4A |
WEDNESDAY EDITION
| JUNE 13, 2018
NED HICKSON , EDITOR
Siuslaw News
P.O. Box 10
Florence, OR 97439
Opinion
| 541-902-3520 | NHICKSON @ THESIUSLAWNEWS . COM
C
The First Amendment
ongress shall make no law respecting an es-
tablishment of religion or prohibiting the
free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom
of speech, or of the press, or the right of the
people peaceably to assemble, and to petition
the Government for a redress of grievances.
“I never considered a difference of opinion in politics, in religion, in philosophy, as cause for withdrawing from a friend.” —Thomas Jefferson (1800)
The history of Elks’ Flag Day Service
(Editor’s Note: Viewpoint submis-
sions on this and other topics are always
welcome as part of our goal to encourage
community discussion and exchange of
perspectives.)
I
t is to be expected that an orga-
nization dedicated to patriotic
service should seek to
promote a proper knowledge
of — and respect for — the
American Flag and all that it
represents.
The Benevolent and Pro-
tective Order of Elks has done this in
many ways. Perhaps the most effec-
tive of its prescribed activities is the
Flag Day Service.
Each Subordinate Lodge is required
to conduct this service annually June
l4, the anniversary of the birth of the
American Flag.
The idea of a Flag Day Service was
first suggested to our Order by the
then Grand Exalted Ruler at the 1907
Grand Lodge Session in Philadelphia.
Of the dates submitted for consider-
ation at that time, June 14 was adopt-
ed by the session and was called ‘Elks
Flag Day.’
The following year, in Dallas, the
Grand Lodge approved a ritual for the
Flag Day ceremony.
The 1911 Grand Lodge Session at
Atlantic City made the observance of
Flag Day mandatory for Subordinate
Lodges by the adoption of Section 229
Guest Viewpoint
By Bruce Smith
Florence Elks Exulted Ruler
of the Statutes:
“It shall be the duty of each Sub-
ordinate Lodge to hold the service
known as ‘Flag Day Services’ at the
time and in the manner prescribed by
the ritual of the Order.”
Later on — at the Grand Lodge Ses-
sion in Atlantic City in 1930 — there
was added to this statute an amend-
ment, reading:
“The Grand Exalted Ruler may, in
exceptional cases and for good cause,
grant a dispensation for a different
day or to any two or more Lodges to
hold such services jointly.”
It was not until Aug. 3, 1949, that
the President of the United States
signed Public Law 203, designating
June 14 as Flag Day.
Thus our Order was not only the
first fraternal organization to cele-
brate Flag Day, but had made this
ceremony mandatory long years
before the date on which the ob-
servance became a nation-wide
practice by legal decree.
The ritual for the occasion is
an elaborate one and it is quite
generally conducted as a public
ceremonial. It is designed to be in-
formative as well as inspirational; and
the colorful pageantry provided lends
itself admirably to the achievement of
these objectives.
It was President Harry S. Truman
who signed the Flag Day bill into law
on Aug. 3, 1949, who was himself an
Elk.
The Elks will be having a Flag Day
Service tomorrow, June 14, beginning
at 10 a.m. and it is open to the public.
Histors of the
American Flag
A
ccording to popular legend, the
first American flag was made by
Betsy Ross, a Philadelphia seam-
stress who was acquainted with George
Washington, leader of the Continental
Army, and other influential Philadel-
phians.
In May 1776, as the legend goes, Gen-
eral Washington and two representatives
from the Continental Congress visited
Ross at her upholstery shop and showed
her a rough design of the flag. Although
Washington initially favored using a
star with six points, Ross advocated for
a five-pointed star, which could be cut
with just one quick snip of the scissors,
and the gentlemen were won over.
Historians have never been able to ver-
ify this version of events, although it is
known that Ross made flags for the navy
of Pennsylvania. The story of Wash-
ington's visit to the flagmaker became
popular about the time of the country’s
first centennial, after William Canby, a
grandson of Ross, told about her role in
shaping U.S. history in a speech given
at the Philadelphia Historical Society in
March 1870.
What is known is that the first un-
official national flag, called the Grand
Union Flag or the Continental Colours,
was raised at the behest of General
Washington near his headquarters out-
side Boston, Mass., on Jan. 1, 1776.
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Ned H ickson
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Publisher, ex t. 318
Editor, ex t. 313
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Political/Election Letters:
The flag had 13 alternating red and
white horizontal stripes and the British
Union Flag (a predecessor of the Union
Jack) in the canton. Another early flag
had a rattlesnake and the motto “Don't
Tread on Me.”
The first official national flag, also
known as the Stars and Stripes, was ap-
proved by the Continental Congress on
June 14, 1777.
The blue canton contained 13 stars,
representing the original 13 colonies,
but the layout varied. Although nobody
knows for sure who designed the flag,
it may have been Continental Congress
member Francis Hopkinson.
After Vermont and Kentucky were ad-
mitted to the Union in 1791 and 1792,
respectively, two more stars and two
more stripes were added in 1795. This
15-star, 15-stripe flag was the “star-span-
gled banner” that inspired lawyer Fran-
cis Scott Key to write the poem that later
became the U.S. national anthem.
In 1818, after five more states had
gained admittance, Congress passed leg-
islation fixing the number of stripes at 13
and requiring that the number of stars
equal the number of states.
The last new star, bringing the total to
50, was added on July 4, 1960, after Ha-
waii became a state.
Patriotic appreciation for veterans
Last week, this handmade card was
found by U.S. Army veteran Lawrence
Ferguson while cleaning around Vet-
eran’s Memorial Park in Florence's
Old Town District.
The card, made by a 5-year-old
known only as Mallory, had been
placed under a rock to keep it from
blowing away. Concerned it would
be damaged by weather, Ferguson
brought the card to Patriot Place in
Old Town.
“He was very moved by it and felt
it was something that would mean a
lot for other veterans to see,” said MJ
Flowerday of Patriot Place, which
plans to frame the card and hang it
inside. “I’m sure those who gave their
all for our country are looking down
with gratitiude to this special child.
“It’s so heartwarming.”
USPS# 497-660
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sonal experience and perspective rather than partisan-
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Candidates themselves may not use the letters to the
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ter that doesn’t follow the above criteria.
Emal letters to:
nhickson@thesiuslawnews.com
WHERE TO WRITE
Pres. Donald Trump
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
FAX: 202-456-2461
TTY/TDD Comments:
202-456-6213
www.whitehouse.gov
Oregon Gov. Kate Brown
160 State Capitol
900 Court St.
Salem, Ore. 97301-4047
Governor’s Citizens’ Rep.
Message Line:
503-378-4582
www.oregon.gov/gov
U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden
221 Dirksen Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-5244
541-431-0229
www.wyden.senate.gov
U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley
313 Hart Senate Office Bldg
Washington, DC 20510
202-224-3753
FAX: 202-228-3997
541-465-6750
www.merkley.senate.gov
U.S. Rep. Peter DeFazio
(4th Dist.)
2134 Rayburn HOB
Washington, DC 20515
202-225-6416
541-269-2609
541-465-6732
www.defazio.house.gov
State Sen. Arnie Roblan
(Dist. 5)
900 Court St. NE - S-417
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1705
FAX: 503-986-1080
Email: Sen.ArnieRoblan@
oregonlegislature.gov
State Rep. Caddy McKeown
(Dist. 9)
900 Court St. NE
Salem, OR 97301
503-986-1409
Email: rep.caddymckeown
@state.or.us
West Lane County
Commissioner
Jay Bozievich
125 E. Eighth St.
Eugene, OR 97401
541-682-4203
FAX: 541-682-4616
Email: Jay.Bozievich@
co.lane.or.us