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When you see the stars and stripes displayed, son, stand up and take off your hat! Somebody may titter. But don't you mind! When Old Glory comes along, salute, and let them think what they please! For of all the signs and symbols since the world began, there is never another so full of meaning to mankind as the flag of our country. That piece of red, white and blue bunting means five thousand years of struggle upward. It is the full blown flower of ages of fighting for liberty. It is the century plant of human hope in bloom. Our flag stands for no race. It stands for men, men of any blood who will come and live with us under its protection. It is the only banner that means mankind. It is not the flag of our king – it is the flag of ourselves. There flags mean a glorious past; our flag, a glorious past and a still more glorious future. It is the flag of our fathers, and of our children yet unborn. It is the flag of to-morrow. It stands for the open door of ambition and opportunity – of equal rights to every one beneath the shadow of its folds. Our flag waves defiance at all the ghosts that have so long intimidated men; the ghost of monarchy, the ghost of aristocracy, the ghost of war, and all their kind that still lay shadowy hands upon the life of Europe and Asia. Listen son! The band is playing “The Star Spangled Banner.” They have let loose Old Glory yonder. Stand up! Some people over there are smiling at us. Stand up, bare your head, lift up your eyes and thank God that you live under that flag, which means the redemption o the world. |
