Stránka:roll 1911.djvu/361

340 Boy Scouts thirteen red and white stripes with the Brit.'? Unio?a Jack in the upper left.hand comer. The Betsy Ross house has been purchased by the American Flag House and Betsy Ross Memorial Association, and is pointed out as one of the interesting historical places in Philadelphia. The official history of our flag begins on June z4, x???, when the American Congress adopted the following resolution pro- posed by John Adams: R?solved; That the riss of the tl?te?n U?ited Ststes b? ?bL,?m stripes, alterl?te red a?d white: that the Union be thirteen.stars, white oa a bluo field, representing a new constellation. "We take," said Washington, "the star from Heareft, the red from ou? mother country, separating it by white stripes, thus showing that we have separated from her, and the white s?ripes shall go down to posterity representing liberty." In designing the flag there was much discussion as to the arrangement of the stars in the field of blue. It was thought at one time that a new stripe as well as a new star should he added for each new state a?m?ttod to the Union. Indeed, in x794, Congress passed an act to tho effect that on mad after May x, 5795, "the flag of the United State? be fifteen stripes, alternate red and white; and tlmt the union be fiftee? stars, white in a field of blue. These additional stars and stripes were for the states of Vermont and Kentucky. The irapracticability of adding a stripe for each state was apparent as other states began to be admitted. Moreover, the flag of fifteen stripes, it was thought,' did nQt properly represent the Union; therefore, on April ?4, xSx8, ?.er a period of twenty- one years in which the flag of fifteen stripes had been used, Congress passed an act which fin_ally fixed the general flag of our country, which reads as follows: An Act to Establish the Flag of the United States. Sec. ?. Be it enacted, etc., That from and after the fourth day of July next, the flag of the United Stat?s be ?chlrteen !?orlzontal stripes, alternate red and white; that the union have twefity stars, white in a blue field. Sec. ?. Be it further enacted, that, on the admission of every new state into the union, one star be added to the union of the flag; and that such addition shall take effect ou the fourth day of July succeeding such admission. l?!ag Day June ?4th, the .anniversary of the adoption of the flag, is celebrated as flag day' in many of our states. ? ?OOg[C