The various styles of cockades.
The mounting of emblematic cockades, to designate the political affinities of the wearers, having been fully inaugurated as one of the constitutions. "of the day, it becomes necessary for a proper understanding of the matter, that the different styles and colors adopted by the several parties should be clearly defined and described.
This will seem to be the more essential when we state that a gentlemanly stranger quietly wending his way through our streets yesterday, with a
black cockade in his beaver, attracted a good deal of notice, and for ought we know, may have experienced some annoyance, from the popular belief that the color he had mounted was an indication of Republican proclivities.
We have no official information, to enable us to speak reliably on the subject; but merely from observation, we may suppose the following to be correct at least as to two of the badges mostly worn, viz.
A cockade of light blue, in the form of a many pointed star, with a white button in the centre — indicates that the wearer is a "minute man," and ripe for secession, immediate or prospective, or any other movement which the south may determine upon, even to the extent of revolution, rather than submission to black republican rule.
A similar badge, formed in alternate circles of
red,
white and
blue — is worn by some members of the "Union" party, who, not less loyal and ardent in their attachment to the
South, are yet indisposed to precipitate action in the present crisis in our national affairs, and prefer waiting for some overt act on the part of the
Black Republican administration, before resorting to the desperate remedy of disunion.
The black cockade, sported by the gentleman referred to above, who, as we learn, was a Marylander, is the same as that worn by the "Old Defenders." of
Baltimore against British aggression in 1812, and has been adopted in that State by those who profess to hold themselves ready to defend the
South against Northern aggression in 1860.
