The Colorado statesman., 1917-06-30
COLORS OF MOST
FLAGS ARE same
Uncle Sam Has No Monopoly on
the Use of the Red, White
and Blue.
each HUE HAS SIGNIFICANCE
American Standard Said to Be an Ev-
oIution and Combination of De-
signs Long Antedatine the Rev.
oIutionary Period.

The principal colors in the flags of
all nations today are red, white and
blue in diverse combinations. Here
and there green is shown, but red,
white and blue are the colors of nine
teen out of twenty-five national flags
and are the colors of practically all
the flags of the nations of Europe.
The Significance of national colors
goes back to the days of heraldry and
many of the devices displayed on flags
are either heraldic designs or have
been derived from such designs. Red
stands for courage and military forti-
tude, blue symbolizes loyalty and
truth and white stands for peace and
sincerity. In the italian, Irish, Bra
lillian and Mexican flags green is one
of the colors, and in heraldry this col.
or signified hope and JOY. Black,
which appears in the German flag In
combination with red and white
stands for constancy.
Standard Of Minute Men.
A historian has written that the
farmers in the battle of Lexington
carried the "cornet' or standard of
the Three County troop. That banner
was devised for troop of cavalry
raised in the counties of Essex, Suf.
folk and Middlesex, Massachusetts. in
1869. The office of color bearer of this
troop became an Inheritance in the
Page family of the Bay colony. The
flag was carried in King Philips war
in 1876. When the Minute Men were
organized, Nathaniel Page, III of Bed
ford, Mass, took the old flag out for
use at drill. When the midnight alarm
was sent out Captain Page snatched
up the old flag and carried 1t to Con
cord, where at waved above the smoke
of that battle"
This flag is preserved in the public
library at Bedford, Mass. 1t is of ma
room or crimson damask silk, and on
1t is an outstretched arm with an up
lifted sword in the hand. The arm
hand and sword are worked in silver.
On the flag are three circular figures,
which 1t is thought were put there to
represent cannon balls. The words
"vince ct Moriture" Conquer or Die)
are on a gold scroll.
The design of the American flag
may be said to be an evolution and
combination of colors and designs long
antedating the American vRevolution.
The flags that were carried by mill.
tary organizations in the colonies be-
fore the outbreak of the Revolution
were not British flags, but organiza.
tion flags.
Inspired by Union Jack.
The British ensign or Union Jach
was the inspiration of the American
flag. The Union Jack is a combina.
ton of the English red cross of st.
George on a white field, the Scotch
white cross of st. Andrew on a blue
field and the Irish red cross of st. Pat
rick. The combination of the English
and Scotch flags was agreed on In
1906, soon after the union of England
and Scotland under James l.
The word "Jack," as applied to the
British flag is supposed to be a corrup.
tion of "Jack," which was the common
abbreviation of "Jacobus," the Latin
for James. The Introduction onto the
flag of the cross of st. Patrick came
later. England's Union Jack traces
its origin to those remote times when
knights rode in the lists and the red
cross of st. George on its white field
goes back to the Crusades and the
Hundred Years war with France-a
war that calls to mind such stirring
names as Crecy, Agincourt and Poi.
tiers.
The American flag carried in the
battle of Bunker Hill had on it the
cross of st. George and a pine tree
the symbol of Massachusetts. 1t is
written by historians of the Ameri-
can flag that when the first flag to
represent the united colonies was de-
vised, as many horizontal stripes of
red and white We're introduced as
there We're colonies, and as at that date
the colonies were not independent, but
merely in revolt of the denial by the
English government of "their rights
as Englishmen," the ensign of Eng
land, the superiInposed crosses of st.
George, st. Andrew and st. Patrick,
was retained by the Americans in the
nDnpr staff pnrnar Of tho Hon