THE FLAG OF FIFTEEN STRIPES AND FIFTEEN STARS
The worthy fathers of our country were long-sighted men. In many
respects they peered far into the future and they laid well the
foundations for a great republic. One thing, however, they forgot;
when they chose a design for a flag with thirteen stripes and a circle
of thirteen stars, they did not realize that the number of States
would probably increase, and that these States would wish to be
represented on the flag. In 1791 Vermont was admitted as a State, and
in 1792 Kentucky also came into the Union. In 1794 the Senate passed a
bill increasing to fifteen the number of both stripes and stars. This
bill was sent to the House, and then came exciting times. Some members
thought it of great importance not to offend new States by giving them
no recognition on the flag. Others called it dishonorable to waste
time over what one man called "a consummate piece of frivolity," when
matters "of infinitely greater consequence" ought to be discussed.
Another declared that the Senate sent the bill for the want of
something better to do. Yet another honorable member did not think it
worth while either to adopt or reject the proposed law, but supposed
"the shortest way to get rid of it was to agree to it." Whether to
"get rid of it" or not, the bill was passed, and went into effect May
1, 1795.
This flag of fifteen stripes and fifteen stars was the one worn by the
frigate Constitution, "Old Ironsides." When, in 1830, it was reported
that this vessel, with its magnificent record, was to be broken up,
Holmes wrote his stirring poem, "Old Ironsides," which ends:--
"Oh, better that her shattered hulk
Should sink beneath the wave;
Her thunders shook the mighty deep,
And there should be her grave;
Nail to the mast her holy flag,
Set every threadbare sail,
And give her to the god of storms,
The lightning and the gale!"
It was this flag under which we went forth to three wars, each one
fought to uphold the rights of American citizens. The first was with
France, the second with Tripoli, and the third with Great Britain. It
had long been the custom for nations using the Mediterranean Sea to pay
tribute to the pirates of Tripoli. In 1800 Captain Bainbridge carried
the annual tribute to Algiers. It seemed that the Dey wished to send an
ambassador to Constantinople, and under threat of capture Captain
Bainbridge was ordered to carry him there. The captain obeyed, but very
unwillingly. When the new flag appeared at Constantinople, it was
reported to the Sultan that a ship from the United States of America was
in the harbor. "What's that?" he demanded. "I never heard of that
nation." "They live in the New World which Columbus discovered," was the
reply. The Sultan had heard of Columbus, and he sent to the frigate a
bouquet of flowers in welcome, and a lamp in token of friendship.
The Dey of Algiers became dissatisfied with the tribute paid by America,
and declared haughtily that if he did not receive from our country a
handsome present within six months, he should declare war. This he did,
but to his great surprise a small American fleet, under the fifteen
stars and stripes, sailed up to his city and began to bombard it. It was
not long before he became the very picture of meekness. He freed all his
American captives, paid well for all the property that he had destroyed,
and the Mediterranean Sea became safe for commerce.
In 1803 the United States purchased from France the immense Louisiana
Territory. The French flag was hauled down and the flag of the United
States was raised in token of the change of ownership. This country
had first been in the hands of Spain, and the Spaniards had presented
flags to various Indians. When Lieutenant Z. M. Pike made a journey of
exploration in the new territory, he came to an Indian village where
there was quite a display of Spanish banners. The Lieutenant made a
little speech to the Indians, and said among other things that the
Spanish flag at the chief's door ought to be given up to him and the
flag of the United States put in its place. The Indians listened, but
made no reply. Lieutenant Pike spoke again to the same effect. "Your
nation cannot have two fathers," he said. "You must be the children of
the Spaniards or else of the Americans." The red men sat in silence
awhile, then an old man arose, walked slowly to the door, took the
Spanish flag down, and put the American in its place. Then he gave the
flag of Spain to his followers, bidding them, "Never hoist this
again--while the Americans are here." Surely, the old chief must have
been akin to Dr. John Cotton of Colonial fame. This scene occurred in
what is now Kansas, and is thought to have been the first raising of
the United States flag in that State.
The banner of fifteen stripes and fifteen stars has a proud record,
for this was the flag that inspired Francis Scott Key to write "The
Star-Spangled Banner." Every one knows the story of the poem, how the
author and an agent for the exchange of prisoners went on board a
British vessel in 1814 to try to secure the release of a physician who
had been captured. The English admiral granted their request, but as
he was about to attack Fort McHenry, he told them that they would not
be permitted to return at once, but must remain on their own vessel,
with a British guard, until the fort was reduced. If this order had
been carried out, they would have been on board to-day, for the fort
never was reduced. All day the Americans could see the Stars and
Stripes flying over its ramparts, in spite of attacks by sea and by
land. Night came, and it was only by "the rockets' red glare, the
bombs bursting in air," that they knew whether the fort yet stood. At
length the firing ceased, and all was darkness. They could do nothing
but wait for the first rays of morning in the hope that "by the dawn's
early light" they could catch a glimpse of the flag and know that the
fort had not yielded, that "our flag was still there," and that the
British were retreating. Then it was that Key wrote, on the back of an
old envelope, "The Star-Spangled Banner," and put into it such a
thrill of sincerity that it is just as throbbing with life and
patriotism as it was on that September dawn a century ago. The banner
that inspired the poem is in the National Museum in Washington.
Francis Scott Key died in Baltimore in 1843, and is buried in
Frederick, Maryland. Over his grave a large national flag flies day
and night, never removed save when wear and tear make a new flag
necessary. In Baltimore a noble monument has been reared in his honor.
It is surmounted by the figure of the poet, who waves his hat with one
hand and with the other points joyfully toward the fort. The figure is
so life-like that one almost expects it to cry,--
"And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave."
A few months after "The Star-Spangled Banner" was written, a plan was
formed to rear in the city of Baltimore a monument in honor of George
Washington. It was fitting that the place of his birth should also be
marked, and a few days before the laying of the corner-stone of the
monument, a little company sailed from Alexandria, Virginia, to Pope's
Creek, Westmoreland County, where Washington was born. With them they
carried a simple freestone slab on which was chiseled his name and the
date of his birth. Wrapped in the banner of fifteen stars, it was borne
reverently to its resting-place by the hands of the descendants of four
Revolutionary patriots.