Chapter I: Front Matter

THE LITTLE BOOK
OF THE FLAG

BY
EVA MARCH TAPPAN

HOUGHTON MIFFLIN COMPANY

BOSTON NEW YORK CHICAGO DALLAS
SAN FRANCISCO

The Riverside Press Cambridge

COPYRIGHT, 1917, BY EVA MARCH TAPPAN
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

The Riverside Press
CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS
PRINTED IN THE U. S. A.

CONTENTS

I. THE FLAGS THAT BROUGHT THE COLONISTS 1

Flags under which the early colonists sailed--The English
"ancient flag"--The "meteor flag," "Union Jack," or "King's
Flag"--Endicott cuts the cross from the English flag--The
militia object to the cross on the flag--A flagless fort--Dr.
Cotton's decision.

II. THE PINE-TREE FLAG AND OTHERS 8

Flags common among the colonists--The New England
Alliance--The pine-tree flag and coins--Flags of the
militia--The red coat flag.

III. LIBERTY AND LIBERTY POLES 14

The demand for liberty--Opposition to the Stamp Act--Oliver
hanged in effigy--The Liberty Tree in Boston--The liberty
pole in New York--The Albany plan--The snake design.

IV. THE LAND OF MANY FLAGS 20

The Bedford flag--Flags at the beginning of the
Revolution--Sergeant Jasper saves the flag--The
rattlesnake on the flag.

V. WHEN WASHINGTON WENT TO CAMBRIDGE 27

The Philadelphia Light Horse Troop--The army at
Cambridge--The backwoodsmen--Indians offer their
services--General Putnam unfurls a scarlet flag--The
Liberty Tree.

VI. THE "GRAND UNION FLAG" 32

The "Grand Union Flag"--Possible sources of the design--First
raised in Somerville--Flags on sea and land--Flag hoisted over
the Alfred by John Paul Jones--Franklin's letters of marque.

VII. THE FIRST UNITED STATES FLAG 39

The flag of the United States as decreed by Congress--The
Betsy Ross flag--Significance of the Colors--Captain Jones
put in command of the Ranger--The "quilting party"--The
Drake strikes her colors to the Ranger--The United States
flag is saluted by the French--The flag goes down with the
Bon Homme Richard.

VIII. FLAGS ONE WOULD HAVE LIKED TO SEE 48

The Fort Stanwix flag--Pulaski's banner--The first Fourth
of July celebration--General use of "thirteen"--Copley's
delay to paint in the flag--A Nantucket skipper carries the
flag to London--The last battle of the Revolution--The New
Haven peace rejoicing.

IX. THE FLAG OF FIFTEEN STRIPES AND FIFTEEN STARS 56

The flag of fifteen stripes and fifteen stars decreed by
Congress--Worn by "Old Ironsides"--Leads against
Tripoli--Seen at Constantinople--Among the Indians of the
Louisiana Territory--"The Star-Spangled Banner"--Marking
the birthplace of Washington.

X. THE STAR-SPANGLED BANNER 63

Congress decrees the present flag--No law for the
arrangement of the stars--The manufacture of bunting--Flags
for the navy--Flags for the War Department--"Old Glory."

XI. THE FLAG IN WAR 70

The flag at Chapultepec--The surrender of Fort Sumter--The
flag raised again at Fort Sumter--The Arizona flag of the
Rough Riders.

XII. THE FLAG IN PEACE 77

Perry opens Japan to the world--Raising the flag over the
legation in Sweden--Hauling down the flag in Cuba--The flag
at the North Pole--The flag on Westminster Palace.

XIII. HOW TO BEHAVE TOWARD THE FLAG 85

FLAG ANNIVERSARIES 90

SELECTIONS
The Star-Spangled Banner _Francis Scott Key_ 93
The Flag in the Darkness _Benjamin Harrison_ 95
A Song for Flag Day _Wilbur D. Nesbit_ 96
The Flag goes by _Henry Holcomb Bennett_ 98
What the Flag stands for _Henry Cabot Lodge_ 100
Union and Liberty _Oliver Wendell Holmes_ 101
Your Country and your Flag _Edward Everett Hale_ 103
The Home Flag _Henry Wadsworth Longfellow_ 104
Old Flag _Hubbard Parker_ 105
Britannia to Columbia _Alfred Austin_ 107
Makers of the Flag _Franklin K. Lane_ 109
Our Flag _Margaret Sangster_ 112
Our History and our Flag _William Backus Guitteau_ 113
The American Flag _Joseph Rodman Drake_ 115
The Flag of our Country _Robert C. Winthrop_ 116
America _Samuel Francis Smith_ 117

INDEX 119

THE LITTLE BOOK OF THE FLAG