What's in a piece of fabric? A lot, if it's the American flag, according to the local American Legion post. A flag burning of a different kind will be taking place Saturday -- national Flag Day -- at the American Veterans Building and Senior Center at 401 N. Irwin St. in Hanford.

The ceremony begins at 4:30 p.m., and the public is invited to attend and bring old, tattered flags for proper disposal, which happens to be burning them.

People can also bring their flags to the Veterans Building before the ceremony.

Burning has been the accepted technique for some time, although an older tradition was to bury them, according to Mike Buss, assistant director at American Legion's national headquarters in Indiana.

Technically, all American flags should be retired by burning, although it's not practical to release toxic fumes by burning those tiny plastic flags on a stick.

Buss advises people that such flags can be shredded.

Clothing with American flags on it doesn't count, Buss said, and can be simply thrown away.

For more tips about displaying and disposing of flags, Buss recommended taking a look at the U.S. Flag Code, available at the Web site www.legion.org.

Proper flag disposal isn't the only thing American Legion Post #3 is doing on Saturday in Hanford.

They are hosting an open house at the Veterans Building from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. to show the war memorabilia collected there.

At 3 p.m., there will be a ceremony commemorating the renovation of two German cannons from World War I.

The cannons were captured from the Germans and donated by the French to the American Legion when they dedicated the Veterans Building in 1925, said Jim Lint, post adjutant.

"Just come and enjoy a piece of history. The cannons are looking beautiful," Lint said.

The reporter can be reached at 583-2432

(June 12, 2008)