850 ADDRESSES AND STATE PAPERS

It has been said that "the past is prelude. " We have faith that
Ocean City's past and present triumphs are but the beginning of a
bright and brilliant success story. As an individual and devoted visitor
to Ocean City, I congratulate you. As Governor of Maryland, I
salute you.

REMARKS AT NATIONAL FLAG WEEK CEREMONIES,
FORT McHENRY, BALTIMORE

(Read by C. Stanley Blair, Secretary of State of Maryland)
June 9, 1968

Our flag is a symbol of freedom and hope. Wherever it flies, Ameri-
cans take notice and to each it may evoke a different memory, yet
the feeling sparked will be the same. No other visual symbol so
quickly and clearly means America. No other symbol can embrace
the many meanings, hopes and pride that unify our nation.

To Marylanders, the American flag has special meaning, for it
was the flag flying above besieged Fort McHenry that inspired the
poetry of our National Anthem. Thus, as the flag is very much our
nation's, it is very specially ours.

Today, as never before, this ceremony takes on a great and grave
significance. Today, we officially celebrate the beginning of National
Flag Week, and today we officially mourn the loss of a vibrant na-
tional leader. Today, the Star-Spangled Banner shall not wave proud-
ly on high — but stands half-staff as a somber reminder of this sense-
less tragedy.

If National Flag Week is to have real meaning, let us celebrate it
as a week of rededication to the purposes and principles upon which
our nation was built. Each time we see our flag, let us remember
that it stands for a nation built upon the rule of law and the premise
that all men are created equal. Let us remember that equality means
civil rights and civil responsibilities, and it means, as one of our great
Presidents wrote, "... no man is above the law and no man is below
it. "

Respect for the flag is not reverence for a piece of cloth, but rever-
ence for a nation forged from the wilderness and founded upon prin-
ciple. Respect for the flag is respect for our laws and our way of life;