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Stories About Flags, Continued, and Description of An

"ACHIEVEMENT" - ORIGIN OF TITLES.

C SOME of the flags of France have been very famous; such as the Tricolor. It is thought to represent the Blue Banner of St. Martin, the Red Banner of St. Denis, and the "Cornette blanche." Blue and red were the ancient colors of Paris, and of these colors the cockade was at first made, but the National Guard, which was not unfavorable to the throne, insisted upon having the white of the Bourbon standard added, and in this way the Tricolor was formed. Would you like to hear how it was that Paris chose blue and red for her colors? If so, I will tell the story just as somebody else has told it. Some day, after riding down the Champs Elysées to the once beautiful gardens of the Tuileries, past the showy arcades of the Rue de Rivoli, on and on, till you come to the soaring Column of July, with the gracefully poised figure on its apex, you may like to recall it: -- "About 1356, during the captivity of John of France in the Tower of London, Paris became a republic, and the municipality governed all France. At this time it was decided that the city of Paris should have colors of its own, and under the authority of Etienne Marcel a flag was selected, half blue and half red, with an agraffe of silver, and the motto, 'A bonne fin. Shortly after, when Etienne Marcel was murdered with sixty of his followers, the colors of the city were suppressed, and remained in obscurity until 1789. Upon the accession of Charles V., he erected the Bastille St. Antoine, on the very spot where Etienne Marcel had been slain, as a monument of defiance on the part of the crown against the capital, which remained for centuries a state prison and symbol of despotism. By a singular coincidence, the Bastille was destroyed on the anniversary of the day on which the ancient colors of Paris - the colors of Etienne Marcel - became victorious over royalty. On that day, July 14, 1789, Lafayette restored the colors of the city to the people, adding thereto the royal emblem, white, and thus composed that tricolor which, according to Lafayette's prophetic words, 'Devait faire le tour du monde!'" Another highly prized flag, and one much older than the Tricolor, is that of St. Martin. This was the standard of the nation for six hundred years, and was made of that half of the saint's remarkable blue mantle which remained to cover his chilly person after dividing the original cloak with his sword, so as to give a covering to the freezing beggar at the gates of Amiens. This half of his cloak, so valued by the French, never showed signs of decay during many centuries; even the moths of this monastery being far too good Catholics to even think of attacking the sacred, carefully guarded bit of woollen. The little oratory in which it was preserved - this cloak or cape, or, in French, chape - acquired from the treasure it held the name of chapelle, and the person who cared for it was called chapelain - and thus, we are told, arose our English words chapel and chaplain.

Somehow, a sleeve of this precious mantle seems to have detached itself from the incorruptible garment, and managed to do a deal of travelling about. Not infrequently it got into trouble, as wayward STORIES ABOUT FLAGS. members of a well brought up household usually do. It carried on in such a way that at last it was claimed by no less than three churches, and so violent and unyielding was the altercation that the dispute lasted for sixty long years. Then the Count of La Rochefoucauld, getting possession of it one day, ended the matter by most sacrilegiously dropping it on a brazier of coals, thus utterly consuming it. The sacred remnants of the cape were placed in a casket, and its effigy, which was carried conspicuously in front of the army when needed, was the richest and most beautiful of all the banners of ancient France. When this standard was to be used, it was laid for several days upon the tomb of the saint, until it was supposed to be perfectly charged with all the holy evaporations of the worthy saint, and was then placed in the hands of the proud Counts of Anjou, who, as Grand Seneschals of France, were the proper flagbearers of Saint Martin's Flag. What finally became of the last blue shreds of the holy garment, I know not; but eventually the renowned Oriflamme of Saint Denis took its place. This was of red, as all banners of churches dedicated to martyrs ought to be, the color signifying not only war, but suffering - and was fringed with green, to typify their hope. Originally it was flecked with golden flames, thought to have been placed there as a memorial of the Day of Pentecost. The "fly," or edge, was cut in five points, to represent the five wounds of our Saviour. The standard-bearer of this victory-gaining flag always, before receiving it, confessed, partook of the Eucharist, and swore to defend it with his life. This flag had the glory of making its first appearance upon the battlefield at Agincourt.