position ana man
Is sag etiquette" There is no law
to enforce these proprieties any more
than there Is q law competing Man
or woman to stand when the Star
to enforce q man to lit his hat to Q
woman or older person when ne meets
them. tet custom and reverence nave
regulated these things ana, as IN so .h
other cases. public opinion Is aooVe INC
The war Department issued an ON
ctal bulletin describing in detail the
exact proportions OF tnr nag NAG Ah 1ssu ia
An order which definitely stated the
proportions of government hags, ana
President Wilson. in June. 1915. issued
an executive order stanaaraizns .ae
which modified to some extent the or
der previously issued by Mr.. Taft.
The fact that there were some sixty
six different sizes OF national nags IN
the government was brought to tho
attention Of the President. He fmme-
diately issued the order which nrst
directs that national flags and union
lacks for all departments OF the gov
erpment, with certain exceptions. shall
conform to the following proportions:
Hoist width Of flag. !: fly lensth) OF
nag. 10; hoist of union; 1-l3; ny 81
Colors carried by troops and camp
colors. among the exceptions, are
directed to be Of sizes prescribed for
the military service. army and navy.
ed to be Limitation in the number of
sizes. The nineteen-foot flag is to be
the standard size; twelve sizes are pro-
vided for. from l.31 feet to 20 feet
hotsts In a flag with twenty-foot
hoist. the largest size recognized by
the government. the flag length would
be .thirty-eight feet The size OF the
union jack should be the size OF the
The position and size OF the stars are
according TO a plan provided by the
Navy and War departments.
On April 4, 1918. Congress enacted q
law providing that the nag shall be
thirteen horizontal stripes. alternately
red and white. and that the union be
twenty stars white in a blue field. and
that one star be added on the admis-
sion of each new state to the Union.
and that such addition shall take place
on the 4th of July next succeeding
such admission" But nothing was
said of the proportions to be observed
in making the flags.
The act of Congress approved by
President Washington on January IS.
1884. was that the flag OF the United
States have fifteen stripes, alternate
red and white, and that the Union be
fifteen stars. white in a blue field. In
this flag the stars were arranged In
three parallel rows of fve each, with
the blue field resting on the fifth red
stripe. This was the national flag for
about twenty three years. It was .in
use during the war of 1872. and in
september, 1914. waving over Fort
Scott Keys Inspiration for Tho Star
spangled Banner" There being no law