May 19, 2010

The Government and Flag


And you think our current politics are contentious.

Civil War Era political ribbon,
from a telegram sent by John A. Dix, United States Secretary of the Treasury, to Treasury agents:
"If any one attempts to haul down the American flag, shoot him on the spot."
1860s
from Cornell University Library

1 comment:

That Hank said...

If anything, we've mellowed.