| Show OLD GLORYS BIRTHDAY today auoe 14 the american flag celebrates its ito one hundred and six birthday and though it has hag undergone some changes during that long period it to la essentially the maine dame as ae when in 1799 the Cou coutress gress of the thirteen original states adopted it as the first common american enel ensign sn in its original ordinal form the union P held bald as mau many stare in a circle as there were 0 tates states these on a equart blue field the first change was made in may 1790 1796 when vermont and kentucky came into the national sisterhood and a seii senator stor from tf tte a former state succeeded I 1 10 having two stars stare added to the field anil two stripes to we the original thirteen then the flag bag remained unchanged for twenty bears ear although several new states were admitted lu 1816 at the time of the admission of lumana Inu iana lc it was prop proposed oded to reduce the number of stripes back to thirteen and to add a new star for each state that had bad been or should thereafter be ad bitted milted the stare themselves theme elvea to be ar in the form of a star and two ye re irs later the suggestion was adopted save that no mention was made of the arrangement of the stars on the of april 1818 the flag in its ito present form thirteen stripes aud the stare arranged in parallel fine swag was fleet first given to the breeze from the staff surmounting the hall of representatives at present prea ent a aa ought to be generally known the atara number dumber forty four one for each state and the arrangement Is six aix lines with eight in the upper and lower and seven each in the remaining four the and language of the starry emblem la Is variously explained pla pla ined probably the morat i ory story is that given by the new york mail and that the blue field is meant to represent the night of affliction that in 1777 surrounded the thirteen states etalee were typified by the white atara arranged in a circle signifying signify log the endless duration of the bew ow nation while the stripes were chosen out of compliment to new york and the dutch republic and were a compliment to republican principles the number of stripes symbolized the thir thirteen seen states staler the first and thirteenth both red representing new hampshire Hampa hire and georgia respectively the colors of the stripes were oborn I 1 li A order to afford a distinct contrast and were merely a change from the orange white and blue of the eld dutch republic ling flag The history of the subject only requires the aurther statement that the first to make public use ot of we the flog flag and jo to fly ay it in the eyes of t the world was waa paul jones the naval berol berdj who ran it up to the masthead of his hie staunch brig ranger banger at portsmouth and put to ma at bouce to prove hi self u k terror to english the flag was wag first aret raised on land during the campaign resulting ng in the capture of philadelphia by howe today it flies files bravely in every mft and to is known and respected in every clime a symbol to the cozia or we the t of liberty a shield to who were bru brn b rn under or who have adopted lt it a terror to tyrants over mind or ma mankind Aind it floate peacefully from the tops of countless school houses in our laud land and serves gervea as aa an early and constant lemon in pat to the american youth may it forever wave as aa gb the emblem and gua of the rights of man the pledge aej anchor of the freedom of the human soul I 1 |
