A LOOK AT SOME AMERICAN TRADITIONS

by Pam North

Recent events have made the citizens of this country cease to take for
granted what it means to be American.  A revival of displaying the
United States flag has swept the nation, and this newspaper recently
presented an article that chronicled the history of the flag from its
early beginnings to the banner that currently flies over our land.
There are many other traditions that are part of our lives, and these
have equally interesting origins.

To herald the arrival of a U.S. president, the song "Hail to the Chief"
is played.  This ritual dates back to the 1845 to 1849 administration of
James K. Polk, our 11th president, who was so physically undistinguished
that his entry into a room often went unnoticed.  To remedy this
situation, his wife, Sarah, arranged for the Marine band to play this
Scottish anthem whenever Polk walked through the door at gatherings, and
the practice was adopted subsequently for all presidents since.

"I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America.  And
to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, with liberty
and justice for all."  We're all familiar with these words, uttered many
times in our lives as we've faced our flag and stood with hand over
heart.  While it would seem to be an old, patriotic verse, perhaps
originating from the American Revolution, it instead actually traces
back only as far as 1892, and was, surprisingly, a promotional gimmick
created for the Chicago World's Fair, a celebration in that year
commemorating the 400th anniversary of Columbus' voyage to the New
World.  The editors of a publication called The Youth's Companion
sponsored a National Public School Celebration for Columbus Day 1892,
and urged every public school in the nation to raise an American flag
and recite a flag salute in honor of the occasion.  An official flag
salute was necessary for this ceremonial tribute, and an editor, Francis
Bellamy, wrote a pledge that was recited by approximately ten million
students.  His pledge varied slightly from the version known today.  It
stated, "I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it
stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
Bellamy considered including the word "equality," but refrained from
doing so because he was aware that the state superintendents of
education were against equality for women and Negroes.  Bellamy's pledge
soon became a part of our culture, but changes were made to it over the
years.  The words "my Flag" became "the flag of the United States of
America, "  influenced by the American Legion and the Daughters of the
American Revolution at the 1923 and 1924 National Flag Conference.  This
change was not favored by Bellamy, but his protest was ignored.  A
campaign by the Knights of Columbus in 1954 added the words "under God,"
having the effect that the pledge became a public prayer as well as a
patriotic oath.  Bellamy had stopped attending church in his retirement,
so this last amendment also most likely would have met with his
disapproval.

The Purple Heart is a medal awarded to U.S. soldiers who are wounded in
combat.  European military tradition at the time of the American
Revolution dictated that medals were given only to officers, never to
common soldiers for bravery.  George Washington changed this in 1782
when he ordered the creation of the Badge of Military Merit, shaped as a
heart of purple (traditionally the color worn by royalty) cloth or
silk.  Any "singularly meritorious action" was grounds for the award of
the medal, and did not necessarily hinge on whether the recipient had
been wounded in action.  For 150 years afterward, the medal fell into
disuse, but General Douglas MacArthur revived the tradition and
established its current meaning in 1932,  to commemorate the 200th
anniversary of Washington's birth .

The evolution of these customs has woven them firmly into our lives, and
Americans should make the effort to learn how their many traditions came
into being.


Resource:  Uncle John's Absolutely Absorbing Bathrooom Reader, 12th
Edition, by the Bathroom Readers' Institute.