.-W>- 
 



 ( 2 , 
 
 Af 4**- 
 
 *C 
 
 4 ^ 
 

 -4 "• f, 
 
 r *-■ x ^ 
 
 
 * 
 
 . • * • - 
 • % • #■>*» 
 
 V.vrkv-ci r,s / *. 
 
 **“.**Vi \ . . 
 
 • • '- *,."• ,v> 
 
 ■•X. 
 
 

LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 

 
 
 
 «. * 
 
 
 

 
THE 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS 
 
 WITH 
 
 ILLUSTRATIVE POETRY : 
 
 TO WHICH IS NOW FIRST ADDED, 
 
 THE CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 . “ By all those token Flowers that tell 
 What words can never speak so well.” 
 
 Byron. 
 
 ' 
 
 REVISED BY THE EDITOR OP‘FORGET ME NOT 
 
 THIRD AMERICAN EDITION. 
 
 PHILADELPHIA: 
 
 CAREY, LEA & BLANCHARD. 
 
 1836 
 
V^lAi-T 
 
 <xK 
 
 l?3U 
 
 C. Sherman & Co., Printers. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 When Nature laughs out in all the triumph of’ 
 Spring, it may be said, without a metaphor, that, 
 in her thousand varieties of flowers, we see the 
 sweetest of her smiles; that, through them, we 
 comprehend the exultation of her joys; and that, 
 by them, she wafts her songs of thanksgiving to 
 the heaven above her, which repays her tribute 
 of gratitude with looks of love. Yes, flowers 
 have their language. Theirs is an oratory, that 
 speaks in perfumed silence, and there is tender¬ 
 ness, and passion, and even the lightheartedness 
 of mirth, in the variegated beauty of their voca¬ 
 bulary. To the poetical mind, they are not mute 
 to each other ; to the pious, they are not mute to 
 
6 
 
 FREFACE. 
 
 their Creator: and ours shall be the office, in 
 this little volume, to translate their pleasing lan¬ 
 guage, and to show that no spoken word can ap¬ 
 proach to the delicacy of sentiment to be inferred 
 from a flower seasonably offered ; that the softest 
 impressions may be thus conveyed without of¬ 
 fence, and even profound grief alleviated, at a 
 moment when the most tuneful voice would grate 
 harshly on the ear, and when the stricken soul 
 can be soothed only by unbroken silence. 
 
 In treating of so gay a subject, we will not 
 make a parade of our learning, to tell our fair 
 readers what fine things Pliny has said upon it; 
 or, in the spirit of prosing, write a crabbed trea¬ 
 tise upon the Egyptian hieroglyphics. We will 
 even spare them a dissertation upon the Floral 
 Alphabet of the effeminate Chinese; they had, 
 and have, their flowers and their feelings, their 
 emblems and their ecstacies. Let them enjoy 
 them. We shall do no more than rove through 
 the European Garden, to cull its beauties, to ar¬ 
 range them into odoriferous significance, and to 
 teach our refined and purifying science to those 
 fair beings, the symbols of whose mortal beauty 
 arc but inadequately found in the most glorious 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 7 
 
 flowers, afad whose mental charms cannot be 
 duly typified, till we • shall have reached those 
 abodes where reigns everlasting spring, and 
 where decay is unknown. 
 
 But little study will be requisite for the science 
 which we teach. Nature has been before us. 
 We must, however, premise two or three rules. 
 When a flower is presented in its natural posi¬ 
 tion, the sentiment is to be understood affirma¬ 
 tively ; when reversed, negatively. For instance, 
 a rose bud, with its leaves and thorns, indicates 
 fear with hope; but, if reversed, it must be con¬ 
 strued as saying “ you may neither fear nor hope." 
 Again, divest the same rose-bud of its thorns, and 
 it permits the most sanguine hope; deprive it of 
 its petals, and retain the thorns, and the worst 
 fears may be entertained. The expression of 
 every flower may be thus varied by varying its 
 state or position. The Marigold is emblematical 
 of pain; place it on the head and it signifies 
 trouble of mind; on the heart, the pangs of love; 
 on the bosom, the disgusts of ennui. The pro¬ 
 noun 1 is expressed by inclining the symbol to 
 the right, and the pronoun thou by inclining it to 
 the left. 
 
8 
 
 preface. 
 
 These are a few of tire rudiments of our sig¬ 
 nificant language. We call upon Friendship and 
 Love to unite their discoveries with ours; for it 
 is in the power only of these sweetest sentiments 
 of our nature to bring to perfection what they 
 have so beautifully invented, the mystical, yet 
 pleasing, links of intelligence, that bind soul to 
 soul, in the tender and quiet harmony of the one, 
 or in the more impassioned felicity of the other. 
 
 By way of conclusion, it may be proper to re¬ 
 mark that though this work is founded on a small 
 French volume, yet, from the alterations which 
 have been introduced, it cannot, strictly speaking, 
 be called a translation. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 If we rrfay believe modem .interpreters, the 
 language of flowers was known to the ancients, 
 and it would appear that the Greeks understood 
 the art of communicating a secret message 
 through the medium of a bouquet. It is only 
 necessary to consult the Dream-book of Arte- 
 midorus to be "convinced that every individual 
 flower of which the wreaths of the ancients 
 were composed conveyed some particular mean¬ 
 ing. At all events, it is evident that garlands 
 were conspicuous in the emblematic devices of 
 antiquity. 
 
 Our English poets have not neglected to avail 
 themselves of the emblematic language of flow¬ 
 ers. On this subject, a writer in one of our 
 1 * 
 
10 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 periodica) publications made, a few years since, 
 the following observations:— 
 
 Shakspeare has evinced in several of his plays 
 a knowledge and a love of flowers, but in no 
 instance has he shown his taste and judgment in 
 the selection of them with greater effect than in 
 forming the coronal wreath of the lovely maniac, 
 Ophelia. The Queen describes the garland as 
 composed of crow-flowers, nettles, daisies, and 
 long-purples : and there can be no question that 
 Shakspeare intended them all to have an em¬ 
 blematic meaning. 
 
 The crowflower is a species of lychnis, al¬ 
 luded to by Drayton in his Polyolbion. The 
 common English name is meadow lychnis, or 
 meadow campion. It is sometimes found double 
 in our own hedge-rows, but more commonly in 
 France; and in this form we are told by Par¬ 
 kinson it was called The fayre Mayde of France. 
 It is to this name and to this variety that Shak¬ 
 speare alludes in Hamlet. 
 
 The long-purples are commonly called dead 
 men’s hands, or figures. 
 
 “ Our cold maids do dead men’s fingers call them.” 
 
 The daisy (or day’s-eye) imports the pure vir- 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 11 
 
 ginity, or spring of life, as being itself the virgin 
 bloom of the year. 
 
 The intermixture of nettles requires no com¬ 
 ment. 
 
 Admitting the correctness of this interpreta¬ 
 tion, the whole is an exquisite specimen of em¬ 
 blematic or picture-writing. They are all wild 
 flowers, denoting the bewildered state of the 
 beautiful Ophelia’s own faculties; and the order 
 runs thus, with the meaning of each term be¬ 
 neath : 
 
 Crow-flowers. Nettles. 
 
 Fayre Mayde 
 
 Stung to 
 the quick 
 
 Daisies. 
 Her virgin 
 bloom 
 
 Long-purples. 
 Under the cold 
 hand of death 
 
 “A fair maid stung to the quick; her virgin bloom 
 under the cold hand of death.” 
 
 It would be difficult to find a more emblematic 
 wreath for this interesting victim of disappointed 
 love and filial sorrow. 
 
 Flowers, the emblems and favourites of the 
 fair, are not every where prized merely for their 
 beauty and their perfume; in those regions 
 where jealousy and custom condemn women to 
 close imprisonment, and where love can employ 
 only the language of looks and signs, invention 
 
12 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 lias created symbolic phrases for expressing the 
 secret sentiments of the heart. This language 
 is most generally used by the Turkish and Greek 
 women in the Levant, and by the African fe¬ 
 males on the coast of Barbary. 
 
 Castellan, in his “ Letters on Greece,” men¬ 
 tions that when he was passing through the 
 lovely valley of Bujukderu on the Bosphorus, 
 his attention was attracted by a little country 
 pleasure-house, surrounded by a neat-garden. 
 Beneath one of the grated windows stood a young 
 Turk, who, after playing a light prelude on the 
 tambur, a sort of mandoline, sang a love-song, 
 in which the following verse occurred :— 
 
 The nightingale wanders from flower to flower, 
 Seeking the rose, his heart’s only prize;* 
 
 Thus did my love change every hour, 
 
 Until I saw thee, light of my eyes ! 
 
 No sooner was the song ended than a small 
 white hand opened the lattice of the window, 
 and dropped a bunch of flowers. The young 
 Turk picked up the nosegay, and appeared to 
 
 * Alluding to the love of the nightingale for the rose, 
 which is a favourite theme of the Oriental poets. The 
 nightingale, a bird of passage in the East, as with us, 
 appears at the season when the rose begins to blow 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 13 
 
 read in it some secret message. He pressed it 
 to his bosom, then fastened it in his turban, and, 
 after making some signs towards the window, 
 he withdrew. The young gallant appeared from 
 his dress to be nothing more than a poor water- 
 carrier. But the Turkish proverb says that, 
 however high a woman may rear her head to¬ 
 wards the clouds, her feet nevertheless touch the 
 earth. The girl was actually the daughter of a 
 rich Jew, worth a hundred thousand piastres. 
 
 A nosegay,, or garland of flowers, ingeniously 
 selected, and put together for the purpose of 
 communicating in secret and expressive lan¬ 
 guage the sentiments’of the heart, is in.the East 
 called a Saam (salutation). It often happens 
 that a female slave, the object of the Sultan’s 
 favour, corresponds openly with her lover merely 
 by the various arrangement of flower-pots in a 
 garden. Written love-letters would often be in¬ 
 adequate to convey an idea of the passionate 
 feelings which are thus expressed through the 
 medium of flowers. Thus, orange flowers sig¬ 
 nify hope; marigolds, despair; sunflowers, con¬ 
 stancy ; roses, beauty; and tulips represent the 
 complaints of infidelity. 
 
14 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 This hieroglyphic language is known only to 
 the lover and his mistress. In order to envelope 
 it the more, completely in the veil of secrecy, 
 the significations of the different flowers are 
 changed, in conformity with a preconcerted plan : 
 for example, the rose is employed to express the 
 idea which would otherwise be attached to the 
 amaranth, the gilliflower is substituted for the 
 pomegranate blossom, &c. 
 
 The language of flowers is much employed 
 in the Turkish harems, where the women prac¬ 
 tise it either for the sake of mere diversion in 
 their solitude, or for the purpose of secret com¬ 
 munication. * 
 
 La Motraie, the companion of Charles !£II., 
 and Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, were the 
 first who gave celebrity in Europe to the lan¬ 
 guage of flowers. The few examples cited by 
 Lady Montagu are not calculated to afford a 
 clear and accurate idea of the principles on 
 which this language is founded. Its spirit con¬ 
 sists not, as might naturally be supposed, in the 
 connexion which fancy may trace between par¬ 
 ticular flowers and certain thoughts and feelings. 
 Such an idea never entered the heads of the 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 ‘ 15 
 
 fair inventresses of the oriental language of 
 flowers. They have contented themselves with 
 merely taking a word which may happen to 
 rhyme with the name of any particular flower 
 or fruit, and then filling up the given rhyme 
 with some fanciful phrase corresponding with 
 its signification. The language therefore con¬ 
 sists not of individual words, but of whole 
 phrases ; and a flower or fruit expresses an idea 
 suggested by -the word with which its name 
 happens to rhyme. Thus, for instance, the word 
 Armonde (Pear) rhymes among other words 
 with Omonfle (hope); and this rhyme is filled 
 up as follows : — “ Armonde — Wer bana bir 
 Omonde(Pear—Let me not despair.) 
 
 The Turkish dialect, being rich in rhymes, 
 presents a multitude of words corresponding in 
 sound with the names of flowers, or any other 
 objects that may be selected; but these rhymes 
 are not all admitted into the language of flowers, 
 and the knowledge of this language consists in 
 being acquainted with the proper rhyme. The 
 vocabulary is not extensive, for the whole lan¬ 
 guage scarcely exceeds a hundred signs and 
 phrases. The celebrated orientalist, Mr. Von 
 
16 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Hammer, collected from the Greek and Ar¬ 
 menian women who are permitted to visit the 
 harems many of the phrases of this curious 
 language, which have been published, with a 
 French and German translation, in the Miscel¬ 
 lany entitled “ Mines of the East.” 
 
 In India, which may be regarded as the cradle 
 ot poetry, we are informed that it is customary 
 to express, by the combination of flowers, those 
 sentiments of the heart which are regarded as 
 too refined and sacred to be communicated 
 through the common medium of words. The 
 young females of Amboyna are singularly inge¬ 
 nious in the art of conversing in the love-lan¬ 
 guage of flowers and fruits. Yet this language, 
 like that employed in Turkey and in other 
 parts of the East, bears no resemblance to that 
 with which we have hitherto been acquainted 
 in Europe ; though, according to the received 
 notion, we were indebted for our first know¬ 
 ledge of this language to the Crusaders and to 
 pilgrims who visited the Holy Land. 
 
 In early times it was customary in Europe to 
 employ particular colours for the purpose of ex¬ 
 pressing certain ideas and feelings. The ena- 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 17 
 
 moured knight indicated his passion by wearing 
 a red and violet scarf—if he made choice of a 
 reddish grey colour, it was to denote.that love 
 had urged him to the combat—on the other 
 hand, the combination of yellow, green, and 
 violet, proclaimed that the knight returned tri¬ 
 umphant from the conflict, and had gained the 
 reward of love. 
 
 In France, where the symbolical meaning of 
 colours was formed into a regular system, great 
 importance was attached to the art of expressing 
 ideas by the selection of particular colours for 
 dresses, trimmings, &c. Francis I., however, 
 broke through all the rules of etiquette on this 
 point. In the reign of that monarch, widows 
 were permitted to wear any colours and stuffs 
 they pleased for under-garments, and for gowns 
 they were at liberty to choose one of two colours, 
 a privilege which they had not previously en¬ 
 joyed. In course of time, the practice of adopt¬ 
 ing colours for the purpose of emblematic repre¬ 
 sentations gradually declined, and was observed 
 only in the choice of arms and liveries, in which 
 it has been retained, with certain modifications, 
 to the present day. 
 
18 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 In the ages of chivalry, red was highly es¬ 
 teemed as the colour of love, and, accordingly, 
 the rose was, dn account of its tint, a favourite 
 emblem. Thus, in the romance of Perceforet, 
 a hat adorned with roses is celebrated as a 
 favourite gift of love; and, in Amadis de Gaul, 
 the captive Oriana is represented as throwing to 
 her lover a rose wet with tears, as the sweetest 
 pledge of her unalterable faith. The various 
 allegorical meanings which were in the middle 
 ages attached to the rose are described in the 
 celebrated Romaunt de la Rose, which was com¬ 
 menced, in the year 1620, by Guillaume de Lor- 
 ris, and finished, forty years later, by Jean de 
 Meun. 
 
 In the famous German Heldenbuch, or Book 
 of Heroes, which is supposed to have been 
 chiefly written by Henry von Ofterdingen, the 
 Rose Garden of Wurms holds a distinguished 
 place. The garden was encircled by a silken 
 
 thread instead of a wall, and the victorious 
 
 • 
 
 Knights who defended it against the encroach¬ 
 ments of a party of giants were, by Princess 
 Chrymhilde, rewarded with a chaplet of roses 
 and a kiss. One of the knights, named Hilde- 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 19 . 
 
 brandt, is described as having accepted the chap¬ 
 let but declined the salute. A monk, named 
 Ilsan, however, who was one of the triumphant 
 warriors, not satisfied with the rewards con¬ 
 ferred on himself, demanded a chaplet and a kiss 
 for each of the fifty-two monks of the convent to 
 which he belonged. It is added that Chrym- 
 liilde granted this boon ; though not until Ilsan 
 had fought and conquered fifty-two of the offend¬ 
 ing giants. 
 
 In the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, 
 tournaments lost much of the sanguinary cha¬ 
 racter which had previously distinguished them. 
 They became merely entertainments for the 
 celebration of court festivals; and the combat¬ 
 ants gained the prize of victory, not by wounds 
 and bloodshed, but by broken lances, the frag¬ 
 ments of which were presented to them as tro¬ 
 phies of success. It was the etiquette of early 
 times for a knight, on entering the lists at a 
 tournament, to beg permission to wear the 
 colours of the lady to whose service he was 
 devoted ; but this practice was gradually suc¬ 
 ceeded by that of wearing about the person any 
 pledge of love which the knight solicited from 
 
. 20 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 his mistress, or which the latter spontaneously 
 presented to him. This custom of giving' and 
 wearing favours was kept up until the middle 
 of the seventeenth century. Various changes 
 of fashion took place with respect to the objects 
 which were thus presented as pledges of regard ; 
 and if Bayard, the “ knight without fear and 
 without reproach,” obtained from the lady of his 
 heart a pair of elegant bracelets and a silken 
 purse—the favoured knight of a more recent 
 age received from the hand of his mistress the 
 less costly gift of a simple flower. The presents 
 given in this manner by ladies to their favourite 
 champions were soon converted into emprises , 
 or devices, and were worn on those parts of the 
 dress or armour which an adversary was obliged 
 to touch when he challenged the possessor of 
 the emprise to single combat. 
 
 In France during the middle ages, flowers 
 were much employed as emblems of love and 
 gallantry. At the banquet given in celebration 
 of the marriage of Charles the Bold, Duke of 
 Burgundy, with the English Princess Margaret, 
 several ingenious automata were introduced— 
 among others was a large unicorn, bearing on 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 21 
 
 its back a leopard, which held in one claw the 
 standard of England, and in the other a daisy, 
 the French name of which is Marguerite. The 
 unicorn, having gone round all the tables, halted 
 before the Duke, and one of the maitres d'hotel, 
 faking the daisy from the leopard’s claw, pre¬ 
 sented it, with a complimentary address, to the 
 royal bridegroom. 
 
 In Spain, gallantry was forced to take a dif¬ 
 ferent direction ; for there the fair sex were 
 kept under such rigid restraint, that a lover 
 scarcely ever had an opportunity of making a 
 verbal declaration to his mistress. Recourse 
 was therefore had to an expressive kind of pan¬ 
 tomimic language, which was learned by chil¬ 
 dren of both sexes at a very early age. By this 
 method lovers were enabled to hold communi¬ 
 cation with each other for years without ever 
 interchanging a syllable. In the reign of Charles 
 IL, however, the Spanish ladies were allowed a 
 greater degree of freedom; and the Gua.pos , or 
 gallants of Madrid, who adopted thn fashion of 
 wearing flowers in their hats, used to assemble 
 in the evening on the Prado, and to present 
 nosegays to the ladies in their carriages. 
 
22 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 The practice of conversing by gestures and 
 signs was introduced by the Spaniards into Brus¬ 
 sels, where the Duke of Orleans and the French 
 npblemen of his suite availed themselves of this 
 silent language to pay court to the ladies at 
 their windows. 
 
 The Italian and Sicilian females, who were not 
 less closely guarded than the Spanish women, 
 also practised a pantomimic language, and adopt¬ 
 ed the use of flowers in love affairs. In Genoa, 
 it was no unusual thing for a lady to throw a 
 nosegay openly to her lover, and this token was 
 received by the grateful favourite with a low bow. 
 
 Plants may in many respects be regarded as 
 beings closely allied to man, and they frequently 
 exercise an important influence over us. The 
 following remarks on this subject suggested 
 themselves to Matthisson, the German poet, 
 while journeying along tire Cosa to Domo d’Os- 
 sola. “ The beautiful cyclamen, which blooms 
 along both sides of the road, continually re¬ 
 minded me of the delightful summer day which 
 I spent in company with Salis and his wife, at 
 a shepherd’s hut in the neighbourhood of Ma- 
 lans, where for the first time I saw this flower 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 23 
 
 growing wild. I have never since beheld the 
 cyclamen without being reminded of the beloved 
 friends with whom I first plucked and examined 
 it, and of the smiling landscapes with which we 
 were surrounded. There are various other 
 plants, the sight of which also revives in my 
 mind recollections of dear and interesting per¬ 
 sons, and which brings the scenes of early youth 
 forcibly before me, as the strains of the Runs 
 des Vaches , when heard in a foreign country, 
 remind the Swiss peasant of his native mountains. 
 
 “Numerous examples might be adduced to 
 prove that, in the power of exciting past recol¬ 
 lections, the sight of a flower has often a more 
 magic effect than even the favourite melodies 
 of our youth. I myself know a young lady who, 
 though entirely free from nervous weakness, 
 could never look at a carnation without burst¬ 
 ing into tears, because she was plucking a 
 flower of that kind at the moment when she was 
 informed of her mother’s death. The sight of 
 the periwinkle always produced pleasingly pain¬ 
 ful feelings in Rousseau’s mind; and Bougain- 
 ' ville’s South Sea Islander, on being taken to the 
 Botanic Garden in Paris, knelt before an Otahei- 
 
24 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 tean plant, and kissed it as fondly as he would 
 have kissed the lips of a beloved mistress. It 
 would be impossible to describe the many de¬ 
 lightful ideas and recollections for which, during 
 my solitary journeys, I have been indebted to 
 the chronicle of Flora.” 
 
 A flower-garden may be compared to a pano- - 
 rama of hieroglyphics, displaying not the mise¬ 
 rable worldly wisdom of mortals, inscribed in 
 dead characters, but the maxims of immortal 
 philosophy, exhibited in living forms with all 
 their peculiar varieties. Fancy traces a sym¬ 
 bolic resemblance between man and the forms 
 and motions of all the natural objects in the . 
 creation; and, to borrow Chateaubriand’s bold 
 metaphor, the whole universe may be considered 
 as the imagination of the Deity rendered visible; 
 yet certainly this similarity is most particularly 
 striking in the vegetable world. The most 
 superficial observer cannot fail to perceive that 
 plants present faithful emblems of the various 
 stages of human life, and the most remarkable 
 peculiarities in our physical formation, and in 
 our moral relations to each other. 
 
 In those southern regions, where every living 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 25 
 
 being feels the influence of vital heat and the 
 exciting oxygen which pervades the atmosphere 
 —where the genial climate, with scarcely any 
 change' of seasons, liberally provides for the 
 support of man—Nature presents her vegetable 
 hieroglyphics in the most marked and perma¬ 
 nent characters. The contemplation of the 
 starry canopy of heaven is calculated to inspire 
 every reflecting mind with the sublimest ideas 
 of immortality. When the attractions of all 
 transitory objects are veiled in the gloom of 
 night—when, amidst the stillness of Nature, 
 the voice of God resounds in the rustling of the 
 trees and the murmuring of the swelling billows 
 —the soul seems to wing its way towards the 
 realms of eternity, and the virtuous mind is 
 impressed with a deeper consciousness of its 
 moral dignity. This trait in the human mind 
 is typified in the vegetation of the East, by a 
 tree, to which the Turks, Arabians, Persians, 
 and Malays, give various names, and which we 
 distinguish by the appellation of the Sorrowful 
 Tree, (Nyctanthes arbor trislis, L.) It resem¬ 
 bles the cherry-tree in form ; but it is of much 
 larger size. Its flowers, which resemble the 
 2 
 
26 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 orange blossom, are white, with a reddish tint 
 at the bottom of the calyx, and their perfume 
 is like that of the evening primrose. This tree 
 possesses the peculiar property of blooming and 
 emitting its delightful fragrance during the 
 night. There are 
 
 Plants that wake when others sleep; 
 
 Like timid jasmine buds that keep 
 Their odour to themselves all day, 
 
 But, when the sun-light dies away, 
 
 Let the delicious secret out 
 To every breeze that roams about. 
 
 The first bud of the Sorrowful Tree opens as 
 soon as the first star appears in the heavens, 
 and, as the shades of night advance, and the 
 stars thickly stud the sky, the buds continue 
 gradually blowing until the whole tree presents 
 the appearance of one immense flower—the 
 flower of a world, compared with which our 
 earth would be but a football. On the approach 
 of morning, when the brilliancy of the stars 
 gradually fades in the light of day, the Sorrowful 
 Tree closes its flowers ; and, when the first beam 
 of the rising sun appears, not a single blossom 
 is visible. A sheet of flower-dust, as white as 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 27 
 
 snow, covers the ground around the foot of the 
 tree, which seems blighted and withered during 
 the day, while, however, it is invisibly and ac¬ 
 tively preparing for its next nocturnal festival. 
 If this tree is cut down close to the roots, a 
 new plant shoots up and attains maturity in an 
 almost incredibly short space of time: like the 
 truly great man, who, though he may be for a 
 while bowed down by the storms of fate, will 
 soon recover and flourish in his wonted glory. In 
 the vicinity of this singular tree, there usually 
 grows another, which is probably a degenerate 
 seion of the same species. In appearance it ex¬ 
 actly resembles the Sorrowful Tree, though it is 
 less beautiful. It blooms only in the day time, 
 thus presenting an emblem of those persons who 
 seem created only to enjoy the garish light of day, 
 and who suffer the luminaries of night to dif¬ 
 fuse their serener radiance unheeded and unseen. 
 
 Though we dwell not on the luxuriant banks 
 of the Tigris, where, in the spring, the whole 
 country exhibits the appearance of a richly 
 variegated and perfumed flower-bed; yet even 
 in the less fertile regions of the North the gifts 
 of Flora are sufficiently abundant and diversified 
 
28 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 to enable us to create from them a language for 
 the expression of those sentiments to which 
 the tongue cannot always venture to give utter¬ 
 ance. Every flower seems naturally to present 
 some particular emblematic meaning; and, in 
 the combination of a garland or nosegay, it is 
 no difficult matter to compose a riddle, the solu¬ 
 tion of which may afford an agreeable exercise 
 to the fancy. 
 
 If, for example, a lady should receive from 
 her lover a bouquet consisting of roses, lilies, 
 laurel, and forget-me-not; the meaning of the 
 present might be thus interpreted: the flower 
 of innocence, when kissed by the rose, blushes 
 as thou wouldst blush at the approach of love; 
 the proud laurel denotes thy beauty’s triumph; 
 and the tender forget-me-not is the emblem of 
 eternal constancy. 
 
 This idea of rendering flowers the vehicle of 
 a lover’s sentiments has been thus happily 
 seized by one of our early English poets : 4 
 
 Aske me why I send you here 
 This firstling of the infant yeare; 
 
 Aske me why I send to you 
 
 This Primrose all bepearl’d with dew; 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 29 
 
 I strait will whisper in your ears, 
 
 The sweets of love are washt with teares. 
 
 Aske me why this flow’r doth show 
 So yellow, green and sickly too; 
 
 Aske me why the stalk is weak, 
 
 And bending, yet it doth not break ; 
 
 I must tell you, these discover 
 What doubts and fears are in a Lover. 
 
 The following lines from Drayton’s Muses 
 Elysium may afford some useful hints for the 
 arrangement of a bouquet, with regard to the 
 harmonious blending of the tints of the different 
 flowers. A nymph is supposed to be speaking: 
 
 Here damask roses, white and red, 
 
 Out of my lap first take I, v 
 
 Which still shall run along the thread: 
 
 My chiefest flower this make I. 
 
 Amongst these roses in a row, 
 
 Next place I pinks in plenty, 
 
 These double-pansies then for show, 
 
 And will not this be dainty? 
 
 The pretty pansy then I’ll tye 
 Like stones some chain inchasing ; 
 
 And next to them, their near ally, 
 
 The purple violet placing. 
 
 The curious choice clove Julyflower, 
 
 Whose kind hight the carnation, 
 
 For sweetness of most sovereign power, 
 
 Shall help my wreath to fashion ; 
 
30 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Whose sundry colours of one kind, 
 
 First from one root derived, 
 
 Them in their several suits I’ll bind: 
 
 My garland so contrived. 
 
 A course of cowslips then I’ll stick, 
 
 And here and there (though sparely) 
 
 The pleasant primrose down I’ll prick, 
 Like pearls that will show rarely; 
 
 Then with these marygolds I’ll make 
 My garland somewhat swelling, 
 
 These honeysuckles then I’ll take, 
 
 Whose sweets shall help their smelling. 
 
 The lily and the fleur-de-lis,' 
 
 For colour much contenting, 
 
 For that I them do only prize, 
 
 They are but poor in scenting; 
 
 The daffodil most dainty is, 
 
 To match with these in meetness; 
 
 The columbine compared to this, 
 
 All much alike for sweetness. 
 
 These in their natures only are 
 Fit to emboss the border, 
 
 Therefore I’ll take especial care 
 To place them in their order : 
 
 Sweet-williams, campions, sops-in-wine. 
 One by another neatly: 
 
 Thus have I made this wreath of mine, 
 And finished it featly. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 31 
 
 The practice of divination by flowers is not 
 altogether unconnected with the floral language 
 which forms the principal subject of this little 
 volume. It is customary in some countries to 
 pluck off the leaves of the marygold or any 
 flower of the aster kind, while certain words are 
 repeated, in order to ascertain the character or 
 inclination of the individual. Gothe has touched 
 upon this superstition in his tragedy of Faust, 
 in which Margaret plucks off the leaves of a 
 flower, at the same time alternately repeating 
 the words :—“ He loves me.”—“ He loves me 
 not.” On coming to the last leaf she joyfully 
 exclaims—“He loves me!” and Faust says. 
 “ Let this flower pronounce the decree of Hea¬ 
 ven !” 
 
 This circumstance has been chosen by Retsch 
 for the subject of one of his exquisite sketches 
 for the illustration of Faust, to an engraving of 
 which Miss Landon wrote a little poem entitled 
 “ The Decision of the Flower,” containing these 
 lines : 
 
 And with scarlet poppies around, like a bower, 
 
 The maiden found her mystic flower. 
 
 “ Now, gentle flower, I pray thee tell 
 If my lover loves me, and loves me well; 
 
32 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 So may the fall of the morning dew 
 Keep the sun from fading thy tender blue. 
 
 Now I number the leaves for my lot— 
 
 He loves not—he loves me—he loves me not— 
 
 He loves me—yes, thou last leaf, yes— 
 
 I’ll pluck thee not for that last sweet guess ! 
 
 He loves me!”—“ Yes,” a dear voice sighed, 
 
 And her lover stands by Margaret’s side. 
 
 In some countries the following' mode of di¬ 
 vination is resorted to. The lover, male or female* 
 who wishes to ascertain the character of the be- 
 
 loved object, chooses or 
 
 draws by lot one of the 
 
 following flowers: 
 
 
 1. Ranunculus. 
 
 13. Spanish Vetch. 
 
 2. Wild Pink. 
 
 14. Asphodel. 
 
 3. Auricula. 
 
 15. Tricolor. 
 
 4. Blue Cornflower. 
 
 16. Tuberose. 
 
 5. Wild Orach. 
 
 17. Jasmine. 
 
 6. Daisy. 
 
 18. Heart’s-ease. 
 
 7. Tulip. 
 
 19. Lily. 
 
 8. Jonquil. 
 
 20. Fritillary. 
 
 9. Orangeflower. 
 
 21. Snapdragon. 
 
 10. Rose. 
 
 22. Carnation. 
 
 11. Amaranth. 
 
 23. Marygold. 
 
 12. Stock. 
 
 24. Everlasting Flower. 
 
INTRODUCTION. 
 
 33 
 
 The disposition of the individual in question 
 will be found in the subjoined list at the number 
 corresponding with that of the flower, which has 
 either been chosen or allotted by chance. 
 
 1. Enterprising. 
 
 2. Silly. 
 
 3. Base. 
 
 4. Loquacious. 
 
 5. Lazy. 
 
 6. Gentle. 
 
 7. Ostentatious. 
 
 8. Obstinate. 
 
 9. Hasty. 
 
 10. Submissive. 
 
 11. Arbitrary. 
 
 12. Avaricious. 
 
 13. Passionate. 
 
 14. Languishing. 
 
 15. Selfish. 
 
 16. Ambitious. 
 
 17. Cheerful. 
 
 18. Delicate. 
 
 19. Sincere. 
 
 20. Coquettish. 
 
 21. Presumptuous. 
 
 22. Capricious. 
 
 23. Jealous. 
 
 24. Constant. 
 
 The following pages will explain the emble¬ 
 matic significations which have been attributed 
 to different flowers, plants, shrubs, and trees; 
 and the various combinations which these mean¬ 
 ings may suggest will, it is presumed, furnish a 
 pleasing exercise for the ingenuity of our fair 
 readers. 
 
 2 * 
 

 
LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 SPRING. 
 
 Here Spring appears, with flowery chaplets bound. 
 
 Anon. 
 
 Fresh Spring, the herald of love’s mighty king, 
 
 In whose cote-armour richly are display’d 
 All sorts of flowers the which on earth do spring. 
 In goodly colours gloriously array’d. 
 
 Spenser. 
 
 Now gentle gales, 
 
 Fanning their odoriferous wings, dispense 
 Native perfumes, and whisper whence they stole 
 These balmy spoils. 
 
 Milton. 
 
 Who loves not Spring’s voluptuous hours. 
 
 The carnival of birds and flowers 1 
 
 Montgomery. 
 
36 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 SNOWDROP. 
 
 HOPE. 
 
 Though the Snowdrop cannot perhaps, strictly 
 speaking-, be called one of the flowers of spring, 
 still, as the herald of that season, we may he 
 excused for placing it at the head of them. 
 
 Fair-handed Spring unbosom’s every grace, 
 
 Throws out the snowdrop and the crocus first. 
 
 Thomson. 
 
 As Flora’s breath by some transforming power, 
 
 Had changed an icicle into a flower, 
 
 Its name and hue the scentless plant retains, 
 
 And winter lingers in its icy chains. 
 
 Barbaulo. 
 
 The snowdrop, Winter’s timid child, 
 
 Awakes to life, bedewed with tears. 
 
 And flings around its fragrance mild ; 
 
 And, where no rival flow’ret’s bloom 
 Amidst the bare and chilling gloom, 
 
 A beauteous gem appears. 
 
 All weak and wan with head inclined, 
 
 Its parent breast the drifted snow, 
 
 It trembles, while the ruthless wind 
 Bends its slim form; the tempest lowers, 
 
 Its emerald eye drops crystal showers 
 On its cold bed below. 
 
SNOWDROP. 
 
 37 
 
 Where’er I find thee, gentle flower, 
 
 Thou still art sweet and dear to me ! 
 
 For I have known the cheerless hour, 
 
 Have seen the sunbeams cold and pale, 
 
 Have felt the chilling wintry gale, 
 
 And wept and shrunk, like thee! 
 
 Mary Robinson. 
 
 This firstling of the year may not inaptly be 
 considered as an emblem of hope. Some have 
 regarded it as a symbol of humility, of grati¬ 
 tude, and of virgin innocence. 
 
 The north wind howls; the naked branches 
 of the trees are powdered with hoar frost; the 
 earth is covered by a white, uniform carpet; the 
 tuneful birds are silent; the captive rivulet 
 ceases to murmur. At this season, when all 
 Nature appears dead, a delicate flower springs 
 up amidst the snow, displaying to the astonished 
 eye its ivory bells, embosoming a small green 
 spot, as if marked by the pencil of Hope. In 
 expanding its blossoms on the snow, this deli¬ 
 cate flower seems to smile at the rigours of 
 winter, and to say:—“Take courage; here I 
 am to cheer you with the hope of milder wea¬ 
 ther !” 
 
38 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 MEZPREON. 
 
 COQUETRY-DESIRE TO PLEASE. 
 
 The stalk of this shrub is covered with a 
 dry bark, which gives to it the appearance of 
 dead wood. Nature, to hide this deformity, has 
 encircled each of its sprays with a garland of 
 red flowers, wreathed round them and termi¬ 
 nating in a small tuft of leaves, in the manner 
 of the pineapple. These flowers, which appear 
 in the month of February, give out a peculiar 
 and dangerous smell. 
 
 This shrub, clothed in its showy garb, appears 
 amidst the snow like an imprudent and coquet¬ 
 tish female, who, though shivering with cold, 
 wears her spring attire in the depth of winter. 
 
PRIMROSE. 
 
 30 
 
 PRIMROSE. 
 
 CHILDHOOD. 
 
 From the early bloom of this flower, it is 
 called by Linneus, the father of the modern sys¬ 
 tem of botany, Primula Veris —the firstling of 
 Spring. The Auricula, Polyanthus, and Cow¬ 
 slip, belong to this family. 
 
 The Primrose was anciently called Paralisos, 
 the name of a beautiful youth, who died of grief 
 for the loss of his betrothed Melicerta, and was 
 metamorphosed by his parents into this flower, 
 which has since divided the favour of the poets 
 with the Violet and the Rose. 
 
 Beneath the sylvan canopy, the ground 
 Glitters with flowery dyes; the Primrose first, 
 
 In mossy dell, return of Spring to greet. 
 
 Gisborne. 
 
 The Primrose pale is Nature’s meek and modest child. 
 
 Balfour. 
 
 The Primrose, tenant of the glade, 
 
 Emblem of virtue in the shade. 
 
 Mayne. 
 
40 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Shakspeare makes the Primrose a funeral 
 flower for youth. 
 
 With fairest flowers, 
 
 Whilst summer last, and I live here, Fidele, 
 
 I’ll sweeten thy sad grave: thou shalt not lack 
 The flower that’s like thy face, pale primrose. 
 
 Cymbeline. 
 
almond-tree. 
 
 41 
 
 ALMOND-TREE. 
 
 INDISCRETION. 
 
 The Almond-tree is the first of the trees to 
 obey the call of early spring. Nothing can be 
 more graceful than this beautiful tree when it 
 appears covered with blossoms, while the sur¬ 
 rounding trees are still quite naked. It has 
 been made the emblem of indiscretion, from 
 flowering so early that frosts too often destroy 
 the precious germs of its fruit, though, instead 
 of injuring its flowers, they seem to confer on 
 the latter additional beauty. 
 
 According to Moore, the Almond blossom is 
 the emblem of hope— 
 
 The hope, in dreams of a happier hour, 
 
 That alights on Misery’s brow, 
 
 Springs out of the silvery almond-flower, 
 
 That blooms on a leafless bough. 
 
 In ancient times, the abundance of blossom 
 on this tree was considered as the promise of a 
 fruitful season. 
 
42 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Mark well the flowering alnrond in the wood ; 
 
 If odorous blooms the bearing branches load, 
 
 The glebe will answer to the sylvan reign, 
 
 Great heats will follow, and large crops of grain. 
 But if a wood of leaves o’ershade the tree, 
 
 Such and so barren will the harvest be, 
 
 In vain the hind shall vex the threshing floor, 
 
 For empty straw and chaff will be thy store. 
 
 Dryden’s Virgil. 
 
 Fable confers an affecting origin on this tree. 
 It relates that Demophoon, son of Theseus and 
 Phaedra, in returning from the siege of Troy, 
 was thrown by a storm on the shores of Thrace, 
 where then reigned the beautiful Phyllis. The 
 young queen graciously received the prince, fell 
 in love with him, and became his wife. When 
 recalled to Athens by his father’s death, Demo¬ 
 phoon promised to return in a month, and fixed 
 the day. The affectionate Phyllis counted the 
 hours of his absence, and at last the appointed 
 'day arrived. Nine times she repaired to the 
 shore; but, losing all hope of his return, she 
 dropped down dead with grief, and was turned 
 into an Almond-tree. Three months after¬ 
 wards, Demophoon returned. Overwhelmed 
 with sorrow, he offered a sacrifice at the sea- 
 
ALMOND-TREE. 
 
 43 
 
 side, to appease the manes of his bride. She 
 seemed to sympathize with his repentance : for 
 the Almond-tree, into which she had been trans¬ 
 formed, instantly put forth its flowers, and 
 proved by this last effort that true love, “ strong 
 as death,” is incapable of change. 
 
44 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 WEEPING WILLOW. 
 
 MOURNING. 
 
 The Weeping Willow is a native of the East, 
 where it was not only planted near the water, 
 but also near the graves of the dead, over which 
 its branches drooped as in token of mourning 
 and affliction, producing an appropriate and 
 picturesque effect. It is called by Linneus the 
 Willow of Babylon (Salix Babylonica ), in allu¬ 
 sion to that affecting passage in the 137th Psalm, 
 where the captive children of Israel are repre¬ 
 sented as hanging their harps upon the willows, 
 and sitting down beside the waters of Babylon to 
 weep the separation from their beloved country. 
 
 Silent their harps—each cord unstrung, 
 
 On pendent willow-branches hung. 
 
 Boorer. 
 
 On the willow thy harp is suspended— 
 
 O Salem! its sound should be free, 
 
 And the hour when thy glories were ended 
 But left me that token of thee ; 
 
 And ne’er shall its soft notes be blended 
 With the voice of the spoiler by me. 
 
 Byron. 
 
WEEPING WILLOW. 
 
 45 
 
 Forsaken lovers are represented by our earlier 
 poets as wearing wreaths of Willow. 
 
 In love, the sad, forsaken wight 
 The Willow-garland weareth. 
 
 Drayton. 
 
 I offered him my company to a Willow-tree, to make 
 him a garland, as being forsaken. 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
 In such a night, 
 
 Stood Dido, with a Willow in her hand, 
 
 Upon the wild sea-banlcs, and waved her love 
 To come again to Carthage. 
 
 Id. 
 
 I’ll wear the Willow-garland for his sake 
 
 Id. 
 
 The Arabs have a particular tradition relative 
 to the origin of the Weeping Willow. This 
 tradition is founded on the story of Bathsheba, 
 and corresponds with the account given in the 
 Old Testament of the manner in which she 
 became the wife of David and the mother of 
 Solomon. It then proceeds thus:—One morn¬ 
 ing, the king was seated as usual at his harp, 
 composing psalms, when he perceived to his 
 astonishment two strangers seated opposite to 
 
46 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 him on the divan. As strict orders were issued 
 that no person whatever should be admitted 
 during the first four hours of the day, David 
 wondered greatly how the strangers had gained 
 access to his closet. They rose, and begged 
 pardon for having entered unannounced, because 
 they had an urgent complaint to lay before him. 
 David quitted the harp, and placed himself on 
 his judgment-seat. “This man,” began one of 
 them, “has ninety-nine sheep, which plentifully 
 supply all his wants ; while I, poor wretch, had 
 but one that was my joy and comfort, and that 
 one he has forcibly taken from me.” At the 
 mention of the ninety-nine sheep, David could 
 not help thinking of the flock of his harem. 
 He recognized in the strangers two angels of 
 the Lord, and was sensible of the heinousness 
 of his offence. Forthwith he threw himself 
 upon the floor, and shed tears of bitter repent¬ 
 ance. There he lay for forty days and forty 
 nights upon his face, weeping and trpmbling 
 before the judgment of the Lord. As many 
 tears of repentance as the whole human race 
 have shed and will shed on account of their 
 sins, from the time of David till the judgment 
 
WEEPING WILLOW. 
 
 47 
 
 day, so many did David weep in those forty 
 days, all the while moaning forth psalms of 
 penitence. The tears from his eyes formed 
 two streams, which ran from the closet into the 
 ante-room, and thence into the garden. Where 
 they sank into the ground, there sprang up two 
 trees, the Weeping Willow and the Frankincense 
 Tree. The first weeps and mourns; and the 
 second is incessantly shedding big tears, in 
 memory of the sincere repentance of David. 
 
48 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 VIOLET. 
 
 MODESTY. 
 
 Ion, the Greek name of this flower, is traced 
 by some etymologists to la, the daughter of 
 Midas, who was betrothed to Atys, and changed 
 by Diana into a Violet, to hide her from Apollo. 
 Tiie beautiful modest flower still retains the 
 bashful timidity of the nymph, partially con¬ 
 cealing itself amidst foliage from the garish 
 gaze of the sun. Hence it has been ingeniously 
 given as a device to an amiable and witty lady, 
 of a timid and reserved disposition, surrounded 
 with the motto —Ilfaut me chercher —I must be 
 sought after. 
 
 A woman’s love, deep in the heart, 
 
 Is like the Violet flower, 
 
 That lifts its modest head apart 
 In some sequestered bower. 
 
 Anon. 
 
 Unhappy fate of doubtful maid! 
 
 Her tears may fall, her bosom swell; 
 But even to the desert shade 
 She never must her secret tell. 
 
 W. Smyth. 
 
VIOLET. 
 
 49 
 
 The White Violet is also made the emblem of 
 innocence; and, from the following lines, by a 
 poet of the sixteenth century, it appears to have 
 been then considered as a symbol of constancy: 
 
 Violet is for faithfulness, 
 
 Which in me shall abide ; 
 
 Hoping likewise that from your heart 
 You will not let it slide. 
 
 The poetry, the romance, and the scenery, of 
 every country are embroidered with Violets. 
 
 Violets dim. 
 
 But sweeter than the lids of Juno’s eyes, 
 
 Or Cytherea’s breath. 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
 From several other passages in Shakspeare’s 
 works, it is evident that the Violet was a fa¬ 
 vourite with our great dramatist. We doubt if 
 the poetry of any language can produce lines 
 more exquisitely beautiful than these, in which 
 he compares the soft strains of plaintive music 
 to the perfume of Violets :— 
 
 That strain again !—it had a dying fall !— 
 
 Oh! it came o’er my ear like the sweet south. 
 
 That breathes upon a bank of Violets, 
 
 Stealing and giving odour. 
 
 3 
 
 Twelfth Night 
 
50 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 It has a scent, as though Love for its dower 
 Had on it all his odorous arrows tost; 
 
 For, though the rose has more perfuming power, 
 
 The Violet (haply ’cause ’tis almost lost. 
 
 And takes us so much trouble to discover) 
 
 Stands first with most, but always with a lover. 
 
 Barry Cornwall. 
 
 At the Floral Games instituted at Toulouse 
 in the early part of the fourteenth century, in the 
 time of the Troubadours, the prize awarded 
 to the author of the best poetical composition 
 consisted of a golden Violet, to which several 
 other prizes were afterwards added by Clemence 
 Isaure. This festival, interrupted by the Re¬ 
 volution, was revived in 1806, and is still held 
 annually in the town-house of Toulouse. 
 
DAISY. 
 
 .51 
 
 DAISY. , 
 
 INNOCENCE. 
 
 Fabulous history informs us that the Daisy 
 owed its origin to Belides, one of the nymphs 
 called Dryads, who were supposed to preside 
 over meadows and pastures. While dancing 
 on the turf with Ephigeus, whose suit she en¬ 
 couraged, she attracted the admiration of Ver- 
 tumnus, the deity who presided over orchards; 
 and to escape from him, she was transformed 
 into the humble flower, the Latin name of which 
 is Beilis. The ancient English name of this 
 flower was Day’s Eye, in which way it is written 
 by Ben Jonson; and Chaucer calls it the “ee 
 of the daie.” No doubt it received this desig¬ 
 nation from its habit of closing its petals at night, 
 which it also does in rainy weather. 
 
 The Daisy has always been a favourite with 
 poets. Shakspeare speaks of it as the flower 
 
 Whose white investments figure innocence. 
 
52 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Star of the mead!—sweet daughter of the day, 
 Whose opening flower invites the morning ray, 
 From thy moist cheek and bosom’s chilly fold 
 To kiss the tears of Eve, the dew-drops cold, 
 Sweet Daisy! 
 
 Leyden. 
 
 When, smitten by the morning ray, 
 
 I see thee rise, alert and gay, 
 
 Then, cheerful flower! my spirits play 
 With kindred gladness : 
 
 And when, at dark, by dews opprest, 
 
 Thou sink’st, the image of thy rest 
 Hath often eased my pensive breast 
 Of careful sadness. 
 
 Wordsworth. 
 
 O’er waste and woodland, rock and plain, 
 
 Its humble buds unheeded rise; 
 
 The rose has but a summer reign— 
 
 The Daisy never dies. 
 
 Montgomery. 
 
 Not worlds on worlds in phalanx deep 
 Need we to prove a God is here; 
 
 The Daisy, fresh from Winter’d sleep, 
 
 Tells of his hand in lines as clear. 
 
 For who but He who arched the skies, 
 
 And pours the day-spring’s living flood, 
 Wondrous alike in all he tries, 
 
 Could raise the Daisy’s purple bud ! 
 
DAISY. 
 
 53 
 
 Mould its green cup, its wiry stem, 
 
 Its fringed border nicely spin, 
 
 And cut the gold-embossed gem 
 That, set in silver, gleams within; 
 
 And fling it, unrestrained and free, 
 
 O’er hill, and dale, and desert sod, 
 
 That Man, where’er he walks, may see 
 In every step the stamp of God! 
 
 Mason Good. 
 
 Malvina, bending over the tomb of Fingal, 
 wept for the valiant Oscar, and a son of Oscar’s 
 who never beheld the light of day, 
 
 The maids of Morven, to soothe her grief, 
 assembled around her, and sang the death of 
 the hero and of the new-born infant. 
 
 The hero is fallen, said they, he is fallen ! 
 The crash of his arms hath rung over the plain. 
 He is beyond the reach of disease, which enfee¬ 
 bles the soul—of old age, which dishonours the 
 brave. He has fallen, and the crash of his 
 arms hath rung over the plain. In the palace of 
 clouds, where dwell his ancestors, he now quaffs 
 with them the cup of immortality. Dry the 
 tears of thy grief, O daughter of Toscar ! The 
 hero is fallen !—he is fallen !—and the crash of 
 his arms hath rung over the plain ! 
 
54 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Then, in a softer tone, they said to her:—The 
 child which hath not seen the light hath not 
 known the sorrows of life: his young spirit, 
 borne aloft on glittering wings, soars to the 
 abodes of everlasting day. The souls of infants 
 who, like thine, 'have burst without pain the 
 bonds of life, reclining on golden clouds, appear 
 and open to him the mysterious portal of the 
 manufactory of flowers. There these innocents 
 are continually employed in enclosing the flowers 
 that the next spring shall bring forth in imper¬ 
 ceptible germs: these germs they scatter every 
 morning over the earth with the tears of the 
 dawn. Millions of delicate hands enwrap the 
 rose in its bud, the grain of corn in its husk, 
 the mighty oak in a single acorn, a whole forest 
 in an imperceptible seed. 
 
 We have seen him, Malvina !—we have seen 
 the infant whom thou mournest, borne on a 
 light mist: he approached, and poured upon 
 our fields a fresh harvest of flowers. Behold, 
 Malvina!—among these flowers there is one 
 with golden disk, encircled with rays of silver, 
 tipped with a delicate tint of crimson. Waving 
 amid the grass in a gentle breeze, it looks like 
 
DAISV. 
 
 55 
 
 a little child playing in a green meadow. Dry 
 thy tears, O Malvina!—the hero died covered 
 with his arms; and the flower of thy bosom has 
 given a new flower to the hills of Cromla. 
 
 And the grief of Malvina was soothed by 
 these songs, and she repeated the song of the 
 new-born. 
 
 Since that day the daughters of Morven have 
 consecrated the Daisy to infancy. It is, they 
 say, the flower of innocence, the flower of the 
 new-born. 
 
56 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 HEART’S-EASE. 
 
 THINK OF ME. 
 
 The Heart’s-ease, Viola tricolor , or Pansy, 
 from the French Pensie, is a beautiful variety 
 of the Violet, differing from it in the diversity 
 of its colours, the petals being chiefly yellow, 
 variegated with black and purple. In fragrance, 
 however, it is far inferior to the Violet. One 
 species of the Pansy is entirely purple. 
 
 And there are pansies, that’s for thoughts. 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
 And thou, so rich in gentle names, appealing 
 To hearts that own our nature’s common lot ; 
 
 Thou, styled by sportive Fancy’s better feeling 
 A Thought, the Heart’s-Ease, and Forget Me Not. 
 
 Barton. 
 
 The fanciful origin of the colour of this flower 
 is thus described by our great bard. 
 
 I saw, 
 
 Flying between the cold moon and the earth, 
 Cupid all arm’d ; a certain aim he took 
 At a fair vestal throned in the West. 
 
heart’s-ease. 
 
 57 
 
 And loosed his love-shaft smartly from his bow, 
 
 As it should pierce a hundred thousand hearts. 
 
 But I might see young Cupid’s fiery shaft 
 Quench’d in the chaste beams of the wat’ry moon 
 And the imperial vot’ress passed on 
 In maiden meditation, fancy-free. 
 
 Yet marked I where the bolt of Cupid fell: 
 
 It fell upon a little western flower, 
 
 Before milk-white, now purple with love’s wound, 
 And maidens call it Love in Idleness. 
 
 The juice of it, on sleeping eyelids laid, 
 
 Will make or man or woman madly doat 
 Upon the next live creature that it sees. 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
 In the year 1815, this flower furnished occa¬ 
 sion for a tragi-comic occurrence in France. 
 A. schoolmaster in a provincial town had pro¬ 
 posed as a theme for his pupils a description of 
 the Viola Tricolor , and given them as a motto 
 the following passage from a Latin poem by 
 Father Rapin, entitled “ The Gardens 
 
 Flosque Jovis varius, folii tricoloris, et ipsi 
 Par violte. 
 
 The mayor of the town was informed of the 
 circumstance; and, taking it into his head that 
 the object of the schoolmaster was to excite 
 insurrection against the government of the 
 3* 
 
58 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 lately-restored Louis XVIII., this sage function¬ 
 ary ordered the poor man to be apprehended. 
 The mayor construed the verses above-quoted 
 in the following manner :—Flos Jovis, the flower 
 of Jupiter, was of course the flower of Napoleon; 
 folii tricoloris denoted as evidently the three- 
 coloured cockade; et ipsi par violce was a mani¬ 
 fest allusion to la pere la violelte, as Bonaparte 
 was then called, because his partisans had 
 adopted this flower as a sign of their attach¬ 
 ment, and carried it in their button-holes or in 
 their bosoms. Astonished and confounded as 
 the poor schoolmaster at first was at his arrest, 
 he could not forbear smiling at this comic inter¬ 
 pretation of the above passage by his worship, 
 the mayor. 
 
I' 
 
/jf u <V em/ia/urtf r Aii//y'ii/e n nA// 
 
 '/!/! I ■? jff'M //if /’ << AYV'- 
 
WALLFLOWER. 
 
 59 
 
 WALLFLOWER. 
 
 FIDELITY IN MISFORTUNE. 
 
 The Wallflower derives its name from the 
 circumstance of its growing upon old walls, and 
 being seen on the casements or battlements of 
 ancient castles, among the ruins of abbeys, and 
 on turrets, and cottages. Hence the minstrels 
 and troubadours were accustomed to wear a 
 bouquet of Wallflowers, as the emblem of an 
 affection which is proof against time and mis¬ 
 fortune. 
 
 Modern poets have not been backward to 
 acknowledge the merits of this beautiful and 
 fragrant flower. 
 
 To me it speaks of loveliness, 
 
 That passes not with youth, 
 
 Of beauty which decay can bless, 
 
 Of constancy and truth. 
 
 But, in adversity’s dark hour, 
 
 When glory is gone by, 
 
60 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 It then exerts its gentle power 
 The scene to beautify. 
 
 Bartow. 
 
 An emblem true thou art 
 Of love’s enduring lustre, given 
 
 To cheer a lonely heart. 
 
 Id. 
 
 And our friend Moir (Delta of Blackwood's 
 Magazine (pays this feeling tribute to the Wall¬ 
 flower. 
 
 The Wallflower, the Wallflower 1 
 How beautiful it blooms! 
 
 It gleams above the ruined tower. 
 
 Like sunlight over tombs; 
 
 It sheds a halo of repose 
 Around the wrecks of time ; 
 
 To beauty give the flaunting rose — 
 
 The Wallflower is sublime. 
 
 Flower of the solitary place 1 
 Gray Ruin’s golden crown, 
 
 That lendest melancholy grace 
 To haunts of old Renown r 
 • Thou mantlest o’er the battlement. 
 
 By strife or storm decay’d; 
 
 And fillest up each envious rent 
 Time’s canker tooth hath made. 
 
 Whither hath fled the choral band 
 Tiiat fill’d the abbey’s nave? 
 
WALLFLOWER. 
 
 61 
 
 Yon dark sepulchral yew-trees stand 
 O’er many a level grave. 
 
 In the belfry’s crevices, the dove 
 Her young brood nurseth well, 
 
 Whilst thou, lone flower, dost shed above 
 A sweet decaying smell. 
 
 In the season of the tulip-cup, 
 
 When blossoms clothe the trees, 
 
 How sweet to throw the lattice up, 
 
 And scent thee on the breeze ! 
 
 The butterfly is then abroad. 
 
 The bee is on the wing, 
 
 And on the hawthorn by the road 
 The linnets sit and sing. 
 
 Sweet Wallflower, sweet Wallflower 1 
 Thou conjurest up to me 
 Full many a soft and sunny hour 
 Of boyhood’s thoughtless glee ; 
 
 When joy from out the daisies grew 
 In woodland pastures green, 
 
 And summer skies were far more blue 
 Than since they e’er have been. 
 
 Now Autumn’s pensive voice is heard 
 Amid the yellow bowers; 
 
 The robin is the regal bird. 
 
 And thou the queen of flowers 1 
 He sings on the laburnum trees, 
 
 Amid the twilight dim, 
 
 And Araby ne’er gave the breeze 
 Such scents as thou to him. 
 
LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Rich is the pink, the lily gay, 
 
 The rose is summer’s guest; 
 
 Bland are thy charms when these decay— 
 Of flowers first, last, and best! 
 
 There may be gaudier in fhe bower, 
 
 And statelier on the tree— 
 
 But Wallflower, loved Wallflower, 
 
 Thou art the flower for me ! 
 
NARCISSUS. 
 
 63 
 
 NARCISSUS AND DAFFODIL. 
 
 SELF-LOVE. 
 
 The ancients attributed the origin of this 
 dower to the metamorphosis of a beautiful youth 
 named Narcissus, who, having slighted the love 
 of the nymph Echo, became enamoured of his 
 own image, which he beheld in a fountain, and 
 pined to death in consequence. 
 
 Here young Narcissus o’er the fountain stood, 
 
 And viewed his image in the crystal flood ; 
 
 The crystal flood reflects his lovely charms. 
 
 And the pleased image strives to meet his arms. 
 
 No nymph his inexperienced breast subdued, 
 
 Echo in vain the flying boy pursued. 
 
 Himself alone the foolish youth admires. 
 
 And with fond look the smiling shade desires. 
 
 O’er the smooth lake with fruitless tears he grieves; 
 His spreading fingers shoot in verdant leaves : 
 Through his pale veins green sap now gently flows, 
 And in a short lived flower his beauty blows 
 Let vain Narcissus warn each female breast 
 That beauty’s but a transient good at best; 
 
 Like flowers, it withers with th’ advancing year. 
 
 And age, like winter, robs the blooming fair. 
 
 Gav. 
 
64 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 « 
 
 There are several species of the Narcissus. 
 That called the Poetic is the largest of the white 
 kinds, and may be distinguished from all others 
 by the crimson border of the very shallow and 
 almost flat cup of the nectary. The double 
 variety is the most frequent in gardens. The 
 narrow-leafed crimson-edged Narcissus is the 
 only one that resembles the Poetic, but it is not 
 much more than half as large, with narrower 
 leaves, a flatter form, and the edge of the nec¬ 
 tary more prominent. It flowers earlier than the 
 other. 
 
 The Yellow Narcissus is better known by the 
 name of Daffodil. By early writers this flower 
 was considered as a species of lily. It has even 
 been conjectured that the name is a corruption 
 of Dis’s Lily, as it is supposed to be the flower 
 dropped from the chariot of Dis or Pluto, in his 
 flight with Proserpine. 
 
 Shakspeare, in his Winter’s Tale, alludes to 
 his story, as well as to the early season in 
 which the Daffodil flowers: 
 
 O Proserpina, 
 
 For the flowers now that, frighted, thou lett’st fall 
 
 From Dis’s wagon : Daffodils 
 
 That come before the swallow dares, and take 
 
 The winds of March with beauty. 
 
NARCISSUS. 
 
 65 
 
 Drayton in his Pastorals makes the Daffodil 
 the same flower with the Lily : 
 
 See that there be store of lilies. 
 
 (Called by shepherds Daffodillies.) 
 
 The Narcissus major, the largest of this fa¬ 
 mily of flowers, a native of Spain, is common 
 in our gardens, and rarely seen single. Its 
 magnificent gold-coloured flowers are supported 
 by a stalk nearly two feet high. 
 
 A modern poet has taken the Narcissus for 
 an emblem of the pains of unrequited love. 
 Thus, too, the ancients, on account of its nar¬ 
 cotic properties, regarded it as the flower of 
 deceit, which, as Homer assures us, delights 
 heaven and earth by its odour and external 
 beauty, but, at the same time, produces stupor 
 and even death. It was therefore consecrated 
 to the Eumenides, Ceres, and Proserpine, on 
 which account Sophocles calls it the garland of 
 the great goddesses; and Pluto, by the advice 
 of Venus, employed it to entice Proserpine to 
 the lower world. 
 
 In the East, the Daffodil is a particular fa¬ 
 vourite. The Persians call it, by way of emi¬ 
 nence, Zerrin, which signifies golden; and by 
 
 
LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 66 
 
 the Turks it is denominated Zerrin Kadech, 
 golden bowl. 
 
 One of our older poets moralizes upon this 
 flower in the following beautiful lines:— 
 
 Fair Daffodils, we weep to see 
 You haste away so soon ; 
 
 As yet the early rising sun 
 Has not attained his noon : 
 
 Stay, stay, 
 
 Until the hastening day 
 Has run 
 
 But to the even-song. 
 
 And, having pray’d together, we 
 Will go with you along. 
 
 We have short time to stay as ye, 
 
 We have as fleet a spring, 
 
 As quick a growth to meet decay 
 As you or anything: 
 
 We die 
 
 As your hours do, and dry 
 Away, 
 
 Like to the summer’s rain, 
 
 Or as the pearls of morning’s dew, 
 
 Ne’er to be found again. 
 
HAWTHORN. 
 
 67 
 
 HAWTHORN. 
 
 HOPE. 
 
 The Hawthorn, or White Thorn, was among 
 the Greeks a symbol of the conjugal union; its 
 blossomed boughs were carried about at then- 
 wedding festivities, and the new-married couple 
 were even lighted to the bridal chamber with 
 torches of its wood. 
 
 Among the Turks a branch of the Hawthorn 
 expresses the wish of a lover to receive a kiss 
 from the object of his affection. 
 
 |In England, where the hedges, principally 
 formed of Hawthorn, give such beauty and di¬ 
 versity to our landscapes, and where the air is 
 perfumed during the season of flowering by the 
 aromatic fragrance of its blossom, this shrub 
 held a distinguished place among the May-day 
 sports of our ancestors. From its flowering in 
 that month, it received the name of May, by 
 which it is still more frequently-called than by 
 its proper appellation. 
 
 Stow tells us that, on May-day, in the morn- 
 
68 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ing, “every man, except impediment, would 
 walk into the sweet meadows and green woods, 
 there to rejoice their spirits with the beauty and 
 savour of sweet flowers, and with the harmony 
 of birds praising God in their kind.” People 
 of all ranks joined in this recreation. King 
 Henry VIII. rode a-maying from Greenwich to 
 Shooter’s Hill, with his queen Katherine, accom¬ 
 panied by many lords and ladies. 
 
 In the country, the juvenile part of both 
 sexes were accustomed to rise soon after mid¬ 
 night, and walk to some neighbouring wood, 
 accompanied with music and the blowing of 
 horns; there they would break branches from 
 the trees and adorn them with nosegays and 
 crowns of flowers. This done, they returned 
 homeward about sunrise with their booty, and 
 decorated their doors and windows with the 
 flowery spoil. The after-part of the day was 
 chiefly spent in dancing round a tall pole, called 
 a May-pole; which, being placed in a conve¬ 
 nient part of the village, stood there, conse¬ 
 crated as it were to the goddess of flowers, 
 without suffering the least violation during the 
 whole year. 
 
HAWTHORN. 
 
 69 
 
 Herrick, in his beautiful poem of “ Corinna’s 
 going a-maying,” has also given us some idea 
 of the manner in which this day was kept in 
 his time. 
 
 Come, my Corinna, come; and, coming, mark 
 How each field turns a street, each street a park, 
 
 Made green and trimmed with trees; see how 
 Devotion gives each house a bough, 
 
 Or branch ; each porch, each door, ere this, 
 
 An ark, a tabernacle is, 
 
 Made up of white-thorne, neatly interwove, 
 
 As if here were those cooler shades of love. 
 
 Can such delights be in the street 
 And open fields, and we not see’t? 
 
 Come, we’ll abroad, and let’s obey 
 The proclamations made for May, 
 
 And sin no more, as we have done, by staying ; 
 
 But, my Corinna, come ; let’s go a-Maying. 
 
 There’s not a budding boy or girl, this day, 
 
 But is got up and gone to bring in May: 
 
 A deal of youth, ere this, is come 
 Back, and with white-thorne laden home; 
 
 Some have dispatched their cakes and cream 
 Before that we have left to dream ; 
 
 And some have wept and wooed and plighted troth, 
 And chose their priest ere we can cast off sloth : 
 
 Many a green gown has been given, 
 
 Many a kiss, both odd and even ; 
 
 Many a glance too has been sent 
 From out the eye, love’s firmament: 
 
70 
 
 LANGUAGE OP FLOWERS. 
 
 Many a jest told of the Key's betraying 
 
 This night and locks picked; yet we’re not a-Maying. 
 
 Come, let us go while we are in our prime, 
 
 And take the harmless folly of the time. 
 
 Shakspeare notices with what eagerness the 
 pleasures of May-day morning were pursued in 
 his time :— 
 
 ’Tis as much impossible, 
 
 Unless we swept them from the door with cannons. 
 
 To scatter ’em as ’tis to make ’em sleep 
 
 On May-day morning. 
 
 The May-day diversions and May-poles were 
 not confined to the country. In London there 
 were anciently several May-poles, the last of 
 which, near Somerset House, in the Strand, 
 was not taken down till the year 1717 . 
 
 In the scarlet berries of the Hawthorn, which 
 are called haws, Providence has furnished an 
 abundant supply of food for the small birds 
 during winter: and it is a current notion that 
 “ store of haws portend cold wfinters.” So says 
 Lord Bacon, and no doubt experience might 
 often be found to confirm the observation. 
 
 A beautiful variety of this tree, with double 
 red blossom of extraordinary fragrance, is culti¬ 
 vated in our gardens. 
 
TULIP. 
 
 71 
 
 TULIP. 
 
 DECLARATION OF LOVE. 
 
 In the East the Tulip is employed as the 
 emblem by which a lover makes a declaration 
 of love; presenting the idea that, like that 
 flower, he has a face all on fire and a heart 
 reduced to a coal— 
 
 Whose leaves, with their ruby glow, 
 
 Hide the heart that lies burning and black below. 
 
 On account of the elegance of its form, the 
 beauty of its colours, but its want of fragrance 
 and other useful qualities, this flower has been 
 considered as an appropriate symbol of a female 
 who possesses no other recommendation than 
 personal beauty. 
 
 It is supposed , to have been brought from 
 Persia to the Levant, and it was introduced 
 into western Europe about the middle of the 
 sixteenth century, by Busbeck, ambassador 
 from the Emperor of Germany to the Porte; 
 who, to his astonishment, found Tulips on the 
 road between Adrianople and Constantinople, 
 
72 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 blooming', in the middle of winter, intermin¬ 
 gled with the hyacinth and the narcissus, and 
 could not sufficiently admire their beauty. The 
 name given to it by Europeans is supposed to 
 originate in a corruption of the Persian word 
 dulbend, the muslin head-covering adopted by 
 the Mahometan nations, which we have trans¬ 
 formed into turban. In a Persian of rank this 
 article of dress is not unlike the swelling form 
 of the Tulip. Moore, in his “Veiled Prophet,” 
 alludes to this resemblance :— 
 
 What triumph crowds the rich l)ivan to-day, 
 
 With turban’d heads of every hue and race, 
 
 Bowing before that veil’d and awful face, 
 
 Like tulip-beds of different shape and dyes, 
 
 Bending beneath th’ invisible west wind’s sighs! 
 
 On their first introduction into Europe, Tulips 
 became especial favourites of the cultivators of 
 flowers. From Vienna they soon spread in 
 Italy, and were sent in 1600 to England. Ele¬ 
 ven years later they were first seen in France, 
 in the garden of the learned Pieresc, at Aix, in 
 Provence. In Holland, about the middle of 
 the seventeenth century, a real mania for pos¬ 
 sessing rare sorts seized all classes of persons. 
 
TULIP. 
 
 73 
 
 It would be almost impossible to credit the 
 extraordinary accounts of the high prices given 
 in that country for Tulips, did w.e not know that 
 it was a rage for gambling speculations, rather 
 than a fondness for flowers, which occasioned 
 these excesses. For a single Tulip, to which 
 the Dutch florists had given the fine name of 
 Semper Augustus , were given four thousand 
 six hundred florins (about £400), a beautiful 
 new carriage, a pair of horses, and harness: 
 another of the same kind sold for thirteen thou¬ 
 sand florins ; and engagements to the amount 
 of £5000 were made during the height of this 
 mania for a single root of a particular sort. A 
 person who possessed a Tulip of a very fine 
 variety, hearing that there was another of the 
 same kind .at Haerlem, repaired to that city, 
 and, having purchased it at an enormous price, 
 placed it on a stone and crushed it to a mummy 
 with his foot, exclaiming with exultation, “Now 
 my tulip is unique !” We are also told that 
 another, who possessed a yearly income of sixty 
 thousand florins, reduced himself to beggary in 
 the short space of four months, by purchasing 
 these flowers. From this spirit of floral gam- 
 4 
 
74 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 bling the city of Haerlem is said to have derived 
 not less than ten millions sterling in the space 
 of three years! 
 
 It is related that, during the prevalence of 
 this mania, a sailor, having brought some goods 
 to a merchant who cultivated Tulips on specu¬ 
 lation, had a herring given to him for his break¬ 
 fast, with which he walked away. As he passed 
 through the garden, he saw some roots lying 
 there, and, mistaking them for onions, he picked 
 them up and ate them with his herring. At 
 this moment the merchant, coming forward and 
 discovering what had happened, exclaimed in 
 despair, “Inconsiderate man, thou hast ruined 
 me with thy breakfast! I could have regaled a 
 king with it.” 
 
 From the extraordinary favour thus shown to 
 the Tulip, the species were soon multiplied 
 to such a degree that in 1740 the Baden-Dur- 
 lach Garden at Carlsruhe contained not fewer 
 than two thousand one hundred and fifty-nine 
 sorts; and the garden of Count Pappenheim 
 boasted at one time of five thousand varieties. 
 
 The estimation in which the Turks still hold 
 Tulips is little inferior to that which they for- 
 
TULIP. 
 
 75 
 
 merly enjoyed in Holland. They are never 
 tired of admiring its elegant stem, the beau¬ 
 tiful vase which crowns it, with the streaks of 
 gold, silver, purple, red, and the innumerable 
 tints which revel, unite, and part again, on the 
 surface of those rich petals. 
 
 And sure more lovely to behold 
 Might nothing meet the wistful eye, 
 
 Than crimson fading into gold 
 In streaks of fairest symmetry. 
 
 Langhorn. 
 
 The bulb or root of the Tulip resembles in 
 every respect the bud of other plants, except 
 in being produced under ground, and includes 
 the leaves and flowers in miniature, which are 
 to be expanded in the ensuing spring. By the 
 careful dissection of a Tulip-root, and cautiously 
 cutting through its concentric coats, lengthwise 
 from top to bottom, and taking them off suc¬ 
 cessively, the whole flower of the next summer 
 with all its parts may be discovered by the naked 
 eye. A popular poet has alluded to this cir¬ 
 cumstance in these lines, written “ On planting 
 a Tulip-root 
 
 Here lies a bulb, the child of earth, 
 
 Buried alive beneath the clod. 
 
6 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Ere long to spring, by second birth, 
 
 A new and nobler work of God. 
 
 ’Tis said that microscopic power 
 Might through his swaddling folds descry 
 
 The infant image of the flower, 
 
 Too exquisite to meet the eye. 
 
 This vernal suns and rain will swell, 
 
 Till from its dark abode it peep, 
 
 Like Venus rising from her shell, 
 
 Amidst the spring-tide of the deep. 
 
 Two shapely leaves will first unfold; 
 
 Then, on a smooth, elastic stem, 
 
 The verdant bud shall turn to gold, 
 
 And open in a diadem. 
 
 Not one of Flora’s brilliant race 
 A form more perfect can display; 
 
 Art could not feign more simple grace, 
 
 Nor Nature take a line away. 
 
 Vet, rich as morn, of many a hue, 
 
 When flushing clouds through darkness strike, 
 
 The Tulip’s petals shine in dew 
 All beautiful, but none alike. 
 
 Montgomery. 
 
HORSE-CHESNUT. 
 
 77 
 
 HORSE-CHESNUT. 
 
 LUXURY. 
 
 It is more than two centuries since the 
 Horse-chesnut has been an inhabitant of our 
 climate; and nevertheless it is not yet observed 
 to mingle its superb head with the crowd of 
 trees indigenous to our forests. Its delight is 
 to embellish parks, to adorn superb mansions, 
 and to throw its broad shadow over the palaces 
 of kings. 
 
 One showery day in the commencement of 
 spring suffices to invest this beautiful tree with 
 all the richness of its verdure. When it grows 
 by itself, nothing can be compared with the min¬ 
 gled magnificence and elegance of its pyramidal 
 form, the beauty of its foliage, and the richness 
 of its flowers, which gave it the appearance of 
 an immense chandelier covered with innume¬ 
 rable girandoles. Ever attached to pomp and 
 profusion, it covers with flowers the green turf 
 which it protects with its shadow, and yields to 
 pleasure its most delicious seclusion. But to 
 
78 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 the poor it only yields a scanty fuel and a bitter 
 fruit. 
 
 Naturalists and physicians especially have 
 gratuitously conferred on this native of India 
 a thousand good qualities which it does not 
 possess. This beautiful tree, like the rich on 
 whom it lavishes its shade, obtains flatterers; 
 and thus, like them, does some good in spite of 
 itself; while it astonishes the vulgar by a display 
 of useless profusion. 
 
 By some it has been regarded as an emblem 
 of modesty and chastity. 
 
LILAC. 
 
 79 
 
 LILAC. 
 
 FIRST EMOTIONS OF LOVE. 
 
 The Lilac has been consecrated lo the first 
 emotions of love; because nothing possesses a 
 greater charm than the delight afforded by its 
 appearance on the return of spring. Indeed, 
 the freshness of its verdure, the flexibility of its 
 branches, the profusion of its flowers, their 
 short and transitory beauty, their soft and varie¬ 
 gated hues—all recall those celestial emotions 
 which embellish beauty and lend to youth its 
 “grace divine.” 
 
 Never was Albano able to mingle on that 
 pallet, which he derived from the hand of love 
 itself, colours sufficiently fresh and flowing to 
 represent the velvet softness and delicacy of 
 the tints which embellish the brow of early 
 youth. Van Spaendonc himself threw down 
 his pencil on viewing a group of Lilacs. Na¬ 
 ture seems to have delighted in making a 
 
80 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 finished production of each of its delicate clus¬ 
 ters, massive in itself, and yet astonishing by 
 its variety and beauty. The gradation of its 
 tints, from the first purplish blood to the blanch¬ 
 ing flower, is the smallest fascination of its 
 charming blossoms, round which the rainbow 
 seems to revel and to dissolve into a hundred 
 shades and colours, which, all commingling in 
 the general tone and hue, produce a happy har¬ 
 mony that might well baffle the painter and con¬ 
 found the observer. 
 
 The lilac, various in array, now white, 
 
 Now sanguine, and her beauteous head now set 
 With purple spikes pyramidal, as if, 
 
 Studious of ornament, yet unresolved 
 
 Which hues she most approved, she chose them all. 
 
 Cowper. 
 
 What immense pains does Nature appear to 
 have taken to form this fragrant shrub, which 
 merely seems to exist in order to gratify the 
 senses ! what a union of perfume, grace, and 
 delicacy ! what variety in details ! what harmony 
 in the assemblage! Doubtless it was destined in 
 the decrees of Providence to become the future 
 bond of union between Europe and Asia. The 
 
LILAC. 
 
 81 
 
 Lilac, which the traveller Busbeck brought, in 
 the sixteenth century, to Europe from Persia, 
 now grows on the mountains of Switzerland and 
 in the forests of Germany. 
 
82 
 
 language of flowers. 
 
 BUGLOSS. 
 
 FALSEHOOD. 
 
 A celebrated French moralist has observed 
 that if women were naturally what they become 
 by artificial means, if they were to lose in a 
 moment all the freshness of their complexion, 
 and their faces were to be as flaring and as 
 leaden as they make them with rouge and fard, 
 they would go distracted. 
 
 Incontestable as this truth appears, it is 
 equally true that from north to south and from 
 east to west, among savage nations and civi¬ 
 lized nations, a fondness for using artificial 
 means of improving the complexion universally 
 prevails. The wandering Arab, the sedentary 
 Turk, the Persian beauty, the small-footed 
 Chinese, the phlegmatic Russian, the indolent 
 Creole, and the light and vivacious French 
 woman, all desire to please, and all resort to some 
 kind of cosmetics. 
 
BUGLOSS. 
 
 83 
 
 This taste prevails alike in the harem and in 
 the desert. Duperron relates that a young 
 savage, wishing to attract his notice, took by 
 stealth a bit of charcoal, which she reduced to 
 powder in a corner, rubbed her cheeks with it, 
 and then came back with a look of triumph, as 
 if this application had rendered her beauty irre¬ 
 sistible. 
 
 Castellan, in his Letters on Greece, thus de¬ 
 scribes a Greek princess, whose portrait he 
 painted at Constantinople. “She was not,” 
 he says, “ the ideal beauty I had pictured to 
 myself. Her dark, prominent eyes were as bright 
 as diamonds, but her blackened eyelashes spoiled 
 their expression. Her eyebrows, joined by a 
 line of paint, gave a kind of harshness to her 
 look. Her small mouth and deep-coloured lips 
 might be embellished with smiles, but I never 
 had the pleasure to see them. Her cheeks were 
 covered with a very dark rouge, and her face 
 was disfigured by crescent-shaped patches. Add 
 to this the lifelessness of her demeanour and 
 the freezing gravity of her physiognomy, and 
 you would suppose that I had been depicting an 
 Italian Madonna.” 
 
84 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 The Bugloss has been made the emblem of 
 falsehood, because its root is employed in the 
 composition of various kinds of rouge; and that 
 of which it constitutes the basis is perhaps the 
 oldest and the least dangerous of all. Nay, 
 it even possesses some advantages: it lasts 
 several days without rubbing off; water refreshes 
 it like the natural colours; and it is not hurtful 
 to the skin, which it is used to embellish. Still, 
 nothing can imitate the tint of that native mo¬ 
 desty which flushes the cheek of innocence, and 
 which art destroys beyond repair. Would you 
 wish to please for a long time, for ever, banish 
 falsehood from your hearts, your lips, and your 
 aspect, and be assured that truth alone is de¬ 
 serving of love. 
 
 The good taste displayed by the British ladies 
 of the present day in discarding the barbarous 
 practice of disfiguring the face by a composition 
 mask, or an unnatural stain, must be acknow¬ 
 ledged by every one who can recollect the fa¬ 
 shions of the last thirty years. 
 
LILY OF THE VALLEY. 
 
 85 
 
 LILY OF THE VALLEY. 
 
 RETURN OF HAPPINESS. 
 
 The Lily of the Valley delights in shady 
 glens and the banks of murmuring brooks, 
 where its exquisitely beautiful flower is modestly 
 concealed amidst the broad, bright green leaves 
 which surround its delicate and graceful bells. 
 In floral language it is made to represent a re¬ 
 turn of happiness, because it announces by its 
 elegance and its odour the happy season of the 
 year. 
 
 That shy plant, the Lily of the Vale, 
 
 That loves the ground, and from the sun withholds 
 Her pensive beauty, from the breeze her sweets. 
 
 Anon. 
 
 The Lily, whose sweet beauties seem 
 As if they must be sought. 
 
 Barton. 
 
 And, sweetest to the view. 
 
 The Lily ofthe Vale, whose virgin flower 
 Trembles at every breeze, beneath its leafy bower. 
 
 Id. 
 
86 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 And ye, whose lowlier pride 
 In sweet seclusion seems to shrink from view, 
 
 You of the valley named, no longer hide 
 Your blossoms, meet to twine the brow of purest bride. 
 
 Barton. 
 
 Fair flower, that, lapt in lowly glade, 
 
 Dost hide beneath the greenwood shade, 
 
 Than whom the vernal gale 
 None fairer wakes on branch or spray, 
 
 Our England’s Lily of the May, 
 
 Our Lily of the Vale. 
 
 Art thou that “ Lily of the field,” , 
 
 Which, when the Saviour sought to shield 
 The heart from blank despair, 
 
 He showed to our mistrustful kind 
 An emblem of the thoughtful mind, 
 
 Of God’s paternal care ? 
 
 Not thus, I trow; for brighter shine 
 To the warm skies of Palestine 
 Those children of the East. 
 
 * * * * * * 
 
 But not the less, sweet spring-tide’s flower. 
 
 Dost thou display thy Maker’s power, 
 
 His skill and handiwork ; 
 
 Our western valleys’ humbler child, 
 
 Where, in green nook of woodland wild. 
 
 Thy modest blossoms lurk. 
 
 What though nor care nor art be thine, 
 
 The loom to ply, the thread to twine, 
 
 Yet born to bloom and fade, 
 
LILY OF THE VALLEY. 
 
 Thee, too, a lovelier robe arrays, 
 
 Than, even in Israel’s brightest days, 
 
 Her wealthiest king array’d: 
 
 Of thy twin leaves the embowered screen, 
 Which wraps thee in thy shroud of green, 
 Thy Eden-breathing smell; 
 
 Thy arched and purple-vested stem, 
 Whence pendent many a pearly gem 
 Displays a milk-white bell— 
 
 Who forms thee thus with unseen hand? 
 Who at creation gave command, 
 
 And willed thee thus to be; 
 
 And keeps thee still in being, through 
 Age after age revolving?—Who 
 But the great God is he ? 
 
 87 
 
 Bishop Mant. 
 
88 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 PRIVET. 
 
 PROHIBITION. 
 
 “ Why,” said the young mother of a family 
 one day to the venerable village pastor, “ why 
 did you not plant a strong quickset hedge round 
 your garden, instead of this weak hedge of 
 flowering privet ?” The benevolent minister 
 replied:—“ When you forbid your child a hurt¬ 
 ful pleasure, the prohibition is sweetened by an 
 affectionate smile, by a kind look ; and, if he is 
 refractory, a mother’s hand immediately offers 
 some plaything to pacify him. In like manner, 
 the pastor’s hedge, while it keeps off intruders, 
 should not hurt any one, but offer flowers even 
 to those whom it repels.” 
 
PERIWINKLE. 
 
 89 
 
 PERIWINKLE. 
 
 TENDER RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 The winds have now purified the atmosphere, 
 diffused the seeds of vegetation over the earth, 
 and dispersed the gloomy vapours of winter. 
 The air is fresh and pure; the sky seems to 
 expand above our head; the lawns grow vividly 
 green on all sides, and the trees push forth their 
 young and verdant buds. Nature is about to 
 put on her dress of flowers; but she first pre¬ 
 pares an harmonious ground for her painting; 
 and, covering it with one general tint of green, 
 which she varies infinitely , rejoices the eye and 
 cheers the heart with promise. 
 
 We have already detected in shady dells the 
 violet, the daisy, the primrose, and the golden 
 flower of the dandelion. Let us now approach 
 the skirts of the wood; there the Anemone and 
 the Periwinkle stretch their long parterre of 
 verdure and flowers; these two friendly plants 
 are mutual foils to each other’s charms. The 
 
90 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Anemone has velvet leaves, deeply dentated, and 
 of a delicate green; whereas those of the Peri¬ 
 winkle are always green, firm, and shining; its 
 flower is blue, while that of the Anemone is of 
 a pure white, tinged with rose colour at the 
 edge; and, enduring but a day, it recalls to us 
 the happy and fleeting hours of childhood. 
 
 In France, the Periwinkle has been adopted 
 as the emblem of the pleasures of memory and 
 sincere friendship, probably in allusion to Rous¬ 
 seau’s recollection of his friend, Madame de 
 Warens, occasioned, after a lapse of thirty years, 
 by the sight of this flower, which they had ad¬ 
 mired together. 
 
 This plant is deeply rooted in the soil which 
 it adorns. It interweaves the earth on all sides 
 with its flexible shoots, and covers it with flow¬ 
 ers, which seem to reflect and imitate the azure 
 of the sky : thus our first affections, so warm, 
 pure, and artless, appear to have a -celestial 
 origin. They mark our days with a moment’s 
 happiness, and to them we owe our sweetest 
 recollections. 
 
HEATH. 
 
 91 
 
 HEATH. 
 
 SOLITUDE. 
 
 The meadows are covered with flowers, the 
 plains with waving corn, and the hills with dark¬ 
 some woods. Happy swains !—ye can dance in 
 the meadows; ye can crown your brows with 
 the golden wreaths of Ceres; ye can rest your¬ 
 selves in the shade of the woods—for to the 
 happy life is one scene of joy. 
 
 As for me, with Melancholy for my guide, 
 I will stroll to those sequestered spots where 
 the humble Heath, which delights in solitude, 
 maintains its ground against advancing culti¬ 
 vation. There, seated beneath the drooping 
 Broom, I will indulge my gloomy thoughts; 
 whilst creatures, unfortunate, harassed, and 
 afflicted, like myself, will collect around me from 
 all sides. The partridge, chased by our dogs, 
 after losing her whole family ; the doe, pursued 
 by the hounds; the skulking hare, the timid 
 rabbit, at first alarmed at sight of me, will by 
 
92 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 degrees become familiar with my griefs : per¬ 
 haps they will even come to my feet to seek 
 protection from the persecution of men. Ye, 
 too, will hover round me, industrious bees ; and 
 if I pluck but a single sprig from the Heath' of 
 your solitary haunts, ye will come to my very 
 hands for the honey, which ye gather not for 
 yourselves but for others. And you, noisy 
 quails, will measure both for yourselves and for 
 me the hours which fly away, without leaving 
 behind me in these wilds either traces or regrets. 
 Gentle doves, tender nightingales, your sighs 
 and murmurs were made for fragrant bowers ; 
 but I can no longer muse in their shade. The 
 voice of the monarch of this solitude scares 
 you away ; for me it has charms : with the first 
 beams of the moon its melancholy tones will 
 reach the ear. The owl will then issue from the 
 hollow trunk of some time-worn oak. Perched 
 on the boughs which hide his mossy retreat, 
 his screech affrights the timid maiden as she 
 counts the hours of her lover’s absence; it 
 thrills the mother watching beside the couch on 
 which fever has prostrated her only child; but 
 it soothes the unhappy man who has consigned 
 
HEATH. 
 
 93 
 
 to the grave all that he loved on earth. Often 
 did that doleful sound awaken thee, unfortunate 
 Young ! speaking to thee of death and eternity : 
 and if it has not inspired me, as it did thee, with 
 sublime strains, it has at least given me, like thee, 
 a distaste for the world and a love of solitude. 
 
94 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 LINDEN TREE. 
 
 CONJUGAL LOVE. 
 
 The beautiful fable of Philemon and Baucis 
 caused this tree to be adopted as the emblem 
 of conjugal love. This couple lived together 
 in the happiest harmony to extreme old age ; 
 and, content with their humble hut and the 
 little which their labour procured them, they 
 knew no higher wishes or wants. Jupiter and 
 Mercury one day descended in human form 
 from Olympus to visit the plains of Phrygia- 
 Needing refreshment, they called at several 
 houses, but were refused admittance; but Phi¬ 
 lemon and Baucis, the poorest couple in that 
 part of the country, received them in the most 
 hospitable manner in their mean habitation. 
 Baucis immediately heated water to wash the 
 travellers’ feet; and then set before them a 
 rural repast of fruit, milk, and honey. She 
 also produced wine, which she had cultivated 
 
LINDEN TREE. 
 
 95 
 
 and made with her own hands; and, as the 
 quantity sustained no diminution, the aged pair 
 discovered from this circumstance the superior 
 nature of their guests, and hastened to offer up 
 in sacrifice to them a goose, which they had 
 reared in their hut. The goose, however, 
 escaped from their grasp, and sought refuge 
 at the feet of the gods, who took the bird under 
 their protection. On rising from the table, 
 they ordered their kind hosts to follow them to 
 the top of a neighbouring hill. There they 
 beheld a flood sweeping away the houses of their 
 hard-hearted neighbours, whilst their cottage 
 stood uninjured amidst the raging waters, and 
 was transformed into a magnificent temple. 
 Jupiter then promised to grant them whatever 
 they wished; but they desired nothing more 
 than to be the servants of his temple. The 
 god graciously complied with their request, and 
 they served in his temple for many years. At 
 length, as they were one day conversing before 
 the door of the edifice on the wonder of which 
 they had been eye-witnesses, Philemon observed 
 that Baucis was gradually changing into a Lin¬ 
 den-tree, and Baucis that her husband was turn- 
 
96 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ing into an Oak. They calmly and cheerfully 
 continued their conversation so long as they 
 could see, and then took an affectionate farewell 
 of each other. As trees, they stood for ages 
 before the temple, and were objects of venera¬ 
 tion to all the adjacent country. 
 
 An event of modern times has contributed to 
 render the Linden not less dear to all loving 
 hearts than the preceding legend of fabulous 
 antiquity. About the year 1790, there dwelt 
 at Konigsberg, in Prussia, a pair who, united 
 in affection, were shortly to be joined in the 
 bonds of wedlock. . The wedding-day was already 
 fixed, when the bride, in the first bloom of 
 youthful beauty, suddenly fell sick, and in a 
 few hours expired. Such was the grief of the 
 lover at the unexpected loss, that he, too, soon 
 expired; and on the very day on which they 
 were to have been married, the remains of both 
 were consigned to one and the same grave. 
 Here they had reposed for some years, when 
 over their heads sprang up from one root two 
 Linden trees, which firmly entwining each 
 other, shot up into a crown, that, with its 
 fragrant blossoms, yearly decks the bridal bed 
 
LINDEN TREE. 
 
 97 
 
 in which two faithful hearts are inseparably 
 united. 
 
 Among the trees of central Europe, the Lin¬ 
 den is known to attain the greatest age next to 
 the Oak. Near Neustadt, on the Kocher, in 
 Wirtemberg, there is a stately Linden, which 
 for many centuries has attracted the notice of 
 passengers, and invited them to rest in its shade. 
 Its trunk is thirty-six feet in circumference. 
 The branches issue from it at the height of 
 eight to ten feet, in a horizontal direction, and 
 are supported by pillars, partly of stone, partly 
 of wood, otherwise they would break down by 
 their own weight. In 1811, there were one 
 hundred and twenty such pillars. This Linden 
 has now withstood time and tempests for at 
 least six hundred years. 
 
 In the cemetery of the hospital of Annaberg, 
 in Saxony, there is a very ancient Linden tree, 
 concerning which tradition relates that it was 
 planted by an inhabitant of Annaberg with its 
 top in the ground, and that its roots became 
 branches, which now overshadow a considerable 
 part of the cemetery. The planter of this tree, 
 who was buried not far from it, left a sum of 
 5 
 
98 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 money, the interest of which is paid, agreeably 
 to his will, to the chaplain of the hospital, for 
 delivering a sermon annually, in the afternoon 
 of Trinity Sunday, beneath this remarkable 
 tree. 
 
THYME. 
 
 99 
 
 THYME. 
 
 ACTIVITY. 
 
 Flies of all shapes, beetles of all hues, light 
 butterflies, and vigilant bees, for ever surround 
 the flowery tufts of Thyme. It may be that to 
 these cheerful inhabitants of the air, whose life 
 is a long spring, these little tufts appear like an 
 immense tree, old as the earth, and covered 
 with eternal verdure, begemmed with myriads 
 of flowery vases, filled with honey for their ex¬ 
 press enjoyment. 
 
 Among the Greeks, Thyme denoted the grace¬ 
 ful elegance of the Attic style ; because it covered 
 Mount Hymettus and gave the aromatic flavour, 
 of which the ancients were so fond, to the honey 
 made there. “ To smell of Thyme” was, there¬ 
 fore, a commendation bestowed on those writers, 
 who had made themselves masters of the Attic 
 style. 
 
 Activity is a warlike virtue, always associated 
 with true courage. It was on this account that 
 
100 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 the ladies of chivalrous times embroidered on 
 the scarfs which they presented to their knights 
 the figure of a bee hovering about a sprig of 
 Thyme; in order to recommend the union of the 
 amiable with the active. 
 
 The Wild Thyme has often been noticed by 
 the poets: 
 
 No more, my goats, shall I behold you climb 
 The steepy cliffs, or crop the flow’ry Thyme. 
 
 Dryden’s Virgil. 
 
 Guide my way 
 
 Through fair Lyceum’s walk, the green retreats 
 Of Academus, and the Thymy vale. 
 
 Akenside. 
 
BUCK-BEAN. 
 
 101 
 
 BUCK-BEAN. 
 
 CALM REPOSE. 
 
 Do you observe along the extended banks of 
 that lake, whose silvery mirror reflects an un¬ 
 clouded sky, those clusters of flowers as white 
 as snow ? A roseate hue colours the under side 
 of these beauteous flowers, while a tuft of fibres 
 of extraordinary delicacy and dazzling whiteness 
 rises out of their alabaster cups, giving them 
 the appearance of fringed hyacinths. Expres¬ 
 sion fails to do justice to the elegance of this 
 plant. To remember it for ever, you need but 
 to have once seen it gently waving on the brink 
 of the water, to which it seems to impart in* 
 creased coolness and transparency. The Buck- 
 bean never opens in stormy weather, Tran¬ 
 quillity is requisite to the developement of its 
 blossoms; but the calm that it enjoys itself it 
 seems to diffuse on all the objects around it. 
 
 The original name of the Buck-bean was Bog- 
 bane, or Bog-plant, from its place of growth. 
 
102 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ACANTHUS. 
 
 THE ARTS. 
 
 The Acanthus delights in hot climates by the 
 side of great rivers. It thrives, nevertheless, 
 in temperate climates. The tasteful ancients 
 adorned their furniture, their vases, and their 
 costly dresses, with its elegant leaves. Virgil 
 says that the robe of Helen was embroidered 
 with a wreath of Acanthus. 
 
 This charming model of the arts has thus 
 become their emblem, as it might also be of 
 the genius which causes its possessor to excel 
 in them. When any obstacle obstructs the 
 growth of the Acanthus, it puts forth fresh force 
 and grows with additional vigour. Thus genius 
 is strengthened and exalted by the very obstacles 
 which it cannot overcome. 
 
 It is related of Callimachus the architect, 
 that, as he was passing near the tomb of a 
 young female, who died a few days before her 
 marriage, touched with pity, he approached to 
 
ACANTHUS. 
 
 103 
 
 throw flowers on it. An offering had preceded 
 his: the nurse of the bride had collected the 
 flowers and veil which were to have adorned her 
 on her wedding-day, placed them in a little 
 basket near the tomb on an Acanthus plant, and 
 covered it with a large tile. The following spring 
 the leaves of the Acanthus surrounded the basket, 
 but, impeded by the tile, they turned back and 
 bent round gracefully towards their extremities. 
 Callimachus, astonished at this rural decoration, 
 which looked like a work of the weeping Graces, 
 made it the capital of the Corinthian order—a 
 charming ornament that we still imitate and ad¬ 
 
 mire. 
 
104 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 MYRTLE. 
 
 LOVE. 
 
 The oak was from the remotest ages conse¬ 
 crated to Jupiter, the olive to Minerva, and 
 the Myrtle to Venus. Its evergreen foliage and 
 supple odoriferous branches loaded with flowers, 
 that appear destined to adorn the forehead of 
 Love, have rendered this tree worthy of being 
 dedicated to Venus, the goddess of beauty. At 
 Rome the temple of the goddess was surrounded 
 by a grove of Myrtles; and in Greece she was 
 adored under the name of Myrtilla. When 
 Venus rose from the bosom of the waves, the 
 Hours presented to her a scarf of a thousand 
 colours, and a wreath of Myrtle. After her 
 victory over Pallas and Juno, she was crowned 
 with Myrtle by the Loves. When surprised, 
 one day, on issuing from the bath, by a troop of 
 satyrs, she sought refuge behind a Myrtle bush ; 
 and it was with the branches of the same plant 
 
MYRTLE. 
 
 105 
 
 that she revenged herself on the audacious 
 Psyche, who had dared to compare her transitory 
 charms to immortal beauty. 
 
 At Rome the Myrtle-garland of the Loves 
 was sometimes mingled, in honour of Mars and 
 Venus, with the laurel on the triumphant con¬ 
 queror’s brow. And now that triumphs have 
 ceased at the Capitol, the Roman ladies have 
 retained a strong predilection for this plant. 
 They prefer its odour to that of the most fra¬ 
 grant essences, and they impregnate their baths 
 with a water distilled from its leaves, persuaded 
 that the plant of Venus must be favourable to 
 beauty. If the ancients were possessed by a 
 similar persuasion, if they truly deemed it the 
 symbol of love, it was because they had observed 
 that the Myrtle, wherever it grows, excludes all 
 other plants. Just so love, wherever it has es¬ 
 tablished its sway, excludes from the heart all 
 other feelings. 
 
 5 * 
 
106 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 LUCERN. 
 
 LIFE. 
 
 Lucern will occupy the same spot for a long 
 time; but, when once it leaves it, it is for ever. 
 This is, no doubt, the reason why it has been 
 adopted as the emblem of life. 
 
 Nothing is more beautiful than a field of Lu¬ 
 cern in flower, spreading itself out to the eye, 
 like an immense green carpet tipped with violet. 
 When cultivated, this plant jflelds abundant 
 crops, without requiring any care. Cut it down 
 and it springs up again. The cow rejoices at 
 the sight of it, it is a favourite food of the sheep, 
 the horse, and the goat. A native of our cli¬ 
 mate, this valuable gift comes to us direct from 
 heaven. Its possession costs us no trouble; 
 we enjoy it without thought, and without grati¬ 
 tude. Very often we prefer to it a flower, 
 whose only merit is its transient beauty. In 
 like manner we too often relinquish a certain 
 benefit, to run after vain pleasures, which fly 
 away and escape us. 
 
HONEYSUCKLE. 
 
 107 
 
 HONEYSUCKLE. 
 
 GENEROUS AND DEVOTED AFFECTION. 
 
 Weakness is fond of strength, and often de¬ 
 lights in lending to the latter its own graces* 
 Thus have I seen a young Honeysuckle lovingly 
 entwine the gnarled trunk of an aged oak with 
 its supple and delicate arms. It would seem as 
 if this slender shrub, whilst climbing upward, 
 was striving to surpass in height the monarch 
 of the forest: soon, however, as though finding 
 its effort useless, it droops gracefully down and 
 encircles the brow of its friend with elegant 
 festoons of fragrant flowers. Thus Love some¬ 
 times unites the timid maiden to the ruthless 
 soldier. Unhappy Desdemona! it was the ad¬ 
 miration awakened by courage and valour, but it 
 was also the feeling of thine own weakness, that 
 attached thy heart to the terrible Othello: but 
 jealousy caused thy destruction by the very hand 
 that should have protected thee ! 
 
 This elegant climbing shrub, which we also 
 call the woodbine, trained against our English 
 
108 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 cottages, at once delights the eye and gratifies 
 the smell by the exquisite fragrance of its blos¬ 
 som ; whilst it confers on those humble dwellings 
 a character of cheerfulness unknown in other 
 countries. 
 
 A Honeysuckle, on the sunny side, 
 
 Hung round the lattices its fragrant trumpets. 
 
 Landon. 
 
 Copious of flowers, the woodbine pale and wan, 
 
 But well compensating her sickly looks 
 With never cloying odours, early and late. 
 
 Cowper. 
 
 It begins to flower in May, and continues to 
 put forth its blossoms till the end of summer. 
 
BROOM. 
 
 10 !) 
 
 BROOM. 
 
 HUMILITY. 
 
 In the year 1234, St. Louis of France, after 
 the coronation of his queen, chose the flower of 
 this plant as the insignia of a new order of 
 knighthood. The members of this order wore 
 a chain composed of flowers of the Broom en¬ 
 twined with white enamelled lilies, from which 
 was suspended a gold cross with the inscription : 
 Exaltat humiles —“ He exalteth the humble.” 
 With this order he associated a body-guard 
 consisting of one hundred nobles, on the back 
 and front of whose coat was likewise embroi¬ 
 dered a Broom flower, over which a hand issuing 
 frorrwthe clouds held a crown, with the inscrip¬ 
 tion : Deus exaltat humiles —“ God exalteth the 
 humble.” 
 
 This plant called in Latin Genista , and in 
 French Genet , gave the name of Plantagenet to 
 the sovereigns of England for several centuries. 
 Lemon, in his “ English Etymology,” says: 
 
110 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 “Fourteen princes .of the family of Flantagenet 
 have sate on the throne of England for upwards 
 of three hundred years, and yet very few of our 
 countrymen have known either the reason of 
 that appellation or the etymology of it: but 
 history tells us that Geoffry, Count of Anjou, 
 acquired the surname of Plantagenet from the 
 incident of his wearing a sprig of Broom on his 
 helmet on a day of battle. This Geoffry was 
 second husband to Matilda, or Maud, Empress 
 of Germany, and daughter of Henry I. of En¬ 
 gland, and from this Plantagenet family were 
 descended all our Edwards and Henries.” 
 
 Skinner assigns a different origin to this illus¬ 
 trious name. He tells us that “ the house of 
 Anjou derived the name of Plantagenet from a 
 prince thereof, who, having killed his brother to 
 enjoy his principality, afterwards repented, and 
 made a voyage to the Holy Land to expiate his 
 crime, scourging himself every night with a rod 
 made of the plant Genet, Genista, Broom.” And 
 we are told elsewhere that he was nicknamed 
 Plantagenet from the use which he had made of 
 the Broom. 
 
 There are three varieties of Broom, with 
 
BROOM. 
 
 Ill 
 
 yellow, white, and purple flowers. The first is 
 the most common. 
 
 Their groves o’ sweet myrtle let foreign lands reckon, 
 Where bright-beaming simmers exalt the perfume; 
 
 Far dearer to me yon lone glen o’ green breckan, 
 
 Wi’ the burn stealing under the lang yellow Broom. 
 
 Burns. 
 
 The wilding Broom as sweet, which gracefully, 
 
 Flings its long tresses, waving in yellow beauty. 
 
 Landon. 
 
 The purple heath and golden broom,' 
 
 Which scent the passing gale. 
 
 Montgomery. 
 
 The Broom and the furze are perpetually as¬ 
 sociated. Indeed, the latter is sometimes called 
 by botanists Genista Spinosa —the thorny Broom, 
 and provincially whin, or gorse. It grows abund¬ 
 antly on all our wastes : and it is recorded of 
 Linneus that when he visited England in 1736, 
 he was so much delighted with the golden blossom 
 of the furze, which he then saw for the first time 
 on a common near London, that he fell on his 
 knees, enraptured at the sight. He conveyed 
 some of the plants to Sweden, but complained 
 that he could never preserve it in the garden 
 during the winter. 
 
112 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 SUMMER. 
 
 Come away! the sunny hours 
 Woo thee far to founts and bowers ! 
 O’er the very waters now, 
 
 In their play, 
 Flowers are shedding beauty’s glow : 
 
 Come away ! 
 
 Where the lily’s tender gleam 
 Quivers on the glowing stream, 
 
 Come away ! 
 
 All the air is fill’d with sound, 
 
 Soft, and sultry, and profound; 
 Murmurs through the shadowy grass 
 Lightly stray ; 
 
 Faint winds whisper as they pass 
 Come away! 
 Where the bee’s deep music swells 
 From the trembling foxglove bells— 
 Come away ! 
 
SUMMER. 
 
 113 
 
 In the deep heart of the rose, 
 
 Now the crimson love-hue glows; 
 
 Now the glowworm’s lamp by night 
 Sheds a ray 
 
 Dreary, starry, greenly bright— 
 
 Come away ! 
 
 Where the fairy cup-moss lies, 
 
 With the wild wood-strawberries, 
 
 Come away ! 
 
 Hemans. 
 
114 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ROSE. 
 
 LOVE. 
 
 Who that ever could sing has not sung the 
 Rose! The poets have not exaggerated its 
 beauty, or completed its panegyric. They have 
 called it daughter of heaven, ornament of the 
 earth, glory of spring: but what expressions 
 could ever do justice to the charms of this beau¬ 
 tiful flower ! Look at it gracefully rising from 
 its elegant foliage, surrounded by its numerous 
 buds: you would say that this queen of flowers 
 sports with the air which fans her, that she de¬ 
 corates herself with the dew-drops which im- 
 pearl her, that she smilingly meets the sunny 
 rays which expand her bosom. Nature seems 
 to have exhausted all her skill in the freshness, 
 the beauty of form, the fragrance, the delicate 
 colour, and the gracefulness which she has be¬ 
 stowed upon the Rose. And then, it embellishes 
 the whole earth ; it is the commonest of flowers. 
 
t7//e* 
 
 O VCf - 
 
 
ROSE. 
 
 115 
 
 The emblem of all ages, the interpreter of all 
 our feelings, the Rose mingles with our festivi¬ 
 ties, our joys, and our griefs. Modesty borrows 
 its delicate blush; it is given as the prize of 
 virtue; it is the image of youth, innocence, and 
 pleasure; it is consecrated to Venus, the god¬ 
 dess of beauty, and, like her, possesses a grace 
 more exquisite than beauty itself. 
 
 Anacreon, the poet of love, has celebrated the 
 Rose in an ode, thus rendered by our English 
 Anacreon: 
 
 While we invoke the wreathed spring, 
 
 Resplendent Rose! to thee we’ll sing; 
 
 Resplendent Rose ! the flower of flowers, 
 
 Whose breath perfumes Olympus’ bowers; 
 
 Whose virgin blush, of chasten’d dye, 
 
 Enchants so much our mortal eye. 
 
 Oft has the poet’s magic tongue 
 The Rose’s fair luxuriance sung; 
 
 And long the Muses, heavenly maids, 
 
 Have rear’d it. in their tuneful shades. 
 
 When, at the early glance of morn, 
 
 It sleeps upon the glittering thorn, 
 
 ’Tis sweet to dare the tangled fence, 
 
 To cull the timid flow’ret thence, 
 
 And wipe, with tender hand, away 
 The tear that on its blushes lay ! 
 
116 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ’Tis sweet to hold the infant stems, 
 
 Yet dropping with Aurora’s gems, 
 
 And fresh inhale the spicy sighs 
 That from the weeping buds arise. 
 
 When revel reigns, when mirth is high, 
 
 And Bacchus beams in every eye, 
 
 Our rosy fillets scent exhale, 
 
 And fill with balm the fainting gale ! 
 
 Oh, there is nought in nature bright, 
 
 Where Roses do not shed their light 1 
 When morning paints the orient skies, 
 
 Her fingers burn with roseate dyes! 
 
 And when, at length, with pale decline, 
 
 Its florid beauties fade and pine, 
 
 Sweet as in youth its balmy breath 
 Diffuses odour e’en in death! 
 
 O, whence could such a plant have sprung ? 
 Attend—for thus the tale is sung 
 When humid from the silvery stream, 
 
 Effusing beauty’s warmest beam, 
 
 Venus appeared in flushing hues, 
 
 Mellowed by Ocean’s briny dews; 
 
 When, in the starry courts above, 
 
 The pregnant brain of mighty Jove 
 Disclosed the nymph of azure glance ! 
 
 The nymph who shakes the martial lance ! 
 Then, then, in strange eventful hour, 
 
 The earth produced an infant flower, 
 
 Which sprung with blushing tinctures dress’d, 
 And wanton’d o’er its parent breast. 
 
 The gods beheld this brilliant birth. 
 
 And hailed the Rose, the boon of earth 1 
 
ROSE. 
 
 117 
 
 With nectar drops, a ruby tide, 
 
 The sweetly orient buds they dyed, 
 
 And bade them bloom, the flowers divine 
 Of him who sheds the teeming vine; 
 
 And bade them on the spangled thorn 
 Expand their bosoms to the morn. 
 
 According' to ancient Fable, the red colour of 
 the Rose may be traced to Venus, whose delicate 
 foot, when she was hastening to the relief of 
 her beloved Adonis, was pierced by a thorn, that 
 drew blood. 
 
 Which on the White Rose being shed, 
 
 Made it for ever after red. 
 
 Herrick. 
 
 Its beautiful tint, is traced to another source 
 by a modern poet: 
 
 As erst, in Eden’s blissful bowers, 
 
 Young Eve survey’d her countless flowers, 
 
 An opening Rose of purest white 
 
 She marked with eye that beam’d delight, 
 
 Its leaves she kiss’d, and straight it drew 
 From beauty’s lip the vermeil hue. 
 
 Carey. 
 
 The origin of that exquisitely beautiful va¬ 
 riety, the Moss Rose, is thus fancifully accounted 
 for: 
 
 The Angel of the Flowers, one day, 
 
 Beneath a Rose Tree sleeping lay, 
 
118 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 That Spirit to whose charge is given 
 To bathe young buds in dews from heaven. 
 Awaking from his light repose, 
 
 The Angel whispered to the Rose : 
 
 “ O fondest object of my care, 
 
 Still fairest found where all are fair, 
 
 For the sweet shade thou’st given to me, 
 Ask what thou wilt, ’tis granted thee.” 
 
 Then said the Rose with deepening glow, 
 
 “ On me another grace bestow.” 
 
 The Spirit paused in silent thought— 
 
 What grace was there that flower had not ! 
 ’Twas but a moment—o’er the Rose 
 A veil of moss the Angel throws ; 
 
 And robed in Nature’s simplest weed, 
 
 Could there a flower that Rose exceed ! 
 
 Pfeffel, a German poet, has pleasingly ac¬ 
 counted for the Origin of the Yellow Rose, the 
 emblem of envy, in the following manner: 
 
 Once a White Rose-bud reared her head, 
 
 And peevishly to Flora said 
 “ Look at my sister’s blushing hue— 
 
 Pray, mother, let me have it too.” 
 
 “ Nay, child,” was Flora’s mild reply, 
 “ Be thankful for such gifts as I 
 Have deem’d befitting to dispense— 
 Thy dower the hue of innocence.” 
 
ROSE. 
 
 119 
 
 When did Persuasion’s voice impart 
 Content and peace to female heart 
 Where baleful Jealousy bears sway, 
 
 And scares each gentler guest away! 
 
 The Rose.still grumbled and complained, 
 
 Her mother’s bounties still disdained. 
 
 “Well, then,” said angered Flora—“take”— 
 
 She breathed upon her as she spake— 
 
 “ Henceforth no more in simple vest 
 Of innocence shalt thou be drest— 
 
 Take that which better suits thy mind— 
 
 The hue for Jealousy designed 1” 
 
 The Yellow Rose has from that hour 
 Borne evidence of Envy’s power. 
 
 There is another strongly marked variety of 
 this flower in the Thornless Rose. The author 
 of that affecting tale, “ The Leper of Aoste,” 
 asserts that the thorns of the Rose are produced 
 by cultivation; and this theory naturally sug¬ 
 gested the emblem of ingratitude which has 
 been adopted. In both these assumptions, how¬ 
 ever, there appears to be a wide departure from 
 the ideas usually attached to a Rose without a 
 thorn, which would more naturally present the 
 image of love without alloy. 
 
 In the “ Legend of the Rose,” we find this 
 
120 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 account of the origin of the armour by which 
 this flower is defended : 
 
 Young Love, rambling through the wood, 
 
 Found me in my solitude, 
 
 Bright with dew and freshly blown, 
 
 And trembling to the Zephyr’s sighs; 
 
 But as he stooped to gaze upon 
 The living gem with raptured eyes, 
 
 It chanced a bee was busy there, 
 
 Searching for its fragrant fare ; 
 
 And, Cupid, stooping too, to sip, 
 
 The angry insect stung his lip; 
 
 And, gushing from the ambrosial cell, 
 
 One bright drop on my bosom fell. 
 
 Weeping, to his mother he 
 Told the tale of treachery, 
 
 And she, her vengeful boy to please, 
 
 Strung his bow with captive bees, 
 
 But placed upon my slender stem 
 
 The poisoned sting she plucked from them : 
 
 And none since that eventful morn 
 Have found the flower without a thorn. 
 
 By the ancients the Rose was regarded as the 
 emblem of joy. Accordingly, Comus, the god 
 of feasting, was represented as a handsome 
 young man, crowned with a garland of Roses, 
 whose leaves glistened with dew-drops. As it 
 
ROSE. 
 
 121 
 
 was well known, even in those early times, that 
 when the heart is full the mouth will run over, 
 especially during the intoxication of mirth or 
 of pleasure, the ancients feigned that sportive 
 Cupid presented a Rose to Harpocrates, the 
 grave god of silence, and thus made this flower 
 a symbol of secrecy and silence. As such, a 
 Rose was fastened up over the table at enter¬ 
 tainments, that the sight of the flower might 
 remind the guests that the mirthful sallies in 
 which any of them might indulge were not 
 to be proclaimed in the market-place. This 
 custom gave rise to the saying “ under the 
 rose,” which was equivalent to an injunction of 
 secrecy. 
 
 The Rose became celebrated in English his¬ 
 tory, from its having been adopted in the fifteenth 
 century as the-badge of the rival houses of York 
 and Lancaster, the white being chosen by the 
 former, the red by the latter. Shakspeare, in 
 his Henry the Sixth, represents this feud as 
 having originated in the Temple Garden. The 
 Earls of Somerset, Suffolk, and Warwick, 
 Richard Plantagenet, nephew and heir of Ed¬ 
 mund Mortimer, with Vernon, and another 
 6 
 
122 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 lawyer, are the characters introduced. Suffolk 
 says: 
 
 Within the Temple Hall we were too loud : 
 
 The garden here is more convenient. 
 
 Plantag. Since you are tongue-tied, anil so loth to 
 speak, 
 
 In dumb significance proclaim your thoughts : 
 
 Let him that is a true-born gentleman. 
 
 And stands upon the honour of his birth, 
 
 If he supposes I have pleaded truth, 
 
 From off this briar pluck a White Rose with me. 
 
 Somers. Let him that is no coward, nor no flatterer, 
 But dare maintain the party of the truth, 
 
 Pluck a Red Rose from off this thorn with me. 
 
 This example is followed by their respective 
 friends, and after a threatening altercation, War¬ 
 wick, addressing Plantagenet, says: 
 
 In signal of my love to thee, 
 Will I upon thy party wear this Rose : 
 
 And here I prophecy, this brawl to-day, 
 
 Grown to this faction in the Temple Garden, 
 
 Shall send, between the Red Rose and the White, 
 
 A thousand souls to death and deadly night. 
 
 What torrents of blood were shed in the civil 
 wars, called the Wars of the Roses, which suc¬ 
 ceeded, history has duly recorded. The subse¬ 
 quent blending of the interests of the two 
 
ROSE. 
 
 123 
 
 bouses, and their union by the marriage of Henry 
 VII. with the heiress of the York family, are 
 prettily typified in the colouring of the York and 
 Lancaster Rose. 
 
 In the East, the Rose is an object of peculiar 
 esteem, and the acceptance of this flower when 
 offered is a token of the highest favour. How¬ 
 ever interesting it might be to collect the vari¬ 
 ous oriental legends and traditions in which the 
 Rose acts a principal part, I must abstain from 
 the attempt, otherwise this single article might 
 be swelled to the size of a decent volume, espe¬ 
 cially if I should include the many charming 
 illustrations of the love of the nightingale for 
 the Rose. In a fragment by the celebrated 
 Persian poet Attar, entitled Bulbul Nameh — 
 The Book of the Nightingale—all the birds 
 appear before Solomon, and charge the night¬ 
 ingale with disturbing their rest by the broken 
 and plaintive strains which he warbles forth in 
 a sort of frenzy and intoxication. The night¬ 
 ingale is summoned, questioned, and acquitted 
 by the wise king, because the bird assures him 
 that his vehement love for the Rose drives him 
 to distraction, and causes him to break forth 
 
124 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 into those languishing and touching complaints, 
 which are laid to his charge. Thus the Persians 
 believe that the nightingale in spring flutters 
 around the Rose-bushes, uttering incessant com¬ 
 plaints, till, overpowered by the strong scent, he 
 drops stupified on the ground. 
 
 Among the ancients it was customary to 
 crown new-married persons with a chaplet of 
 Red and White Roses; and, in the processions 
 of the Corybantes, the goddess Cybele, the 
 protectress of cities, was pelted with White 
 Roses. The pelting with Roses is still common 
 in Persia, being practised during the whole 
 time that these flowers are in blossom. A com¬ 
 pany of young men repair to the places of public 
 entertainment to amuse the guests with music, 
 singing, and dancing ; and, in their way through 
 the streets, they pelt the passengers whom they 
 meet with Roses, and receive a little gratuity in 
 return. 
 
 In the middle ages, the queen of flowers con¬ 
 tributed to a singular popular festival at Treviso, 
 in Italy. In the middle of the city, the inha¬ 
 bitants erected a castle, the walls of which were 
 formed of curtains, carpets, and silk hangings 
 
ROSE. 
 
 125 
 
 The most distinguished unmarried females of 
 the place defended this fortress, which was at¬ 
 tacked by the youth of the other sex. The 
 missiles with which both parties fought con¬ 
 sisted of apples, almonds, nutmegs, lilies, nar¬ 
 cissuses, violets, but chiefly of Roses, which 
 supplied the place of artillery. Instead of 
 musketry, they discharged volleys of Rose¬ 
 water and other liquid perfumes, by means of 
 syringes. This entertainment attracted thou¬ 
 sands of spectators from far and near, and the 
 emperor Frederic Barbarossa himself accounted 
 it one of the highest diversions that he had ever 
 enjoyed. 
 
 In like manner, St. Medard, bishop of Noyon, 
 in France, instituted in the sixth century a 
 festival at Salency, his birth-place, for adjudging 
 one of the most interesting prizes that piety 
 has ever offered to virtue. This prize consists 
 of a simple crown of Roses, bestowed on the 
 girl who is acknowledged by all her competitors 
 to be the most amiable, modest, and dutiful. 
 The founder of this festival enjoyed the high 
 gratification of crowning his own sister as the 
 first Rose-queen of Salency. The lapse of ages, 
 
126 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 which has overturned so many thrones and 
 broken so many sceptres, has spared this simple 
 institution ; and the crown of Rose still con¬ 
 tinues to be awarded to the most virtuous of the 
 maidens of that obscure village. 
 
STRAWBERRY. 
 
 127 
 
 STRAWBERRY. 
 
 PERFECTION. 
 
 One of the most eminent French authors 
 conceived the plan of writing a general history 
 of nature, after the model of the ancients and 
 of several moderns. A Strawberry plant, which 
 by chance grew under his window, deterred him 
 from his rash design. He investigated the 
 Strawberry, and, in doing so, discovered so 
 many wonders, that he felt convinced that the 
 study of a single plant, and of its inhabitants, 
 was sufficient to occupy a whole life. He there¬ 
 fore relinquished his design, gave up the am¬ 
 bitious title which he meditated for his work, 
 and contented himself with modestly calling it 
 “ Studies of Nature.” 
 
 From this book, worthy of Pliny and of 
 Plato, may be derived a taste for observation 
 and for the higher class of literature; and it is 
 there especially that the student will find a com¬ 
 plete history of the Strawberry. This humble 
 plant delights in the shelter of our woods, and 
 covers their borders with that delicious fruit, 
 which belongs to any one who pleases to gather 
 
128 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 it. It is a charming reserve which Nature has 
 subtracted from the exclusive right of property, 
 and which she rejoices in rendering common 
 property to all her children. 
 
 The flowers of the Strawberry form pretty 
 bouquets; but where is the barbarous hand 
 that, in gathering them, would rob the future 
 of its fruits ! It is delightful to find, among 
 the glaciers of the Alps, the plants and flowers 
 of the Strawberry in all seasons of the year. 
 When the traveller — scorched by the sun, 
 and sinking with fatigue on those rocks, old 
 as the world, amidst forests of fir, half over¬ 
 whelmed with avalanches—vainly seeks a cabin 
 to shelter him, or a fountain to refresh him, 
 he suddenly perceives troops of young girls ad¬ 
 vancing from the defiles of the rocks, bearing 
 baskets of Strawberries that perfume the air: 
 they appear at once on the crags above him, 
 and in the yawning dells beneath. It would 
 seem as if each rock and tree were guarded by 
 one of those nymphs whom Tasso placed at 
 the gate of Armida’s enchanted gardens. But, 
 though equally attractive, the young Swiss girls 
 are less dangerous; and, while offering their 
 
STRAWBERRY. 
 
 129 
 
 alluring’ baskets to the traveller, instead of 
 magically arresting his steps, they enable him 
 to recruit his strength and to renew his journey. 
 
 The learned Linneus was cured of frequent 
 attacks of gout by the use of Strawberries. 
 Often have they restored health to the invalid 
 when all other medicines have failed. They 
 constitute a favourite accompaniment of the 
 lordly feast, and the most exquisite luxury of 
 the rural repast. This charming fruit, which 
 vies in freshness and perfume with the bud of 
 the sweetest of flowers, delights the eye, the 
 taste, and the smell at the same time. Yet 
 there are persons so unhappy as to dislike 
 Strawberries, and to swoon at the sight of a 
 rose. Is this astonishing, when there are per¬ 
 sons who turn pale at the sight of superior 
 merit, or on hearing of a noble action, as if the 
 sight or record of virtue were a reproach to 
 themselves ? Fortunately, these melancholy ex¬ 
 ceptions take nothing from the charm of virtue, 
 from the beauty of the rose, or from the per¬ 
 fection which characterizes the most delicious of 
 fruits. 
 
 6 * 
 
130 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ST. JOHN’S WORT. 
 
 SUPERSTITION. 
 
 This plant, to which ancient superstition 
 attributed the virtue of defending persons from 
 phantoms and spectres, and driving away devils, 
 whence it was called Fuga Demonum, has 
 been named by modern bigotry St. John’s-wort. 
 For the same reason it was also called Sol ter- 
 restres, the Terrestrial Sun, because the spirits 
 of darkness were believed to vanish at the ap¬ 
 proach of that luminary. Growing close to the 
 earth, its large yellow flower, whose hundreds of 
 chives form so many rays, headed by spark-like 
 anthers, it reminds us of small wheel-fireworks, 
 and forms a happy contrast with the azure 
 flowers of the periwinkle. 
 
 It forms an appropriate emblem of superstition, 
 but by some is regarded as a symbol of happi¬ 
 ness, on account of the happy confidence with 
 which it inspires the fond believers in its imagi¬ 
 nary virtues. 
 
VALERIAN. 
 
 13 ] 
 
 VALERIAN. 
 
 AN ACCOMMODATING DISPOSITION. 
 
 The Red Valerian grows naturally on the 
 rocks of the Alps, and, from the facility with 
 which it propagates itself in the garden or on 
 old walls, it is made the emblem of an accom¬ 
 modating disposition. If not indigenous in this 
 country, it is conjectured to have been intro¬ 
 duced very early, on account of the situations 
 where it is found growing, which are generally 
 the old walls of colleges, or the ruins of monastic 
 buildings. 
 
 From its predilection for such situations, 
 this plant no doubt derived its old English name 
 of Setewale. Chaucer mentions it by this appella¬ 
 tion, so long ago as the time of Edward III. 
 
 Ther springen herbis grete and smale, 
 
 The Licoris and the Setewale; 
 
 and Dr. Turner, who compiled his Herbal about 
 the middle of the sixteenth century, calls it, 
 Setwall. 
 
132 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 The Valerian is too large and scrambling a 
 plant to hold a place in the parterre of choice 
 flowers; besides which, cats are so fond of the 
 smell of its blossom as to be attracted to it, and 
 by rolling over ihe plant to destroy its beauty, as 
 well as that of the contiguous flowers. They 
 are equally fond of its root, which has a dis¬ 
 agreeable smell: they will roll on it and gnaw 
 it to pieces with ecstatic delight; and it seems 
 to produce in them a kind of pleasing intoxica¬ 
 tion. 
 
 The root of the Valerian is considered as a 
 valuable remedy for many of those ailments 
 which luxury engenders in the human frame; 
 exerting a peculiar influence on the nervous 
 system, reviving the spirits, and strengthening 
 the sight. 
 
JASMINE. 
 
 133 
 
 JASMINE. 
 
 AMIABLENESS. 
 
 The Jasmine seems to have been created 
 expressly to be the happy emblem of an ami¬ 
 able disposition. When brought from India, 
 about the year 1560, by Spanish navigators, the 
 slenderness of its branches and the delicate 
 brightness of its starry flowers were universally 
 admired: to preserve so elegant a plant, it was 
 thought necessary to place it in the hothouse, 
 which seemed to suit it perfectly well. The 
 orangery was then tried, and there it grew sur¬ 
 prisingly. It was then risked in the open air, 
 and now, without needing any sort of care, it 
 withstands the utmost severity of winter. 
 
 In all situations, the amiable Jasmine suffers 
 its supple branches to be trained in any form 
 that the gardener chooses to give them: most 
 commonly forming a living tapestry for our 
 arbours or the walls of our houses or gardens, 
 
134 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 < 
 
 and every where throwing out a profusion of 
 delicate and charming flowers, which perfume 
 the air, offering to the light butterfly cups 
 worthy of him, and to the busy bee abundance of 
 fragrant honey. 
 
 The rustic lover unites the Jasmine with the 
 Rose to adorn the bosom of his beloved; and 
 often does a wreath of this simple combination 
 encircle the brow of the princess.” 
 
 And brides, as delicate and fair 
 
 As the White Jasmine flowers they wear, 
 
 Hath Yemen in her blissful clime ; 
 
 Who, lull’d in cool kiosk or bower, 
 
 Before their mirrors count the time, 
 
 And grow still lovelier every hour. 
 
 Moore. 
 
 From the numberless poetical tributes that 
 have been paid to this plant, we cull the following 
 lines : 
 
 My slight and slender Jasmine-tree, 
 
 That bloomest on my border tower, 
 
 Thou art more dearly loved by me 
 Than all the wealth of fairy bower. 
 
 I ask not, while I near thee dwell, 
 
 Arabia’s spice or Syria’s rose ; . 
 
 Thy light festoons more freshly smell, 
 
 Thy virgin white more freshly glows. 
 
JASMINE. 
 
 135 
 
 My mild and winsome Jasmine-tree, 
 
 That climbest up the dark grey wall, 
 
 Thy tiny flowerets seem in glee 
 Like silver spray-drops down to fall. 
 
 Lord Morpeth. 
 
 A variety of the Jasmine, with large double 
 flowers and exquisite scent, was first procured 
 in 1699 from Goa, by the grand-duke of Tus¬ 
 cany, and, so jealous was he of being the sole 
 possessor of this species, that he strictly for¬ 
 bade his gardener to give a cutting of it to any 
 person whatever. The gardener would pro¬ 
 bably have obeyed this injunction had he not 
 been in love : but, on the birthday of his mis¬ 
 tress, he presented her with a nosegay, in which 
 he had placed a sprig of this rare species of 
 Jasmine. Delighted with the fragrance of its 
 flowers, the girl planted the sprig in fresh 
 mould; it continued green all the year and, 
 next summer shot forth anew and blossomed. 
 Instructed by her lover, she soon began to raise 
 cuttings from this plant and to sell them at a 
 high price ; by this means she amassed a little 
 fund, which enabled her to marry the gardener, 
 who was as poor as she was herself before this 
 
136 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 lucky accident. It is said that, in memory of 
 this event, the damsels of Tuscany still wear a 
 wreath of Jasmine on their wedding-day, and 
 that it has given rise to this saying, that “ a girl 
 worthy of wearing the Jasmine-wreath is rich 
 enough to make a husband happy.” 
 
PINK. 
 
 137 
 
 PINK. 
 
 TURE LOVE. 
 
 The primitive Pink is simple red or white, 
 and scented; by cultivation, the petals have 
 been enlarged and multiplied, and its colour in¬ 
 finitely varied, from the darkest purple to the 
 purest white, with all the hues of red, from the 
 rich crimson to the pale rose, with which yellow 
 is also frequently blended. In some of these 
 flowers we see the eye of the pheasant painted; 
 while others are exquisitely marbled, striped,' 
 and figured. In some varieties two opposite 
 colours are abruptly diversified, while in others 
 they seem mingled and softened off in shades. 
 Under all its diversities, however, it retains its 
 delicious, spicy fragrance, and hence has been 
 made the emblem of woman’s love, which no 
 circumstances can change : 
 
 Alas ! the love of woman ! it is known 
 To be a lovely and a fearful thing; 
 
 For all of theirs upon that die is thrown, 
 
 And if ’tis lost, life has no more to bring 
 To them but mockeries of the past alone. 
 
 Byron. 
 
138 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 It is a fearful thing, 
 
 To love as I love thee ; to feel the world, 
 
 The bright, the beautiful, joy-giving world— 
 
 A blank without thee. Never more to me 
 Can hope, joy, fear, wear different seeming. Now 
 I have no hope that does not dream for thee ; 
 
 I have no joy that is not shared by thee; 
 
 I have no fear that does not dread for thee. 
 
 L. E. L. 
 
 Florists designate two principal divisions of 
 these flowers, Pinks and Carnations. The former 
 are marked by a spot resembling an eye, whence 
 the French name ceillet, and by a more humble 
 growth. The flower of the Carnation is much 
 larger than that of the Pink. Some derive its 
 name from the Latin word for flesh colour, 
 which may have been the original colour of the 
 flower ; but Spenser, who was remarkable for his 
 care in retaining the old manner of spelling, calls 
 these flowers coronations: 
 
 Bringe hether the pincke and purple cullambine, 
 With gelliflowres; 
 
 Bring coronations and sops in wine, 
 
 Worn of paramours. 
 
 They were also called clove-gelliflowers, from 
 their perfume resembling that of the spice so 
 called, and sops in wine, because they were on 
 
PINK. 
 
 139 
 
 III at account frequently used to flavour dainty 
 dishes, as well as wine and other liquors. Thus, 
 so early as the time of Edward III., Chaucer 
 says : 
 
 Then springen herbis grete and smale, 
 
 The licoris and the setewale, 
 
 And many a clove gilofre, 
 
 -to put in ale, 
 
 Whether it be moist or stale. 
 
 And Shakspeare makes Perdita say : 
 
 The fairest flowers o’ the season 
 Are our carnations and stream’d gilliflowers. 
 
 Those beautifully painted flowers, the Indian 
 Pink and the Sweet-william, belong to this fa¬ 
 mily. 
 
 Matthisson, a German writer, describes a 
 scene witnessed by him near Grenoble in France, 
 which must deeply interest every heart capable 
 of sympathizing in the feelings of parting lovers. 
 “Not far from Susa, where the road of the 
 Cenis begins to ascend, there is a chapel dedi¬ 
 cated to the Blessed Virgin. Before the simple 
 altar, surrounded by vases of flowers, where the 
 image of the Virgin was faintly lighted by a 
 single lamp, knelt a girl of about eighteen, 
 
140 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 absorbed in devotion, and her dark eyes filled 
 with tears. She was one of those nymph-like 
 figures which the magic pencil of Angelica 
 Kauffmann was fond of transferring to the 
 canvass. In her clasped hands she held a bou¬ 
 quet of clove carnations, tied with a silk ribbon, 
 of the delightful colour of hope. With such 
 devotion prays the saint in that masterpiece of 
 Garofalo’s, in the cathedral of Ferrara, in whose 
 folded hands the artist, in allusion to his own 
 name, has placed a nosegay of the same flowers. 
 The morning was so lovely and the air so mild 
 that I had left the_ carriage to follow me, and 
 was walking forward alone. Near the chapel 
 I seated myself on a mass of rock. The girl 
 rose from prayer, and presently appeared a hale 
 young man driving three loaded horses. The 
 moment she saw him she flew into his arms. 
 Not a word passed on either side. Amidst 
 tears and kisses, she presented to him the bou¬ 
 quet of carnations, with an inexpressible look of 
 tenderness, strove to speak, but could not utter 
 a word. The young man placed the flowers in 
 his bosom with as much reverence as if they 
 had been the relics of a saint. The fond girl 
 
PINK. 
 
 141 
 
 had been praying- for the safety of her lover 
 during the dangerous journey on which he was 
 setting out, and had waited at the chapel for the 
 farewell embrace.” 
 
142 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 VERVAIN. 
 
 ENCHANTMENT. 
 
 I wish that our botanists would attach a 
 moral idea to all the plants they wish to describe. 
 They would thus form a sort of universal dic¬ 
 tionary, understood by all nations, and enduring 
 as the world itself, since each spring would re¬ 
 produce it without the slightest alteration of 
 the characters. The altars of the great Jupiter 
 are overthrown: the forests which witnessed 
 the mysteries of the Druids no longer exist; 
 the pyramids of Egypt will some day disappear, 
 buried like the Sphynx, beneath the sands of 
 the desert: but the lotus and the acanthus will. 
 still blossom on the banks of the Nile; the 
 misletoe will still grow upon the oak; and the 
 Vervain upon the barren hills. 
 
 Vervain was employed by the ancients in 
 various kinds of divinations: they ascribe to it 
 a thousand properties, and among others that 
 of reconciling enemies. Whenever the Romans 
 
VERVAIN. 
 
 143 
 
 sent their heralds to offer peace or war to 
 nations, one of them always carried a sprig of 
 Vervain. The Druids, both in Gaul and Britain, 
 regarded the Vervain with the same veneration 
 as the misletoe, and offered sacrifices to the 
 earth before they cut this plant in spring, which 
 was a ceremony of great pomp. 
 
 The Druids held their power through the 
 ignorance and superstition of the people, and, 
 being acquainted with the qualities of plants 
 and other objects of Nature, they ascribed their 
 effects to the power of magic and divination, 
 pretending to work miracles, to exhibit asto¬ 
 nishing appearances, and to penetrate into the 
 counsels of Heaven. Although so many ages 
 have passed away since the time of the Druids, 
 the belief in their pretended spells is not yet 
 wholly abolished. Thus in the northern pro¬ 
 vinces of France the shepherds still continue to 
 gather the Vervain, with ceremonies and words 
 known only to themselves, and to express its 
 juices under certain phases of the moon. At 
 once the doctors and conjurors of their village, 
 they alternately cure the complaints of their 
 masters or fill them with dread; for the same 
 
144 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 means which relieve their ailments enable them 
 to cast a spell on their cattle and on the hearts 
 of their daughters. They insist that this power 
 is given to them by Vervain, especially when 
 the damsels are young and handsome. 
 
 Thus Vervain is still the plant of spells and 
 enchantments, as it was among the ancients. 
 
MALLOW. 
 
 145 
 
 MALLOW. 
 
 BENEFICENCE. 
 
 This plant was used by tbe Greeks and Ro¬ 
 mans as an article of diet, as it is still by the 
 people of Egypt and China. From this ejacu¬ 
 lation of Job: “ Who cut up Mallows by the 
 bushes and juniper-roots for their meat?” we 
 learn that it afforded food in the earliest times 
 to those wandering tribes, which chose rather to 
 pitch their tents in the wilderness and to depend 
 on the spontaneous gifts of Bountiful Nature, 
 than to dwell in permanent habitations and to 
 labour for their support.. 
 
 The common Mallow, the friend of the poor 
 man, grows naturally beside the brook that 
 quenches his thirst, and around the hut in 
 which he dwells ; and it borders the road-sides 
 in most parts of Europe. Though it continues 
 to blossom from the month of May to the end 
 of October, yet its flowers never tire the eye, 
 their petals being of a delicate, reddish purple, 
 7 
 
146 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 sometimes varying to a whitish, or inclining to 
 a bluish cast, with three or four darker streaks 
 running from the base. 
 
 The flower, stalk, leaf, and root, of this plant 
 are all beneficial to man. With its different 
 juices are composed syrups and ointments, 
 equally agreeable to the taste and conducive 
 to health. The way-lost traveller has occasion¬ 
 ally found in its root a wholesome and substan¬ 
 tial food. We need but look down to our feet to 
 discover, throughout all Nature, proofs of her 
 love and provident care; but this affectionate 
 mother has often concealed, in plants as well as 
 in human beings, the greatest virtues under the 
 simplest appearance. 
 
 It is, nevertheless, fortunate for the husband¬ 
 man that Nature should have assigned to the 
 Mallow a place on the banks and borders of fields, 
 and not scattered it over the meadows, where 
 its spreading branches would have injured the 
 turf, and where, as cattle in general refuse to eat 
 this plant, it would have soon overrun and 
 smothered other vegetation. 
 
FLOS ADONIS. 
 
 147 
 
 FLOS ADONIS. 
 
 PAINFUL RECOLLECTIONS. 
 
 Adonis was killed, while hunting, by a boar. 
 Venus, who, for his sake, had relinquished the 
 joys of Cythera, shed tears for the fate of her 
 favourite. They were not lost; the earth re¬ 
 ceived them, and immediately produced a light, 
 delicate plant, covered with flowers resembling 
 drops of blood. Bright and transient flowers, 
 too faithful emblems of the pleasures of life, ye 
 were consecrated by Beauty herself to painful 
 recollections ! 
 
 That this flower owes its name to the fa¬ 
 vourite of Venus is not to be disputed; but, 
 whether the goddess of beauty changed her 
 lover into this plant or the anemone it would 
 be difficult to decide, since the Linnean system 
 of dividing plants into families did not exist when 
 the gods and goddesses made love upon earth : 
 and, before the time of the Swedish botanist, the 
 Adonis was classed among the anemones, which 
 it greatly resembles. 
 
148 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 LILY. 
 
 MAJESTY. 
 
 The Lily’s height bespake command— 
 
 A fair, imperial flower; 
 
 She seemed designed for Flora’s hand, 
 
 The sceptre of her power. 
 
 The beauty and delicacy of the Lily have been 
 celebrated by the writers of all ages. So highly 
 was it esteemed by the Jews that they imitated 
 its form in the decorations of their first magni¬ 
 ficent temple; and Christ himself described it as 
 being more splendid than the great King Solo¬ 
 mon in his most gorgeous apparel.. 
 
 Observe the rising Lily’s snowy grace, 
 
 Observe the various vegetable race; 
 
 They neither toil nor spin, but careless grow : 
 
 Yet see how warm they blush, how bright they glow, 
 What regal vestments can with them compare ! 
 What king so shining, or what queen so fair! 
 
 Thomson. 
 
 According to the heathen mythology, there 
 was originally only one species of Lily, namely, 
 the orange-coloured; and the white was pro- 
 
LILY. 
 
 149 
 
 duccd by the following circumstance. Jupiter, 
 being desirous to render Hercules immortal, pre¬ 
 vailed on Juno to take a deep draught of nectar; 
 which, having been prepared by Somnus, threw 
 the queen of the gods into a profound slumber. 
 Jupiter took advantage of this to place the infant 
 Hercules to her breast, that the divine milk might 
 ensure his immortality. The infant, in his eager¬ 
 ness, drew the milk faster than he could swallow 
 it, and some drops fell to the earth, from which 
 immediately sprang the White Lily. 
 
 The ladies on the continent have long held in 
 the highest esteem a cosmetic prepared from the 
 flowers of the White Lily by means of a vapour- 
 bath. It is said to preserve and improve the 
 freshness of the complexion, and to remove pim¬ 
 ples and freckles. 
 
150 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 STOCK. 
 
 LASTING BEAUTY. 
 
 This flower, which is now become the pride 
 of every British parterre, has been made the 
 emblem of lasting beauty; for, though it is less 
 graceful than the rose, and not so superb as 
 the lily, its splendour is more durable and its 
 fragrance of longer continuance. It was one 
 n of the earliest inmates of our gardens that was 
 cultivated by the dames of baronial castles, 
 whence it was formerly called castle gilloflower 
 and dames’ violet; for the name of violet was 
 given to many flowers which had either a pur¬ 
 ple tint or an agreeable smell. The name of 
 gillyflower was also common to other plants, as 
 the wall-gillyflower (wall-flower) and the clove- 
 gillyflower, a species of pink or carnation. 
 
 Few flowering plants have been so much and 
 so rapidly improved by cultivation as the Stock.. 
 Within the last two centuries, its nature has 
 been so completely changed by the art of the 
 florist, that what was, in queen Elizabeth’s 
 time, but one degree removed from a small 
 mountain or sea-side flower, is now become 
 
STOCK. 
 
 151 
 
 almost a shrub in size, whose branches are 
 covered with blossoms little inferior in dimen¬ 
 sion to the rose, and so thickly set as to form a 
 mass of beauty not surpassed by any of the 
 exotics which the other quarters of the globe 
 have poured into our gardens. Phillips men¬ 
 tions a Stock grown at Notting Hill, near Bays- 
 watcr, which measured eleven feet nine inches 
 in circumference, in May, 1822. 
 
 Stocks are produced of several colours, both 
 double and single red, white, purple, and spec¬ 
 kled. Of these the bright red or carmine Stock 
 must ever remain the favourite variety. The 
 principal branches of this fragrant family are 
 the Ten-week Stock, so named from flowering 
 in about ten weeks after it is sown ; and the 
 Brompton, which does not blossom till about 
 twelve months after sowing, and was first culti¬ 
 vated in the neighbourhood of Brompton. Phil¬ 
 lips gives an amusing account of the beneficial 
 effect which the sight and name of this flower 
 had on the spirits of an acquaintance with whom 
 he was making a tour in Normandy, in the first 
 summer after the restoration of Louis XVIII. 
 “He had been induced to join a small party and 
 
152 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 leaves his home, for the first time, to visit the 
 opposite coast; but so truly British were his 
 habits, that nothing could please or satisfy him. 
 The soup was meagre, the pottage acid, the 
 peas sweet, the wine sour, the coffee bitter; 
 the girls brown, their eyes too black, their caps 
 too high, their petticoats too short, their Ian* 
 guage unintelligible ; their houses old, the inns 
 dirty, the country too open, the roads too 
 straight: in short, he saw everything with such 
 discontented eyes as to render the party uncom¬ 
 fortable, until good fortune led us to a rustic 
 inn, where, in a small garden, were growing 
 several fine Stocks, which, he affirmed, were the 
 first good things he had seen since he left Sus¬ 
 sex. On hearing the landlady acknowledge 
 them to be de Girojliers de Brompton , lie insisted 
 on halting at her house, where he treated the 
 party with a dejeuner d la fourcliette , and left 
 the village with a sprig of the Brompton Stock 
 in his button-hole, his eyes sparkling with cham¬ 
 pagne and good-humour, which lasted for the 
 remainder of the journey, during which he often 
 exclaimed, ‘ Thanks to the Brompton Stock !’ ” 
 
MARIGOLD. 
 
 153 
 
 MARIGOLD. 
 
 GRIEF. 
 
 I once saw, in a rich gallery of paintings, a 
 pretty miniature, in which the artist had repre¬ 
 sented Grief, under the form of a young man, 
 pale and languishing, whose reclining head 
 seemed bowed down by the weight of a wreath 
 of Marigolds. 
 
 Every body is familiar with this golden flower, 
 which is a conventional emblem of distress of 
 mind. It is distinguished by many singular 
 properties. It blossoms the whole year; and, 
 on that account, the Romans termed it the 
 flower of the calends, in other words, of all the 
 months. Its flowers are open only from nine in 
 the morning till three in the afternoon. They, 
 however, always turn towards the sun, and fol¬ 
 low his course from east to west. In July and 
 August these flowers emit, during the night, 
 small luminous sparks. In this point they re¬ 
 semble the nasturtium and many other flowers of 
 the same colour. 
 
 7 * 
 
154 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 The melancholy signification of the Marigold 
 may be modified in a thousand ways. Combined 
 with roses, the symbol expresses the bitter 
 sweets and pleasant pains of love. Alone it 
 expresses grief; interwoven with other flowers, 
 the varying events of life, the “ mingled yarn 
 of good and ill together.” In the East, a bou¬ 
 quet of Marigolds and poppies expresses this 
 thought—“ I will allay your pain.” It is more 
 especially by such modifications that the Lan¬ 
 guage of Flowers becomes the interpretation of 
 our thoughts. Marguerite of Orleans, the ma¬ 
 ternal grandmother of Henry IV., chose for her 
 armorial device a Marigold turning towards the 
 sun, and for motto, “ Je ne veux suivre que lui 
 seul." By this device the virtuous princess con¬ 
 veyed the idea that all her thoughts and affec¬ 
 tions turned towards heaven, as the Marigold 
 towards the sun. 
 
 One of our older poets thus moralizes over 
 this flower:— 
 
 When, with a serious musing, I behold 
 The grateful and obsequious Marigold, 
 
 How duly, every morning, she displays 
 
 Her open breast when Phoebus spreads his rays ; 
 
MARIGOLD. 
 
 155 
 
 How she observes him in his daily walk 
 Still bending towards him her small slender stalk; 
 How, when he down declines, she droops and mourns, 
 Bedew’d as ’twere with tears till he returns; 
 
 And how she veils her flowers when he is gone, 
 
 As if she scorn’d to be looked upon 
 By an inferior eye, or did contemn 
 To wait upon a meaner light than him : 
 
 When this I meditate, methinks the flowers 
 Have spirits far more generous than ours, 
 
 And give us fair examples to despise 
 The servile fawnings and idolatries 
 Wherewith we court these earthly things below, 
 Which merit not the service we bestow. 
 
 Withers. 
 
156 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 MIGNONETTE. 
 
 YOUR QUALITIES SURPASS YOUR CHARMS. 
 
 Nearly one hundred years have run their 
 course since the Mignonette first bloomed in 
 our climes. It was brought from Egypt. Lin- 
 neus, who gave to it the name of Reseda odo- 
 rata, compares its perfume with that of am¬ 
 brosia : its fragrance is stronger at the rising 
 and setting of the sun than at noon. Migno¬ 
 nette flowers from the beginning of spring to 
 the end of autumn; but, by preserving it in a 
 temperate green-house, its sweets may be in¬ 
 haled in the winter season. It then becomes 
 woody, lives many years, shoots up and forms 
 with care a shrub of the most charming appear¬ 
 ance. 
 
 No gorgeous flowers the meek Reseda grace, 
 
 Yet sip, with eager trunk, yon busy race 
 Her simple cup, nor heed the dazzling gem 
 That beams in Fritillaria’s diadem. 
 
 Evans. 
 
%u*. yu-a/t/u.) ^ittyucJo y ei*A cAd^n^ 
 Oletx you //i //i a fiu'te aidenf i 'oi v . 
 
 A 
 
 
k. 
 
ACACIA. 
 
 157 
 
 ACACIA. 
 
 FRIENDSHIP. 
 
 The Acacia is a native of North America, 
 from Canada to Carolina, and it has been con¬ 
 secrated by the Indians to the genius of chaste 
 love. Their bows are made of the incorruptible 
 wood of this tree, and their arrows are pointed 
 with its thorns. Those wild sons of the desert 
 are susceptible of an attachment fraught with 
 delicacy: they may perhaps be unable to give 
 utterance to it in words, but they find means 
 to express it in a branch of Acacia when in blos¬ 
 som. The Indian girl, like the city coquette, 
 understands this flattering language, and re¬ 
 ceives, with a blush, the homage of him who 
 has won her heart by his respect and love. 
 
 It is not much more than a century since this 
 ornamental tree was introduced into the gar¬ 
 dens of France from American seeds by Robin, 
 the botanist, after whom this family was named 
 Robinia. It is a large, handsome tree, of quick 
 
158 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 growth, beginning from the third year to con¬ 
 vert its sap into perfect wood, which is of so fine 
 a grain and so hard as to be substituted by 
 turners for box in many kinds of light work. 
 Its foliage, of a bright green, is peculiarly light 
 and elegant. The species of Acacia most com¬ 
 monly cultivated are the Pseudo-Acacia, with 
 white blossom, and the Acacia glutinosa, so 
 named from a clammy moisture which covers 
 its branches, with rose-coloured flowers. The 
 Rose Acacia is a highly ornamental shrub, with 
 large bunches of pink-coloured, papilionaceous 
 blossoms, whose beauty, like that of the moss- 
 rose, is enhanced by the bristly covering of the 
 stalk and calyx. 
 
THORN-AfPLE. 
 
 159 
 
 THORN-APPLE. 
 
 DECEITFUL CHARMS. 
 
 Too often enervated by luxurious ease, an in¬ 
 dolent beauty languishes the whole day, and 
 avoids the cheering rays of the sun. At night, 
 arrayed with all the art of coquetry, she exhibits 
 herself to her admirers. The unsteady and delu¬ 
 sive light of tapers, aiding her artifices, lends her 
 a deceptive brilliancy, and she enchants by 
 charms that are not her own. Her heart, mean¬ 
 while, is a stranger to love : all that she wants is 
 slaves, victims. Imprudent youth, flee from the 
 approach of this enchantress. Nature alone is 
 sufficient, art useless, in order to please and to 
 love. She who employs the latter is always dan¬ 
 gerous, perfidious. 
 
 The flowers of the Thorn-apple, like those 
 nocturnal beauties, droop while the sun shines 
 beneath their dull-looking foliage; but, on the 
 approach of night, they revive, display their 
 charms, and unfold their prodigious bells, which 
 
160 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Nature has coloured with purple lined with ivory; 
 and to which she has given an odour that attracts 
 and intoxicates, but is so dangerous as'to stupify 
 those who inhale it even in the open air. The 
 Thorn-apple of Peru is the most splendid variety 
 of this species, each flower being often two feet 
 in length ; and sometimes there are one hundred 
 and fifty open at once on the tree. 
 
 It is a dangerous plant to be allowed to grow 
 where there are children, as the beauty of its 
 flowers and fruit is liable to tempt them to their 
 destruction; since it possesses so poisonous a 
 quality as to produce paralysis and even madness 
 in those who have inadvertently eaten of it. As 
 a medicine, its leaves have been recently recom¬ 
 mended for cough and asthma, dried and mixed 
 with ordinary or herb tobacco for smoking. 
 
CAROLINA JASMINE. 
 
 1G1 
 
 CAROLINA JASMINE. 
 
 SEPARATION. 
 
 How many exquisite harmonies arise on every 
 side of us from the association of plants with 
 animals! The butterfly embellishes the rose, 
 the song of birds enliven the groves, the bee 
 confers a new charm on the flower about which 
 it buzzes, and from which it extracts its sweets. 
 Thus, throughout all Nature, the insect is 
 adapted to the flower, the bird to the tree, the 
 quadruped to the plant. Man alone is capable 
 of discovering these connexions, and he alone 
 has the power of breaking that chain of con¬ 
 sonance and love by which all things in the 
 world are bound together. If with eager and 
 imprudent hand he attempts to remove an ani¬ 
 mal from its native home, thinking only of his 
 own convenience, he usually forgets the plant 
 which would have reconciled his new slave to 
 this separation from his birthplace. If he takes 
 away a plant, he neglects the insect which en- 
 
162 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 livens, the bird which embellishes it, and the 
 quadruped which feeds upon its leaves and re¬ 
 poses in its shade. 
 
 Look at the Carolina Jasmine! With its 
 beautiful foliage and scarlet flowers, it remains 
 an alien among us. For our parts, we prefer to 
 it our sweet native honeysuckle, to which the 
 bee resorts to suck its honey, the goat to browse 
 on its leaves,'and flocks'of thrushes, linnets, 
 finches, and other small birds, to feast upon its 
 berries. No doubt the rich Jasmine of Caro¬ 
 lina would counterbalance all these advantages 
 in our estimation, were we to see it enlivened 
 by the humming-bird of Florida, which, in the 
 vast forests of the New World, prefers its beau¬ 
 tiful foliage to that of every other tree. “ He 
 builds his nest,” says St. Pierre, “ in one of the 
 leaves of this plant, which he rolls up into the 
 form of a cone: he finds his subsistence in its 
 red flowers, resembling those of the foxglove, 
 the nectareous glands of which he licks with 
 his tongue; he squeezes into them his little 
 body, which looks in these flowers like an eme¬ 
 rald set in coral, and sometimes gets so far that 
 he may be caught in this situation.” This little 
 
CAROLINA JASMINE. 
 
 163 
 
 creature is the soul, the life, an essential accom¬ 
 paniment, of the plant in which he delights. 
 When separated from her winged guest, this 
 beautiful creeper is like a desolate widow who 
 has lost all her charms. 
 
164 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 DANDELION. 
 
 THE RUSTIC ORACLE. 
 
 When you bend your steps through the plain, 
 or ascend the hill-side, or stand on the moun¬ 
 tain-top, look down to the greensward at your 
 feet, and you will perceive patches of verdure, 
 covered with golden flowers, or with light and 
 transparent globes. It is the Dandelion, the 
 oracle of the fields, which may be every where 
 consulted. Like man, it is spread over the 
 whole face of the globe; it is found in the four 
 quarters of the world, near the pole as beneath 
 the equator, on the margin of rivers and streams 
 as well as on sterile rocks: every where it offers 
 to the hand that would gather, or the eye that 
 would consult them, its flowers, which shut and 
 open at certain hours, serving the solitary shep¬ 
 herd for a clock, while its feathery tufts are his 
 barometer, predicting calm or storm. 
 
 Leontodons unfold 
 On the swart turf their ray-encircled gold; 
 
DANDELION. 
 
 165 
 
 With Sol’s expanding beam the flowers unclose, 
 And rising Hesper lights them to repose. 
 
 Darwin. 
 
 She, enamoured of the sun, 
 
 At his departure hangs her head and weeps, 
 
 And shrouds her sweetness up, and keeps 
 Sad vigils, like a cloistered nun, 
 
 Till his reviving ray appears, 
 
 Waking her beauty as he dries her tears. 
 
 Moore. 
 
 .Thus in each flower and simple bell 
 That in our path betrodden lie 
 Are sweet remembrancers, who tell 
 How fast their winged moments fly. 
 
 Charlotte Smith. 
 
 But the globes formed by the seeds of the 
 Dandelion serve for other purposes. Are you 
 separated from the object of your love 1 —care¬ 
 fully pluck one of those feathery spheres ; charge 
 each of the little feathers composing it with a 
 tender thought; turn towards the spot where 
 the loved one dwells; blow, and the little aerial 
 travellers will faithfully convey your secret mes¬ 
 sage to his or her feet. Do you wish to know’ 
 if that dear one is thinking of you, as you are 
 thinking of him or her, blow again; and if there 
 is left upon the stalk a single aigrette, it is a 
 
166 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 proof that you are not forgotten. But this second 
 trial must be conducted with great caution. You 
 must blow very gently ; for, at any age, even at 
 that which love renders most resplendent, it is 
 wrong to dispel too rudely the illusions which 
 embellish life. 
 
 The Dandelion attracts attention at a much 
 earlier period of life. Friend Howitt speaks of 
 it as 
 
 Dandelion, with globe of down, 
 
 The schoolboy’s clock in every town, 
 Which the truant puff’s amain, 
 
 To conjure lost hours back again. 
 
POPPY. 
 
 167 
 
 POPPY. 
 
 CONSOLATION. 
 
 As these plants, or rather the juice extracted 
 from them, are employed to ease pain and to 
 procure sleep to the restless invalid, the red 
 Poppy in floral language is made the symbol of 
 consolation. The white Poppy is supposed to 
 express “ My bane, my antidote.” 
 
 According to the Grecian mythology, the 
 Poppy owed its origin to Ceres, who created it 
 to assuage her grief, during her search after 
 her daughter Proserpine, who was carried off 
 by Pluto. 
 
 Indulgent Ceres knew my worth, 
 
 And to adorn the teeming earth 
 She bade the Poppy rise. 
 
 Cowley. 
 
 Sleep-bringing Poppy, by the ploughman late, 
 
 Not without cause, to Ceres consecrate. 
 
 W. Browne. 
 
 The largest heads of the single white Poppy 
 are preferred for making opium. These, being 
 
168 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 wounded before they are mature, and while 
 growing, yield a milky juice; this, being col¬ 
 lected and dried, becomes opium, of which lau¬ 
 danum is made. According to the quantity 
 taken, laudanum operates either as a powerful 
 remedy or a destructive poison. 
 
 .From a Poppy I have taken 
 Mortal’s balm and mortal’s bane ; 
 
 Juice that, creeping through the heart, 
 
 Deadens every sense of smart; 
 
 Doomed to heal or doomed to kill. 
 
 Fraught with good or fraught with ill. 
 
 Mrs. Robinson. 
 
 The Poppy has of late years been extensively 
 cultivated in this country for the making of 
 opium, which is found to be equal in all its 
 qualities to that formerly imported from Tur¬ 
 key. The quantity annually consumed in Eng¬ 
 land is about fifty thousand pounds. In Ger¬ 
 many an oil is extracted from the seed of the 
 Poppy, that is not inferior to the finest Italian 
 oils for culinary purposes, if used within the 
 year. 
 
 Many species of Poppies are cultivated in the 
 garden. The double ones are flowers of sur¬ 
 passing beauty, whether we consider their deli- 
 
POPPY. 
 
 169 
 
 cate texture, elegance of shape, or variety of 
 colouring. But, independently of the flower 
 the capsule, or seed-case, alone of the Poppy 
 cannot be examined without exciting the utmost 
 admiration of the wisdom with which it has been 
 formed. It is covered by a shield-formed stigma, 
 or cap, thickly perforated with holes, to admit 
 the fecundating particles of tlie farina to the 
 channels which are so disposed around the 
 eleven cells, or chambers, of the capsule, that 
 each seed receives its regular portion of this 
 matter by means of an umbilical cord; though 
 there are frequently six thousand of these vege¬ 
 table eggs enclosed in one capsule. When we 
 consider that each of these minute seeds is so 
 admirably perfect as to contain all the essentials 
 necessary to form in the following year a plant 
 capable of producing at least twenty capsules, 
 we cannot forbear exclaiming with the poet:— 
 
 How wondrous are thy ways! 
 
 How far above our knowledge and our praise ! 
 
 Pope. 
 
 In the time of Gesner, the celebrated botanist 
 of Switzerland, the village Damon and Chloes 
 proved the sincerity of their lovers by placing 
 8 
 
170 language of flowers. 
 
 in the hollow of the palm of the left hand a petal, 
 or flower-leaf, of the Poppy, which, on being 
 struck by the other hand, was broken with a 
 sharp sound, which denoted true attachment, but 
 faithlessness when it failed to snap. 
 
 By a prophetic Poppy leaf I found 
 
 Your changed affection, for it gave no sound, 
 
 Though in my hand struck hollow as it lay; 
 
 But quickly withered, like your love, away. 
 
CORN. 
 
 171 
 
 CORN. 
 
 RICHES. 
 
 Corn is a term applied to all sorts of grain fit 
 for food, particularly wheat, barley, oats, and 
 rye. All of them belong to the grand division 
 of grasses, which are distinguished from other 
 plants by their simple, straight, unbranched 
 stalk, hollow, and jointed, commonly called 
 straw; with long, narrow, tapering leaves, placed 
 at each joint of the stalk, and sheathing and en¬ 
 closing it, as if by way of support. 
 
 Ceres, the goddess of corn and harvest, was 
 represented with a garland of ears of corn on her 
 head, the commemoration of the loss of her 
 daughter Proserpine was celebrated about the 
 beginning of harvest; that of her search after her 
 at the time of sowing corn. 
 
 Botanists assure us that corn is not found 
 any where in its primitive state. This plant, 
 together with the use of fire, seems to have 
 been bestowed by Providence on man, in order 
 
172 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 to secure to him the dominion of the earth. With 
 corn and fire, he may dispense with all other 
 gifts, or rather, he may acquire them all. With 
 corn alone he can feed all the domestic animals, 
 which furnish him with subsistence or share his 
 labours. Corn is the first bond of society, be¬ 
 cause its culture and preparation demand hard 
 labour and mutual services. 
 
 An Arab, having lost his way in the desert, 
 had been two days without food : death by hun¬ 
 ger stared him in the face. At length, coming 
 to a well where caravans were accustomed to 
 halt, he perceived a small leathern bag lying on 
 the sand. He picked it up. “ God be praised !” 
 said he—“ ’tis a little flour, I presume.” He 
 lost no time in untying it, and, at the sight of its 
 contents, he exclaimed : “ Unfortunate creature 
 that I am ! it is only gold-dust!” 
 
 A whole straw has been made the emblem of 
 union, and a broken straw, of rupture. The 
 custom of breaking a straw to express the rup¬ 
 ture of a contract may be traced back to an 
 early period of French history, and may be 
 almost said to have had a royal origin. The 
 ancient chroniclers relate that, in 922, Charles 
 
CORN. 
 
 173 
 
 the Simple, finding himself abandoned by the 
 principal lords of his court, had the imprudence 
 to call a meeting of the Champ de Mai at Sois- 
 sons. There he sought friends, but found only 
 factious opponents, whose audacity was increased 
 by his weakness. Some reproached him with 
 indolence, prodigality, and his blind confidence 
 in his minister Haganon; others with his dis¬ 
 graceful concessions to Raoul, the Norman 
 chieftain. Surrounded by the seditious crowd, 
 he had recourse to entreaties and promises, 
 hoping to escape from them by fresh conces¬ 
 sions, but in vain. The more he betrayed his 
 weakness the bolder they grew, and at length 
 they declared that he should no longer be their 
 king. At these words, pronounced with vehe¬ 
 mence, and accompanied with threats, they ad¬ 
 vanced to the foot of the throne, broke the 
 straws which they held in their hands, dashed 
 them to the ground, and retired, after declaring 
 by this act that they thus broke all compacts 
 with him. 
 
 This is the most ancient instance of the kind 
 on record; but it proves that this method of 
 breaking contracts had long been customary • 
 
174 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 since the great vassals thought it unnecessary 
 to accompany the act with a single word of ex¬ 
 planation. They were sure of being understood, 
 and they were so. 
 
YELLOW DAY LILY. 
 
 175 
 
 YELLOW DAY LILY. 
 
 COQUETRY. 
 
 This fragile beauty is made the emblem of 
 coquetry, because its flower seldom lasts a second 
 day; hence the French have named it Belle de 
 jour, and it has been thus characterized by one 
 of their poets: 
 
 Aux feux dont l’air dtincelle 
 S’ouvre la Belle de jour; 
 
 Zbphyr la flatte de l’aille; 
 
 La friponne encore appelle 
 Les papillons d’alentour. 
 
 Coquettes, c’est votre embleme: 
 
 Le grand jour, le bruit vous plait, 
 
 Briller est votre art supreme; 
 
 Sans eclat le plaisir meme 
 Devient pour vous sans attrait. 
 
 It flowers in June, and, though the blossoms 
 are so short-lived, yet they are followed by a 
 succession .of others, so that the plant continues 
 to display its beauty, and to give out its agreeable 
 fragrance, for a considerable time. 
 
176 
 
 language of flowers. 
 
 SENSITIVE PLANT. 
 
 CHASTITY. 
 
 The Sensitive Plant is so called from its 
 motions imitating- the sensibility of animal life. 
 The plants of this genus naturally contract 
 themselves in the evening, and expand with 
 the morning’s light: and they are still more re¬ 
 markable for shrinking from external violence, 
 and folding up their leaves at the mere approach 
 of one’s hand. 
 
 Whence does it happen that the plant, which well 
 
 We name the Sensitive, should move and feel ? 
 
 Whence know her leaves to answer her command, 
 
 And with quick horror fly the neighbouring hand ? 
 
 Prior. 
 
 These are questions which naturalists have 
 not yet been able to answer. Darwin asks: 
 “ May it not be owing to a numbness, or para¬ 
 lysis, consequent to too violent irritation, like 
 the fainting of animals from pain or fatigue ?” 
 
SENSITIVE PLANT. 
 
 177 
 
 The same writer thus characterizes the general 
 habits of this plant: 
 
 Weak, with nice sense, the chaste Mimosa stands, 
 From each rude touch withdraws her timid hands: ■ 
 Oft as light clouds o’erpass the summer's glade, 
 Alarm’d she trembles at the moving shade, 
 
 And feels, alive through ail her tender form, 
 
 The whisper’d murmurs of the gathering storm ; 
 
 Shuts her sweet eyelids to approaching night, 
 
 And hails with freshen'd charms the rosy light. 
 
 Her susceptibility, however, even in the 
 highest degree of excitement, never instigates 
 her to injure the indiscreet hand which touches 
 her, but only to draw "back from it. The Sensi¬ 
 tive Plant strives neither to punish nor to re¬ 
 venge herself. Like those modest females, 
 who never think of arming themselves with 
 severity, she uses not her thorny bristles; she 
 merely shrinks from the approach of the in¬ 
 truder. The violet is the emblem of that retiring 
 modesty which proceeds from reflection; but 
 the Sensitive Plant is a perfect image of inno¬ 
 cence and virgin modesty. She suspects no 
 harm, because she knows none, and shows her¬ 
 self without mistrust: but, as soon as she is 
 8 * 
 
178 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 gazed at too closely, she withdraws herself as 
 much as possible from the inquisitive eye. This 
 modesty appears to be in her an instinct, a sense, 
 and not the result of reflection. 
 
AUTUMN. 
 
 179 
 
 AUTUMN. 
 
 Attemper’d suns arise, 
 
 Sweet-beam’d and shedding oft through lucid clouds 
 A pleasing calm ; while, broad and brown below. 
 Extensive harvests hang the heavy head. 
 
 Rich, silent, deep, they stand; for not a gale 
 Rolls its light billows o’er the bending plain : 
 
 A calm of plenty ! 
 
 Thomson. 
 
 Who loves not Autumn’s joyous round. 
 
 When corn, and wine, and oil abound ? 
 
 Yet who would choose, however gay, 
 
 A year of unrenewed decay ? 
 
 Montgomery. 
 
 No spring or summer’s beauty hath such grace 
 As I have seen in one Autumnal face. 
 
 Donne. 
 
 Autumn tinges every fertile branch 
 
 With blooming gold, and blushes like the morn. 
 
 Akenside. 
 
180 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS, 
 
 Go to the silent Autumn woods! 
 
 There has gone forth a spirit stern ; 
 
 Its w'ing has waved in triumph here, 
 
 The spring’s green tender leaf is sere, 
 
 And withering hangs the summer fern. 
 
 Mary Howitt. 
 
 In our favoured country, Spring is clothed in 
 a green robe enamelled with flowers, which 
 owes all its ornaments to Nature. Summer, 
 crowned with blue-bottles and wild poppies, 
 proud of her golden harvests, receives from the 
 hand of man part of her decorations ; whilst 
 Autumn appears laden with fruit brought to per¬ 
 fection by his industry. Here the juicy peach is 
 tinged with the colours of the rose; the fine-fla¬ 
 voured apricot borrows the gold that glows in the 
 bosom of the ranunculus ; the grape decks itself 
 with the purple of the violet; and the apple with 
 the varied hues of the gaudy tulip. All these 
 fruits are so like flowers, that one would suppose 
 them to have been made only to delight the eye : 
 but yet they come to increase the abundance 
 of our stores, and Autumn, which pours them 
 upon our tables, seems to proclaim that they are 
 the last gifts which Nature means to lavish upon 
 us. 
 
AUTUMN. 
 
 181 
 
 But a new Flora suddenl*makes her appear¬ 
 ance, the offspring of commerce and industry. 
 She was unknown to Greece in her best days, 
 and to our simple forefathers. Roving about 
 incessantly over the earth, she enriches us with 
 the productions of every country. She comes, 
 and our dull and forsaken gardens acquire fresh 
 splendour. The China aster is intermingled 
 with the beauteous pink of India ; the migno¬ 
 nette from the banks of the Nile grows at the 
 foot of the eastern tuberose ; the heliotrope, the 
 nasturtium and the nightshade of Peru, blossom 
 at the foot of the beautiful acacia of Constan¬ 
 tinople ; the Persian jasmine unites with that 
 of Carolina to cover our arbours and to embel¬ 
 lish our bowers; the hollyhock and the Passion 
 flower, also denominated the Jerusalem cross, 
 which reminds us of the Crusades, raise their 
 splendid heads beside the persicaria of the East; 
 and Autumn, which could formerly find nothing 
 but ears of corn and vine-leaves to compose a 
 garland for her brows, is now astonished to find 
 herself crowned with such rich adornments, and 
 to be enabled to mingle with them the ever- 
 flowering rose of the plains of Bengal. 
 
182 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Dearly do I lo^k to observe these beautiful 
 strangers, which have retained amongst us their 
 native instincts and habits. The sensitive plant 
 shrinks from my hand, as it does from that of 
 the American savage; the African marigold 
 predicts to me, as to the black inhabitants of 
 the desert, dry or rainy weather; the day-lily of 
 Portugal tells me that in an hour it will be 
 noon; and the Peruvian nightshade informs the 
 timid lover that the trysting-hour is at hand. 
 
FORGET-ME-NOT. 
 
 183 
 
 FORGET-ME-NOT. 
 
 The name of this beautiful little flower, 
 which enamels the banks of our rivers with its 
 corollas of celestial blue, corresponds with the 
 signification that is now universally attached to 
 it. That name it derived from a German tradi¬ 
 tion full of melancholy romance. It is related 
 that a young couple, on the eve of being united, 
 whilst walking along the delightful banks of the 
 Danube, saw a cluster of these lovely flowers 
 floating on the stream, which was bearing it 
 away. The affianced bride admired the beauty 
 of the flower, and lamented its fatal destiny. 
 The lover plunged into the water to secure it; 
 no sooner had he caught it than he found him¬ 
 self sinking, but, making a last effort, he threw it 
 on the bank at the feet of his betrothed, and, at 
 the moment of disappearing for ever, exclaimed 
 Vergiss mein nicht! Since that event, this flower 
 has been made emblematical of the sentiment, 
 and been distinguished by the name of Forget- 
 me-not. Its Linnean appellation is Myosotis 
 
184 
 
 language of flowers. 
 
 palustris, and its common English name, Mouse- 
 ear Scorpion-grass. 
 
 It is not surprising that the Forget-me-not 
 should have become a favourite with our own 
 poets as well as those of Germany. In Gothe’s 
 “Lay of the Imprisoned Knight,” translated 
 by Lord Francis Leveson Gower, are these 
 stanzas : 
 
 Not on the mountain’s shelving side, 
 
 Nor in the cultivated ground, 
 
 Nor in the garden’s painted pride, 
 
 The flower I seek is found. 
 
 Where Time on sorrow’s page of gloom 
 Has fix’d its envious lot, 
 
 Or swept the record from the tomb, 
 
 It says Forget me not. 
 
 And this is still the loveliest flower, 
 
 The fairest of the fair, 
 
 Of all that deck my lady’s bower, 
 
 Or bind her floating hair. 
 
 It has been figured as a device on the seals 
 of lovers who have sung its praises in their 
 verses: 
 
 To flourish in my favourite bower, 
 
 To blossom round my cot, 
 
 I cultivate the little flower 
 They call Forget-me-not. 
 
FORGET-ME-NOT. 
 
 185 
 
 It springs where Avon gently flows 
 In wild simplicity, 
 
 And ’neath my cottage-window grows, 
 
 Sacred to love and thee. 
 
 This pretty little floweret’s dye 
 Of soft cerulean blue, 
 
 Appears as if from Ellen’s eye 
 It had received its hue. 
 
 Though oceans now betwixt us roar, 
 
 Though distant be our lot, 
 
 Ellen ! though we should meet no more, 
 
 Sweet maid, Forget me not! 
 
 The Myosotis palustris is no where found in 
 greater perfection and abundance than on the 
 bank of a stream near Luxemburg, which springs 
 from the foot of an oak, that appears as old as the 
 world, and, forming a number of little cascades, 
 descends into an extensive plain. It is only 
 the bank most exposed to the south that is 
 thickly bordered by the Forget-me-not, and the 
 plants hanging down seem to delight in looking 
 at themselves in the crystal mirror of the stream, 
 which is called The Fairies’ bath, or the Cascade 
 of the Enchanted Oak. To this favourite spot 
 the young females often descend from the ram¬ 
 parts of the city, on holidays, to dance near the 
 
186 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 brook. To see them crowned with the flowers 
 that line its bank, you would take them for 
 Nymphs holding their revels in honour of the 
 Naiad of the Enchanted Oak. 
 
 For some years this little flower has been 
 cultivated in France with the greatest care, 
 and it finds a ready sale in the markets in Paris. 
 Phillips recommends its cultivation for the 
 same purpose in this country, particularly to 
 cottagers who live near towns; “as, by trans¬ 
 planting the trailing branches from their bor¬ 
 ders into small pots, they would find it a pro¬ 
 fitable employ to send them to market, for few 
 people would withstand the temptation to pur¬ 
 chase these interesting flowers, that carry in 
 their eye the tale of Forget-me-not.” 
 
 The same writer says he has been informed 
 that “the decoction or the juice of this plant has 
 the peculiar property of hardening steel; and 
 that, if edge-tools of that metal be made red-hot, 
 and then quenched in the juice, and this process 
 be repeated several times, the steel will become 
 so hard as to cut iron, and even stone, without 
 turning the edge.” 
 
CHINA ASTER. 
 
 187 
 
 CHINA ASTER. 
 
 VARIETY. 
 
 The numerous family of radiated flowers 
 were named Aster from the Greek word signi¬ 
 fying Star. Our European gardens are in¬ 
 debted for the China Aster to Father d’lncar- 
 ville, a Jesuit missionary, who, about the year 
 1730 , sent seeds of it to the royal garden at 
 Paris. At first the plants produced only single 
 flowers of one uniform colour; but, through 
 cultivation and change of soil, double varieties 
 were obtained, and so diversified in colour that 
 they form one of the principal ornaments of our 
 parterres from July to November; and the 
 China Aster is thence made the emblem of 
 variety. In like manner, study is capable of 
 multiplying without limit the graces and refine¬ 
 ments of the uncultivated mind. Brilliant and 
 majestic, the Aster does not pretend to rival 
 the rose, but it succeeds her, and consoles us in 
 autumn for her absence. 
 
188 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 It was at first supposed that the Chinese 
 were acquainted only with the single purple 
 Aster that was sent to France : but they possess 
 all the varieties which we admire, and display a 
 taste in the arrangement of these star-formed 
 flowers, which leaves the British florist far in 
 the back-ground. Even our most curious ama¬ 
 teurs have yet to learn what effect these plants 
 are capable of producing by their gay corollas, 
 when carefully distributed by the hand of taste. 
 
 Figure to yourself for instance a bank sloping 
 to a piece of water, covered with these gay 
 flowers, so arranged as to rival the richest pat¬ 
 terns of Persian carpets, or the most curious 
 figures that can be devised by the artist in 
 fillagree. Imagine them reflected in the water, 
 and you will have a faint idea of the enchanting 
 effect produced by these brilliant stars in the 
 gardens of China. 
 
 I once attempted this kind of decoration, of 
 which a celebrated traveller had talked to me 
 a great deal, but_failed to produce the full effect 
 intended, owing to the lack of that profusion of 
 flowers, that variety of shades of the same 
 colour, and, above all, that admirable Chinese 
 
CHINA ASTER. 
 
 189 
 
 patience which conquers all obstacles. My little 
 theatre, however, which was rather disposed in 
 stripes than in steps, delighted all who beheld 
 it; and many were astonished, as-well as myself, 
 that nothing of the kind had ever yet been at¬ 
 tempted for the decoration of our gardens or to 
 set off our festivities. 
 
190 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 TUBEROSE. 
 
 DANGEROUS PLEASURES. 
 
 This superb child of the East, to which Lin- 
 neus gave by way of eminence the epithet Po- 
 lianthes, from two Greek words signifying a 
 town and a flower, because it is generally culti¬ 
 vated and sold in towns, was first brought from 
 Persia to France in 1632. It was then but 
 single, and double flowers were not produced 
 till long afterwards by a skilful florist of Leyden, 
 named Lecour. It has since spread over all the 
 world. In Russia, indeed, it flowers only for 
 sovereigns and the great; but it fyas become 
 naturalized in Peru, where it grows without 
 culture, and unites with the glowing nastur¬ 
 tium to adorn the bosom of the American 
 beauty. 
 
 The flower of the Tuberose, which grows on 
 the top of a very tall, slender stem, is of a 
 white colour, sometimes tinged with a blush of 
 pink. Its perfume is delicious, rich, and power- 
 
TUBEROSE. 
 
 101 
 
 ful. If you would enjoy it without danger, keep 
 at some distance from the plant. To increase 
 ten-fold the pleasure which it affords, come with 
 the object of your affection to inhale its perfume 
 by moonlight, when the nightingale is pouring 
 forth his soul in song. 
 
 The Tuberose, with her silvery light. 
 
 That in the gardens of Malay 
 Is call’d the mistress of the night, 
 
 So like a bride, scented and bright, 
 
 She comes out when the sun’s away. 
 
 Moore. 
 
 Then, by a secret virtue, these grateful odours 
 will add an inexpressible charm to your enjoy¬ 
 ment ; but, if regardless of the precepts of 
 moderation, you will approach too near, this 
 divine flower will then be but a dangerous en¬ 
 chantress, which will pour into your bosom a 
 deadly poison. Thus the love which descends 
 from heaven purifies and exalts the delights of 
 a chaste passion ; but that which springs from 
 the earth proves the bane and the destruction of 
 imprudent youth. 
 
192 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 PERUVIAN HELIOTROPE. 
 
 DEVOTED ATTACHMENT. 
 
 This flower has been confounded with the 
 sunflower, though it is of a different genus, 
 and totally unlike the latter. To both has been 
 ascribed the property of turning towards the 
 sun, and following his course round the horizon; 
 a property not confined to these flowers, as 
 there arc others that do the same in a greater or 
 less degree. 
 
 The blossoms of the Heliotrope form clusters 
 of very small, delicate, fragrant flowers, generally 
 of a faint purple colour, or white, sometimes 
 red, and bluish white. It is, as its name implies, 
 a native of Peru, where it was discovered by 
 the celebrated Jussieu. While botanizing one 
 day in the Cordilleras, he suddenly found him¬ 
 self overpowered by an intoxicating perfume. 
 He looked around, expecting to find some 
 gaudy flower or other from which it proceeded, 
 but could perceive nothing but some handsome 
 
PERUVIAN HELIOTROPE. 
 
 193 
 
 bushes, of a light green, the extremities of whose 
 sprays were- tipped with flowers of a faint blue 
 colour. He went up to these bushes, which 
 were about six feet high, and saw that the 
 flowers which they bore were all turned towards 
 the sun. Struck with this peculiarity, the 
 learned botanist gave to the plant the name of 
 Heliotrope, and, collecting some of its seeds, he 
 sent them to the royal garden at Paris, where 
 the Heliotrope was first cultivated in 1740. It 
 has since spread to all the countries of Europe, 
 and, though there is nothing striking in its ap¬ 
 pearance, it has become a general favourite with 
 the fair sex. 
 
 An anonymous poet has drawn from this 
 flower a signification, the very reverse of that 
 which we have attached to it: 
 
 There is a flower, whose modest eye 
 Is turned with looks of light and love, 
 
 Who breathes her softest, sweetest sigh, 
 
 Whene’er the sun is bright above. 
 
 Let clouds obscure, or darkness veil, 
 
 Her fond idolatry is fled; 
 
 Her sighs no more their sweets exhale. 
 
 The loving eye is cold and dead. 
 
 9 
 
194 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Canst thou not trace a moral here, 
 
 False flatterer of the prosperous hour? 
 Let but an adverse cloud appear, 
 
 And thou art faithless as the flow’r. 
 
I 
 
 L 
 
 i 
 
 ! 
 
 ! 
 
 i 
 
 
SUNFLOWER. 
 
 195 
 
 SUNFLOWER. 
 
 FALSE RICHES. 
 
 The Sunflower has been thus.named from the 
 resemblance which its broad golden disk and 
 surrounding rays bear to the sun. On this ac¬ 
 count it was used in its native country by the 
 Peruvians, who worshipped that luminary—the 
 virgins who officiated in the Temple of the Sun 
 being crowned with Sunflowers of pure gold, 
 wearing them also at their bosoms, and carrying 
 them in their hands. These golden flowers, re¬ 
 flecting the rays of their deity, formed a scene 
 of dazzling brilliancy. The first Spaniards who 
 arrived in Peru were amazed at this profuse dis¬ 
 play of gold, but they were still more astonished 
 when in May they beheld whole fields covered 
 with these flowers, which they concluded at first 
 sight to be composed of the same precious 
 metal. 
 
 The Sunflower has been made the emblem of 
 
196 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 false wealth, because gold, however abundant, 
 cannot of itself render a person truly rich. It 
 is related that Pythes, a rich Lydian, the owner 
 of several gold-mines, neglected the cultivation 
 of his lands, which naturally became so unpro¬ 
 ductive as not to afford the necessaries of life. 
 His wife, who proved herself possessed of as 
 much good sense as wit, at a supper which 
 Pythes had ordered her to prepare, caused all 
 the dishes to be filled with representations of the 
 different viands in gold. On the removal of the 
 covers, she said to the guests : “ I set before you 
 such fare as we have ; for we cannot reap what 
 we do not sow.” This lesson made a due im¬ 
 pression on the mind of Pythes, who acknow. 
 ledged that Providence distributes its gifts like 
 an affectionate mother, who has a love for all her 
 offspring, however numerous. 
 
 The French call this flower Tournesol as well 
 as Soldi , from a vulgar error that the blossoms 
 turn to the sun. The fact is, that the flowers 
 branch out on all sides of the plant, and those 
 which face the east at the opening of day never 
 turn to the west at the close of it. Many of 
 our poets, however, have adopted the popular 
 
SUNFLOWER. 
 
 197 
 
 notion that this flower regularly turns to the 
 sun : 
 
 But one; the lofty follower of the sun, 
 
 Sad when he sets, shuts up her yellow leaves, 
 Drooping all night, and, when he warm returns, 
 Points her enamour’d bosom to his ray. 
 
 Thomson. 
 
 Moore,, in his Irish Melodies, introduces the 
 same notion: 
 
 As the sunflower turns to her god, when he sets, 
 
 The same look which she turn’d when he rose. 
 
 Darwin also says of the Sunflower that it 
 
 Climbs the upland lawn, 
 
 And bows in homage to the rising dawn, 
 
 Imbibes with eagle eye the golden ray, 
 
 And watches, as it moves, the orb of day. 
 
 Uplift, proud Sunflower, to thy favourite orb, 
 
 That disk whereon his brightness seems to dwell, 
 And, as thou seem’st his radiance to absorb, 
 
 Proclaim thyself the garden’s sentinel. 
 
 Barton. 
 
 This notion is, no doubt, derived from the 
 classic legend of the nymph Clytia, who was 
 beloved by Helios. When, however, he trans- 
 
198 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ferred his affections to Leueothoe, the daughter 
 of King Orchamos, the jealous Clytia commu¬ 
 nicated the affair to the father, who cruelly put 
 his daughter to death. Helios was so indignant 
 at the conduct of Clytia, that he could not for¬ 
 give her, and wholly withdrew his affections. 
 Overwhelmed with grief, she threw herself on 
 the ground, and there lay for nine days and 
 nights without taking any sustenance, and her 
 eyes fixed on the sun, the type of her lover. At 
 length, the gods, moved with compassion by her 
 sorrow and contrition, transformed her into a 
 Sunflower, which was believed constantly to turn 
 its face towards the sun, as if to imbibe life and 
 warmth from his rays. 
 
 In its native country, Peru and Mexico, the 
 Sunflower is said to grow to the height of twenty 
 feet or more, and to produce flowers about two 
 feet in diameter. Gerard, the first English 
 writer who notices this plant, which he calls 
 “ The Flower of the Sunne, or the Marigolde 
 of Peru,” tells us that he had grown it in his 
 garden at Holborn to the height of fourteen feet, 
 and producing flowers that measured sixteen 
 inches over. 
 
SUNFLOWER. 
 
 199 
 
 It has been ascertained that a single Sunflower 
 may produce upwards of two thousand seeds. 
 These seeds when pealed have a taste similar to 
 that of sweet almonds, and they are excellent 
 food for fattening domestic poultry. In the 
 United States of America, the Sunflower is culti¬ 
 vated on a large scale, for the purpose of making 
 from the seeds an oil that is good-tasted, and fit 
 for salads and all the purposes for which olive-oil 
 is used. Hence it is evident that the Sunflower 
 might with as much justice have been made the 
 emblem of true as of false riches. 
 
200 
 
 language of flowers. 
 
 HOLLYHOCK. 
 
 AMBITION. 
 
 The towering height of this majestic plant 
 renders it an appropriate emblem of ambition. 
 It is a native of the East Indies, China, Siberia, 
 and Africa. From the French name, Rose de 
 Damas, or Rose d’Outremer, it is surmised that 
 the Hollyhock was first brought to Europe from 
 Syria at the time of the Crusades. 
 
 We have few flowers that contribute more to 
 the embellishment of large gardens than the Hol¬ 
 lyhock, whose noble stems appear like so many 
 banners garnished with roses of every variety of 
 colour, from the palest blush to the deepest car¬ 
 mine, and from a faint white, through every 
 shade of yellow, to the richest orange, from 
 which the colour is carried on to a dark chesnut. 
 Others are dyed of a reddish purple, deepening to 
 black. These give gaiety to the shrubbery till a 
 late season of the year, throwing out a succession 
 of flowers till the arrival of frost. 
 
HOLLYHOCK. 
 
 201 
 
 Phillips, in his “ Flora Historica,” indulges 
 in the following pleasing speculations respect¬ 
 ing this flower “ When the children of the 
 lower classes of society have become more civi¬ 
 lized, and their parents sufficiently enlightened 
 to instruct them in their duty, so that their 
 amusement may not consist in idly destroying 
 what cannot benefit them, but materially injures 
 their more polished neighbours, the Hollyhock 
 will be planted in the hedges of our fields, and 
 the whole appearance of the country be much 
 improved by relieving the uniformity of the 
 generality of fences. Considerable benefit would 
 at the same time be received by those cottagers 
 who have the prudence to give attention to the 
 hive; since the late season at which the Holly¬ 
 hock flowers gives the bees an opportunity to 
 make a second season for collecting their 
 sweets.” 
 
 From the nectaries of Hollyhocks 
 
 The humble bee, e’en till he faints, will sip. 
 
 H. Smith. 
 
 It is now known that the Hollyhock may be 
 employed for other economical purposes besides 
 the feeding of bees. It has been ascertained 
 9 * 
 
202 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 that good strong cloth may be made from the 
 fibrous bark of its flower-stalks. In 1821, two 
 hundred and eighty acres of land, near Flint, in 
 Wales, were planted with the common Holly¬ 
 hock for this manufacture: in the process of 
 which it was discovered that the plant yields a 
 fine blue dye, equal in beauty and permanence 
 to the best indigo. 
 
MAIDEN HAIR. 
 
 203 
 
 MAIDEN HAIR. 
 
 SECRECY. 
 
 Up to the present day, botanists have in vain 
 studied this plant, which seems to conceal from 
 the most searching examination the secret of its 
 flowers and seed, confiding to Zephyr alone the 
 invisible germs of its young family. That deity 
 selects a spot for the cradle of its offspring. 
 Sometimes he delights to form with its long 
 tresses the dark veil hung before some cavern, 
 in which the solitary Naiad has slept ever since 
 the beginning of ages; at others, bearing them 
 on his wings, he fixes them like verdant stars on 
 the top of the towers of some old castle, or, dis¬ 
 posing them in light festoons, he adorns with 
 them the cool and shady spots which the herds¬ 
 man loves. Thus this species of fern, which 
 baffles the researches of Science, and conceals 
 its origin from the most piercing eyes, does not 
 withhold its benefits from those who solicit 
 them. 
 
204 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 MEADOW SAFFRON. 
 
 MY BEST DAYS ARE PAST. 
 
 When the leaves begin to fall from the trees, 
 a flower resembling the crocus springs up amidst 
 the grass of the damp meadows : but, instead of 
 being, like the crocus, the harbinger of joy and 
 hope, it proclaims to all Nature that the bright 
 days of summer are over. This flower is the 
 Meadow Saffron, or Colchicum autumnale, sup- 
 posed to be so named from Colchis, in Asia, 
 where it is said to grow in abundance. 
 
 According to fabulous history, this autumnal 
 flower owes its origin to some drops of the 
 magic liquor, prepared by Medea to restore the 
 aged iEson to the bloom and vigour of youth, 
 which were spilt in the fields. 
 
 The foaming juices now the brink o’erswell; 
 
 The barren heath, where’er the liquor fell, 
 
 Sprang out with vernal grass, and all the pride 
 Of blooming May. 
 
 Tate’s Ovid. 
 
MEADOW SAEFRON. 
 
 205 
 
 In such a night 
 
 Medea gathered the enchanted herbs 
 That did renew old .Eson. 
 
 Shaksfeare. 
 
 It has been suggested also that, as Medea is 
 sometimes called Colchis, it was this plant that 
 relieved iEson from his infirmities. Hence it 
 came to be considered as a preservative against 
 all sorts of diseases. The Swiss hang it round 
 their children’s necks, and imagine them to be 
 thenceforth exempt from every kind of ailment. 
 
 Most superstitious notions, however, ridicu¬ 
 lous as they may now appear, originated in the 
 first instance in some reasonable opinion. Could 
 we divest the tales of antiquity of their fabulous 
 dress, we should probably find them all expla¬ 
 natory of real events. In this case, we should 
 perhaps discover that Medea, having relieved 
 iEson from a fit of the gout, his subjects cele¬ 
 brated her praise for having restored their sove¬ 
 reign to youthful sprightliness. This interpre¬ 
 tation is rendered the more plausible by the late 
 discovery of the powerful efficacy of the Colchi- 
 cum, not only in gout and rheumatic aflections 
 of the joints, but also in most inflammatory dis- 
 
206 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 orders. In many cases, however, it lias produced 
 injurious effects ; so that, as a medicine, it ought 
 not to be administered but by the most cautious 
 practitioners; for the Colchicum is undoubtedly 
 a poisonous root, and its deleterious effects are 
 to be dreaded until the precise dose is accurately 
 ascertained. 
 
 The poisonous quality of this plant seems to 
 be known as it were by instinct to all kinds of 
 cattle. They all shun it, and it is no uncom¬ 
 mon thing to see it standing alone in pastures, 
 where every other kind of herbage has been 
 eaten down, without a leaf of this plant being 
 touched. 
 
 The Meadow Saffron cannot but interest the 
 botanist on account of the singular phenomena 
 which it exhibits. Its corolla, six-cleft, of a 
 violet colour, has neither leaves nor stem : a 
 long tube, white as ivory, which is but a pro¬ 
 longation of the flower, is its sole support. At 
 the bottom of this tube Nature has placed the 
 seed, which is not destirfed to ripen before the 
 following spring. The seed-vessel which en¬ 
 closes it is buried in the turf during the win¬ 
 ter ; but, on the return of spring, it rises from 
 
MEADOW SAFFRON, 
 
 207 
 
 the ground, waving in the sunshine, surrounded 
 by a tuft of broad leaves of the brightest green. 
 The seeds ripen in.May. Thus, this plant, re¬ 
 versing the accustomed order of the seasons, 
 mingles its fruit with the flowers of spring, and 
 its flowers with the fruits of autumn. 
 
 Then bright from earth, amid the troubled sky, 
 Ascends fair Colchicum, with radiant eye, 
 
 Warms the cold bosom of the hoary year, 
 
 And lights with beauty’s blaze the dusky sphere. 
 
 Darwin. 
 
208 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 SWEET-SCENTED TUSSILAGE. 
 
 JUSTICE SHALL BE DONE TO YOU. 
 
 Although this plant is a native of Italy, it re¬ 
 mained unknown till the present century, when 
 M. Villan, a skilful botanist of Grenoble, was at¬ 
 tracted by its delightful fragrance at the foot of 
 Mount Pilatus, in Switzerland, whence he brought 
 it to perfume the winter gardens of our continen¬ 
 tal neighbours. It cast its first odour on the 
 British shore in 1806, and it has become so far 
 naturalized to our climate as to discharge its fra¬ 
 grance over our walks in winter, as freely as the 
 mignonette of Egypt does in summer. 
 
 Thus genius, hidden beneath a modest exte¬ 
 rior, is not discerned by the vulgar; but if it 
 once meets the eye of an enlightened judge, its 
 powers are revealed, and it commands the ad¬ 
 miration of those who, with stupid indifference, 
 perceived in it nothing extraordinary. A young 
 miller in Holland, having a taste for painting, 
 exercised it at leisure-hours in portraying the 
 
SWEET-SCENTED TUSSILAGK. 
 
 209 
 
 scenery amidst which he lived. His master’s 
 mill and cattle, an admirable verdure, the effects 
 of the sky, clouds, vapour, light, and shade, 
 were transferred with exquisite truth to the 
 canvass by his untutored pencil. No sooner had 
 he finished one picture than he carried it to the 
 colourman and exchanged it for materials to 
 paint another. It happened that the innkeeper 
 of the place, expecting company at his house, 
 wished to decorate the apartment destined for 
 their reception, and bought two of the pictures 
 for that purpose. An eminent painter, chancing 
 to stop at the inn, admired the truth of these 
 landscapes, offered one hundred florins for what 
 had cost but a crown, and, on paying for them, 
 promised to take all the works of the young 
 miller at the same price. Thus was the repu¬ 
 tation of the latter established and his fortune 
 made. In his prosperity, he never forgot his 
 dear mill, the figure of which is to be found in 
 all his pictures, which are so many master¬ 
 pieces. Who would imagine that plants, like 
 men, need a patron in order that their merits 
 may be duly appreciated! 
 
210 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 SCARLET GERANIUM. 
 
 STUPIDITY. 
 
 Madame de Stael was always angry when¬ 
 ever any of her acquaintance attempted to in¬ 
 troduce a stupid person into her company. One 
 day, one of her friends ventured, nevertheless, 
 to bring to her a young Swiss officer of the most 
 prepossessing exterior. The lady, pleased with 
 his appearance, was very lively, and said a thou¬ 
 sand flattering things to the new-comer, who 
 seemed at first to be struck mute by surprise 
 and admiration. When, however, he had lis¬ 
 tened to her for above an hour without opening 
 his lips, she began to suspect the cause of his 
 silence, and put to him such direct questions 
 that he could not help answering. Alas, for 
 the visitor ! his answers were extremely silly 1 
 Madame de Stael, vexed at having thrown away 
 her time and her wit, turned to her friend and 
 said: “ Indeed, sir, you are like my gardener, 
 who thought to do me a pleasure by bringing 
 
SCARLET GERANIUM. 
 
 211 
 
 me this morning a pot of Geranium : but I can 
 tell you that I made him take back the flower ; 
 desiring him not to let me see it any more.” 
 “ And why so ?” asked the young man in asto¬ 
 nishment. “ It was, since you wish to know, 
 because the Geranium is a beautiful, scarlet 
 flower; while you look at it, it pleases the eye ; 
 but, when you press it ever so slightly, it gives 
 out a disagreeable smell.” With these words, 
 Madame de Stael rose and went out of the 
 room, leaving, you may be sure, the cheeks of 
 the young fool as red as hia coat or the flower 
 to which he had just been likened. 
 
 Among the cultivated v arieties of the Gera¬ 
 nium, there are, however, some which have a 
 very agreeable scent, and whoso flowers ex¬ 
 hibit many diversities of colour. It is also found 
 in a wild state-under the names of Crane’s Bill 
 and Herb Robert. The following poetic tri¬ 
 bute’ has been paid to it by the latter appel¬ 
 lation :— 
 
 I will not sing the mossy rose, 
 
 Thejasmine sweet, or lily fair, 
 
 The tints the rich carnation shows, 
 
 The stock’s sweet scent that fills the air 
 
212 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Full many a bard has sung their praise 
 In metres smooth, and polished line ; 
 
 A simple flower and humbler lays 
 May best befit a pen like mine. 
 
 There is a small but lovely flower, 
 
 With crimson star and calyx brown, 
 
 On pathway side, beneath the bower, 
 
 By Nature’s hand profusely strown. 
 
 Inquire you when this flow’ret springs ?— 
 When Nature wakes to mirth and love, 
 
 When all her fragrance summer flings, 
 When latest autumn chills the grove. 
 
 Like the sweet bird whose name it bears, 
 ’Midst falling leaves and fading flowers, 
 
 The passing traveller it cheers, 
 
 In shorten’d days and darksome hours. 
 
 And, should you ask me where it blows, 
 
 I answer, on the mountain’s bare, 
 
 High on the tufted rock it grows, 
 
 In lonely glens or meadows fair. 
 
 It blooms amidst those flowery dales 
 Where winding Aire pursues its course ; 
 
 It smiles upon the craggy fells 
 That rise around its lofty source. 
 
 There are its rosy petals shown, 
 
 ’Midst curious forms and mosses rare, 
 
 Imbedded in the dark grey stone, 
 
 When not another flower is there. 
 
SCARLET GERANIUM. 
 
 213 
 
 Oh! emblem of that steadfast mind, 
 
 Which, through the varying scenes of life, 
 
 By genuine piety refined, 
 
 Holds on its way ’midst noise and strife. 
 
 Though dark the impending tempest lour, 
 
 The path of duty it espies, 
 
 Calm ’midst the whirlwind and the shower, 
 Thankful wheii brighter hours arise. 
 
 Oh ! could our darken’d minds discern . 
 
 In thy sweet form this lesson plain, 
 flould we it practically learn, 
 
 Herb Robert would not bloom in vain. 
 
 At Rome, the leaf of the Geranium is em¬ 
 ployed in a favourite game or amusement, which 
 is called Far il Verde. The time chosen for it 
 is the beginning of spring, when the trees and 
 the fields put on their new liveries. A gentle¬ 
 man and lady then agree upon a Verde , and 
 determine the duration of the game and the 
 forfeits to be paid. Both parties have now to 
 take care that they are constantly provided, 
 both at home and abroad, with a fresh Gera¬ 
 nium leaf. On meeting one another, the ques¬ 
 tion is Avede il Verde ? succeeded by the chal¬ 
 lenge, Fatle vadere il Verde, or Fatte il Verde. 
 The person so addressed must immediately show 
 
214 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 the Geranium leaf, and, as a sign that it is fresh, 
 rub it against a wall or anything upon which 
 it can leave a mark. If it fails to make a 
 green spot, or if the party has left it at home, 
 he must either pay the specified penalty or 
 pledge himself to do so. Tims, too, this engage¬ 
 ment gives each a right to enter without cere¬ 
 mony the apartment of the other, to rub his 
 green leaf against the wall, and to put his play¬ 
 mate to the same test. The game generally 
 lasts for some weeks, and is more common 
 among the higher classes than the lower. It 
 presupposes an intimate acquaintance between 
 the parties, or is designed to produce one. An 
 engagement of this kind, therefore, cannot well 
 be concluded with an unmarried lady without 
 the consent of her parents, and, as it is often a 
 prelude to marriage, it is not decorous for a 
 single lady to offer the challenge. The penalties 
 are determined by the more or less intimate 
 footing upon which the parties stand; in some 
 cases they are kisses, in others sweetmeats or 
 sonnets. Sometimes, the person who has most 
 pledges to redeem gives, at the conclusion of 
 the game a ball or supper. The progress of 
 
SCARLET GERANIUM. 
 
 215 
 
 the game furnishes occasion for many a sly 
 trick; one of the parties secretly stealing the 
 other’s leaf, and then demanding proof that he 
 has it; and sometimes also it is purposely 
 dropped, when the penalty to be paid is not too 
 
 severe. 
 
216 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 CYPRESS. 
 
 MOURNING. 
 
 The Cypress is the emblem of mourning. 
 
 Shakspeare. 
 
 According to Ovid, the Cypress derived its 
 name from Cyparissos, an especial friend of 
 Apollo’s, who, in grief at having inadvertently 
 killed a favourite stag of his, prayed the gods 
 that his mourning might be made perpetual, 
 and was changed into a Cypress tree, the 
 branches of which were thenceforward used at 
 funerals. 
 
 Wherever these trees meet our view, their 
 doleful look excites melancholy ideas. Their 
 tall pyramids, pointing to the sky, moan when 
 shaken by the wind. The sun’s ray cannot 
 penetrate through their gloom, and when his 
 last beams throw their long shadows upon the 
 ground, you would almost take them for dark 
 phantoms. Sometimes the Cypress raises its 
 head among the flowery tenants of our shrub- 
 
CYPRESS. 
 
 217 
 
 beries like those representations of death which 
 the Romans were accustomed to show to their 
 guests even amid the transports of boisterous 
 mirth. 
 
 The ancients consecrated the Cypress to the 
 Fates, the Furies, and Pluto. They placed it 
 near tombs. The people of the East have re¬ 
 tained the same custom. Their cemeteries are 
 not scenes of desolation and neglect. Covered 
 with trees and flowers, they are places of public 
 resort, which are continually bringing together 
 the living and the dead. The favourite tree 
 for burial-grounds is the Cypress, which the 
 Turks plant not only at the head and foot, but 
 also upon the graves of deceased friends. Such, 
 indeed, is their reverence for the dead, that 
 they frequent the cemeteries more than the 
 mosques themselves, for the purpose of prayer 
 and religious meditation. There are many pious 
 Mussulmans who do not suffer a day to pass 
 without praying at the grave of their parents, 
 children, relatives, or friends. You may see at 
 every hour of the day and even of the night 
 some person or other either watering or plant- 
 10 
 
218 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ing fragrant shrubs and flowers in these abodes 
 of peaee. 
 
 The common European evergreen Cypress is 
 a very long-lived tree, and attains to a great size. 
 According to Pliny, there were Cypress trees 
 growing in his time at Rome, which were more 
 ancient than the city itself. Bartholdy makes 
 mention of one at Misitra, which was thirty feet 
 in circumference. The American species, one 
 of the largest trees in the United States, is some¬ 
 times found of the same girth, and seventy 
 feet high: its branches extend almost hori¬ 
 zontally. 
 
 The wood of the Cypress is remarkable foV its 
 durability. Many of the chests containing the 
 Egyptian mummies are of this material, affording 
 a decisive proof of its almost imperishable nature. 
 We are further assured that the gates of St. 
 Paul’s church at Rome, made of Cypress wood, 
 which had lasted from the time of Constantine, 
 eleven hundrsd years, were as fresh as new when 
 Pope Eugenius IV. ordered gates of brass to be 
 erected in their stead. 
 
MARVEL OF PERU. 
 
 219 
 
 MARVEL OF PERU. 
 
 TIMIDITY. 
 
 This beautiful plant was first brought to Spain 
 from Peru, and received its name from the 
 wonderful diversity of colours in the flowers on 
 the same root, 
 
 changing from the splendid rose 
 To the pale violet’s dejected hue. 
 
 Akenside. 
 
 The French call it Belle de Nv.it , because its 
 flowers, apparently too timid to expand, even to a 
 European meridian sun, open and give out their 
 fragrance at night only. 
 
 The Marvel of Peru retains its beauty for a 
 great length of time, being frequently covered 
 with blossoms from the beginning of July to 
 the end of October, and the flowers are so 
 numerous that the plants have a most cheerful 
 appearance, particularly towards evening, as 
 they rarely expand in warm weather before the 
 hour of four in the afternoon, on which account 
 
220 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 it is sometimes called Four o’clock Flower. But, 
 when the weather is moderately cool and the sun 
 obscured, these shy blossoms remain open the 
 whole day. 
 
 Phillips remarks that, however these timid 
 flowers may appear in the presence of the god of 
 day, they stand the blaze of the strongest artifl- 
 cial light as cheerfully as other belles who de¬ 
 light to shine at the same hour with this emblem 
 of timidity. 
 
 We cannot resist the temptation of quoting 
 here an exquisite little poem by Mrs. Hemans, 
 on “ Night-scented Flowers,” which originally 
 appeared in the Forget Me Not. 
 
 “ Call back your odours, lovely flowers, 
 
 From the night-wind call them back; 
 
 And fold your leaves till the laughing hours 
 Come forth in the sunbeam’s track. 
 
 “ The lark lies couched in the grassy nest, 
 
 And the honey-bee is gone ; 
 
 And all bright things are away to rest— 
 
 Why watch ye here alone ?” 
 
 “ Nay, let our shadowy beauty bloom, 
 
 When the stars give quiet light; 
 
 And let us offer our faint perfume 
 On the silent shrine of night. 
 
MARVEL OF PERU. 
 
 221 
 
 1 Call it not wasted the scent we lend 
 To the breeze when no step is nigh: 
 
 Oh! thus for ever the earth should send 
 Her grateful breath on high! 
 
 ‘ And love us as emblems, night’s dewy flowers, 
 
 Of hopes unto sorrows given, 
 
 That spring through the gloom of the darkest hours, 
 Looking alone to heaven.” 
 
222 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 OAK. 
 
 HOSPITALITY. 
 
 The ancients believed that the Oak, coeval 
 with the earth, afforded food and shelter to the 
 first of men. In the remotest antiquity, it was 
 the symbol of majesty and strength, and, as 
 such, sacred to Jupiter, whom it sheltered at his 
 birth, on Mount Lyceus in Arcadia. 
 
 Among the Greeks, the Oak performed an 
 important part in their religious ceremonies. 
 The Oaks in the grove of Dodona in Epirus, 
 near the magnificent temple of Jupiter, gave 
 forth the oracles which were there promulgated 
 by the priestesses. On the banks of the Ache- 
 lous grew those Oaks whose acorns were the 
 first food of mortals. The Dodonean Jupiter, 
 the Fates, and Hecate, were crowned with Oak- 
 wreaths, and the heroes who sailed in the 
 Argo chose for the mast of that vessel an Oak 
 from the sacred grove of Dodona, which con¬ 
 tinued to counsel the adventurers by oracular 
 
OAK. 
 
 223 
 
 intimations. As the Oak was an object of such 
 reverence, it is no wonder that the gods, who 
 were entertained by Philemon, (See the Linden 
 Tree) conceived that they could not confer on 
 him a more suitable recompense than to trans¬ 
 form him into an Oak-tree, that was to over¬ 
 shadow the temple of Jupiter, into which his 
 hut was changed. Hence this tree became the 
 emblem of hospitality. 
 
 Among the Romans, various kinds of crowns 
 were given as rewards of military achievements. 
 The most honourable of these, a wreath of green 
 Oak, called the civic crown, was allotted to him 
 who had saved the life of a Roman citizen in 
 battle. It was also decreed to Cicero for detect¬ 
 ing Catiline’s conspiracy. Scipio Africanus re¬ 
 fused the civic crown for saving the life of his 
 father at the battle of Trebia, on the ground 
 that the act carried with it its own reward. The 
 possessor of such a crown had a right to wear 
 it constantly; when he entered an assembly, 
 all present, senators themselves not excepted, 
 were obliged to rise; and he was exempt from 
 every kind of civil burdens and imposts. 
 
 Divine honours were paid to the Oak by the 
 
224 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ancient Germans and Celts, who worshipped 
 under its form their god Teut. Their priests, 
 the Druids, offered sacrifices beneath it; their 
 victims were crowned with Oak-leaves, and it 
 was requisite that the piles of wood on which 
 they were burned should be lighted with brands 
 of Oak. 
 
 By modern Britain the Oak, as furnishing the 
 material of which our fleets are constructed, 
 has justly been adopted as the emblem of her 
 naval power—that power of which the first of 
 our living poets proudly says :— 
 
 Britannia needs no bulwarks. 
 
 No towers along the steep ; 
 
 Her march is on the mountain wave, 
 
 Her home is on the deep. 
 
 Though our dusky forests are no longer the 
 haunts of Hamadryads and fairies, still the 
 aspect of a majestic Oak excites admiration and 
 awe. When, in youthful vigour, it rears its 
 proud head and spreads its immense arms, it 
 looks like a protector, like a king. Shattered 
 by the thunderbolt, stripped of its foliage, and 
 motionless, it resembles an old man who has 
 lived past his time, and who takes no interest 
 
OAK. 
 
 225 
 
 in the pains and pleasures of the present age. 
 The stormy winds sometimes strive for the 
 mastery over this monarch of the forest; at first 
 he murmurs only, but soon a dull, deep, melan¬ 
 choly sound issues from his sturdy branches. 
 You listen and fancy that you hear an indistinct, 
 mysterious voice speaking from the tree ; which 
 furnishes a clew to the ancient superstitions that 
 prevailed respecting it. 
 
 10 * 
 
226 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 AMARANTH. 
 
 IMMORTALITY. 
 
 The unfading- nature of this flower lias caused 
 it to be made the emblem of immortality. It is 
 mentioned by Milton as forming- the diadem of 
 the angels:— 
 
 With solemn adoration down they cast 
 Their crowns, inwove with amaranth and gold- 
 immortal Amaranth, a flower which once 
 In Paradise, fast by the tree of life, 
 
 Began to bloom, but soon, for man’s offence. 
 
 To heaven removed, where first it grew, there grows 
 And flowers aloft, shading the font of life. 
 
 And where the river of bliss, through midst of heaven 
 Rolls o’er Elysian flowers her amber stream; 
 
 With these that never fade the spirits elect 
 
 Bind their resplendent locks, in wreath’d with beams. 
 
 The Amaranth has also been placed among 
 funeral flowers. Homer describes the Thessa¬ 
 lians as wearing crowns of Amaranth at the fu¬ 
 neral of Achilles. 
 
AMARANTH. 
 
 227 
 
 Sad Amaranthus, in whose purple gore 
 Meseems I see Amintas’ wretched fate, 
 
 To whom sweet poets’ verse hath given endless date. 
 
 Spenser. 
 
 Milton, too, in his Lycidas, classes it among 
 the flowers “ that sad embroidery wear 
 
 Bid Amaranthus all his beauty shed, 
 
 And daffodillies fill their cups with tears, 
 
 To strew the laureate hearse where Lycid lies. 
 
 In modern times, the Amaranth has given 
 its name to an order instituted by Queen Chris¬ 
 tina of Sweden, in the year 1633, at an enter¬ 
 tainment given in honour of Don Antonio_Pi- 
 mentel, the Spanish Ambassador. On this oc¬ 
 casion she appeared in a dress covered with 
 diamonds, attended by a suite of sixteen nobles 
 of her court and the same number of ladies. At 
 the conclusion of the ball, she stripped herself 
 of the diamonds and distributed them among 
 the company, at the same time presenting the 
 new order of knighthood, consisting of a rib¬ 
 bon and medal, with an Amaranth in enamel, 
 encircled with the motto: “ Dolce nella me - 
 moria." 
 
228 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 In the Floral games at Toulouse, the principal 
 prize was a golden Amaranth for the best lyric 
 composition. 
 
 The species of Amaranth called Tricolor, a 
 native of the East Indies, is admired on account 
 of the variegated colours of its leaves, resem¬ 
 bling, as Gerard tells us, the splendid feathers 
 of a parrot, with its stripes of red, yellow, white, 
 green, &c. The Amaranthus hypochondriacus, 
 one of the American species, is better known 
 by the name of Prince’s Feather. The leaves of 
 most of the species of this plant are used in 
 hot countries as culinary vegetables ; but they 
 are not equal to spinach, which they somewhat 
 resemble. 
 
PARSLEY. 
 
 229 
 
 PARSLEY. 
 
 FESTIVITY. 
 
 Parsley was held in high repute by the 
 Greeks. At banquets they bound their brows 
 with its slight sprigs, and also adorned with 
 them the graves of their deceased relatives. In 
 the Isthmian games at Rome the victors were 
 crowned with Parsley. It was formerly imagined 
 that this plant came originally from Sardinia, 
 because that island is represented on ancient 
 medals as a female, beside whom is a vase con¬ 
 taining a bunch of Parsley ; but it is in fact a 
 native of all the damp and shady spots in Greece, 
 and even of the southern provinces of France. 
 
 From the beautiful green of this plant, it forms 
 an elegant decoration to the dishes which are 
 garnished with it. It adds a luxury to the poor 
 man’s soup-kettle, and contributes to the elegance 
 of the most splendid dinners. A branch of laurel 
 and a Parsley crown are the attributes which 
 
230 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 would now-a-days suit the god of banquets. 
 These plants have been employed for nobler pur¬ 
 poses ; but, in the age of gastronomy, it will not 
 do to insist too strongly on what was done in the 
 heroic ages. 
 
WINTER. 
 
 231 
 
 WINTER. 
 
 And welcome art thou, melancholy time, 
 
 That now surround’st my dwelling—with the sound 
 Of winds that rush in darkness—the sublime 
 Roar of drear woods. 
 
 W. Howitt. 
 
 No mark of vegetable life is seen, 
 
 No bird to bird repeats his tuneful call, 
 
 Save the dark leaves of some rude evergreen, 
 
 Save the lone redbreast on the moss-grown wall. 
 
 Scott. 
 
 A wreath for merry Christmas quickly twine, 
 
 A wreath for the bright red sparkling wine, 
 
 Though roses are dead, 
 
 And their bloom is fled, 
 
 Yet for Christmas a bonnie bonnie wreath we’ll twine- 
 Away to the wood where the bright holly grows, 
 
 And its red berries blush amid winter snows ; 
 
 Away to the ruin where the green ivy clings, 
 
 And around the dark fane its verdure flings ; 
 
 Hey for the ivy and holly so bright, 
 
 They are the garlands for Christmas night ! 
 
 Louisa Anne Twamlev. 
 
332 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 DEAD LEAVES. 
 
 SADNESS-MELANCHOLY. 
 
 Winter comes on. The trees, after being 
 stripped of their fruit, have now lost heir leaves. 
 The sun, as he recedes from us, throws dun 
 or melancholy tints over the foliage. The poplar 
 is covered with a pale gold colour, while the 
 acacia rolls up its light folioles, which the sun’s 
 rays will no more expand : the birch droops its 
 long hair, already deprived of ornaments ; and 
 the fir, which is destined to retain its green 
 pyramid, waves it proudly in the air. The oak 
 stands immoveable: he defies the utmost efforts 
 of the wind, which cannot strip his stately head 
 of its honours ; and it is only to Spring that the 
 monarch of the woods will yield his leaves red¬ 
 dened by Winter. 
 
 All these trees might be supposed to be 
 moved by different passions; one bows pro¬ 
 foundly as if to pay homage to its neighbour, 
 whom the tempest cannot bend; another seems 
 
DEAD LEAVES. 
 
 233 
 
 to be striving to embrace its companion, the 
 supporter of its weakness, and, while their 
 branches are commingled, a third dashes about 
 in every direction, as if it were surrounded by 
 enemies. Respect, friendship, hate, anger, seem 
 to be alternately communicated by one to ano¬ 
 ther. Thus shaken by all the winds, and, as if 
 agitated by all the passions, they utter long 
 moans, resembling the confused murmurs of an 
 alarmed people. There is no predominant voice: 
 they are low, deep, monotonous sounds, which 
 throw the mind into a vague reverie. Showers 
 of dead leaves frequently fall upon the ground, 
 deprived of its verdure, and cover the earth 
 with a moving garment. The eye cannot help 
 watching how the winds pursue, scatter, whirl, 
 and drive hither and thither these sad remains 
 of a spring that will never return. 
 
234 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ALOE. 
 
 GRIEF. 
 
 The Aloe is attached to the soil by very 
 feeble roots; it delights to grow in the wilder¬ 
 ness ; its taste is extremely bitter. Thus 
 grief detaches us from the earth, separates 
 us from the world, and fills our hearts with bit¬ 
 terness. These plants live almost entirely on 
 air, and assume singular and grotesque shapes. 
 Le Vaillant found several species in great pro¬ 
 fusion in the deserts of the Namaquas, in South 
 Africa. Some had leaves six feet long: they 
 are thick and armed with long spines: from 
 the centre of these leaves shoots up a slender 
 stem as tall as a tree, and covered with flowers. 
 Others are marbled, and look like snakes creep¬ 
 ing upon the ground. Brydone saw the ancient 
 city of Syracuse overgrown with large Aloes in 
 blossom ; their elegant stems gave to the pro¬ 
 montory on which it stands the appearance of 
 an enchanted wood. These magnificent and 
 
ALOE. 
 
 235 
 
 monstrous plants have been given to barbarous 
 Africa: they grow upon rocks, in dry sand, 
 amidst a burning atmosphere, breathed by lions 
 and tigers. Let us be thankful to bounteous 
 Nature, who in our mild climate has every 
 where raised bowers of verdure over our heads, 
 and spread carpets of daisies, primroses, and 
 violets, under our feet! 
 
236 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 IVY. 
 
 FRIENDSHIP. 
 
 Friendship has sometimes chosen "for its 
 device a fallen tree firmly embraced by the ver¬ 
 dant arms of the Ivy, with this motto: “ No¬ 
 thing can part us.” In Greece the altar of 
 Hymen was encircled with Ivy, and a branch 
 of it was presented to the new-married couple, 
 as a symbol of the indissoluble knot. It was 
 sacred to Bacchus, who is represented crowned 
 with Ivy-leaves, as well as those of the vine. 
 It formed the crown of the Greek and Roman 
 poets; and, in modern times, woman’s love, 
 constancy, and dependence, have been expressed 
 by it. 
 
 Ingratitude has been sometimes represented 
 by the Ivy strangling its supporting benefactor. 
 This calumny has been repelled by the author 
 of the “ Studies of Nature,” who regards it as 
 the model of pure friendship. “ Nothing,” 
 says he, “can separate it from the tree which 
 
IVY. 
 
 237 
 
 it has once embraced: it clothes it with its own 
 leaves in that inclement season when its dark 
 boughs are covered with hoar-frost. The faithful 
 companion of its destiny, it falls when the tree 
 is cut down: death itself does not relax its 
 grasp, and it continues to adorn with its verdure 
 the dry trunk which once supported it.” 
 
 These ideas, equally refined and pathetic, 
 have the additional merit of truth. The Ivy is 
 attached to the earth by its own roots, and de¬ 
 rives no nourishment from the substances to 
 which it clings. The protector of ruins, it 
 adorns the dilapidated walls which it holds to¬ 
 gether : it will not accept every kind of support, 
 but its attachments end only with its life. 
 
238 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 MISLETOE. 
 
 I SURMOUNT ALL DIFFICULTIES. 
 
 The Misletoe is a creeping plant, which 
 grows on the tops of the tallest trees. The 
 proud oak is its slave, and nourishes it with his 
 own substance. The Druids paid a kind of 
 adoration to it as the emblem of a weakness 
 that was superior to strength: they regarded 
 the tyrant of the oak as equally formidable to 
 men and gods. This opinion was founded on the 
 following fable of their mythology. 
 
 One day, Balder told his mother Friga that 
 he dreamt he was dying. Friga charmed fire, 
 metals, diseases, water, and animals, that they 
 might not have power to harm her son; and 
 her spells were so powerful that nothing could 
 resist them. Balder, therefore, mingled fear¬ 
 lessly in the battles of the gods. Loke, his 
 enemy, wished to ascertain how it was that he 
 always escaped unhurt. Assuming the form of 
 
MISLETOE. 
 
 239 
 
 an old woman, he repaired to Friga. “In 
 battle,” said he to her, “arrows, javelins, and 
 rocks, fall upon your son Balder, without doing 
 him any harm.”—“I know it,” said Friga; “all 
 those things have sworn not to hurt him : there 
 is nothing in nature from which I have not 
 obtained the same promise,, except a plant 
 which seemed too weak to do him any injury : 
 it grows upon the bark of the oak, and it is 
 called Misletoe.” Thus spake Friga. Loke 
 instantly went in quest of the plant, and, re¬ 
 turning to the assembled gods, who were fighting 
 with the invulnerable Balder, for their sports 
 are battles, he went up to the blind Heder. 
 “ Why,” said he, “ dost not thou launch thy 
 darts against Balder ?”—“ Alas !” replied He¬ 
 der, “ I am blind, and I have no weapons.” 
 Loke gave him a dart made of Misletoe, saying, 
 “ Balder is right before thee.” The blind He¬ 
 der threw the dart, which pierced Balder, who 
 fell lifeless. Thus the invulnerable son of a 
 goddess was killed by a dart made of Misletoe, 
 thrown by a blind man. Such is the origin of 
 the respect paid by the' Gauls to this parasite 
 shrub. 
 
240 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 It is scarcely necessary to remind the reader 
 of the important part still performed by the 
 Misletoe in our Christmas gambols. 
 
MOSS. 
 
 241 
 
 MOSS. 
 
 maternal love. 
 
 Jean Jacques Rousseau, so long’ tormented by 
 his own passions, and persecuted by those of 
 other persons, soothed the later years of his' 
 life by the study of nature: the Mosses in par¬ 
 ticular engaged his attention. It is these, he 
 would frequently say, that give a look of youth 
 and freshness to our fields; they embellish 
 nature at the moment when the flowers have 
 left us, and when their withered stems are 
 mingled with the mould of our plains. In fact, 
 it is in winter that the Mosses offer to the eye 
 of the botanist their carpet of emerald green, 
 their secret nuptials, and the charming mysteries 
 of the urns and amphorae which enclose their 
 posterity. 
 
 Like those friends whom neither adversity 
 nor ingratitude can alienate, the Mosses, ba¬ 
 nished from cultivated lands, take possession of 
 waste and sterile spots, which they cover with 
 their own substance, and gradually change into 
 11 
 
242 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 a fertile soil: they spread themselves over 
 marshes, and soon transform them into smiling 
 plains. In winter, when no other plants vege¬ 
 tate, they take up the hydrogen and the carbon 
 which vitiate the air we breathe, and give it 
 back to us charged with the oxygen which 
 purifies it. In summer they form, beneath 
 overarching trees, carpets on which the shep¬ 
 herd, the lover, and the poet, alike delight to 
 rest. The little birds line with it the nests 
 which they prepare for their infant families, 
 and the squirrel constructs with it his circular 
 dwelling. Nay, it may be asserted that but for 
 the Mosses part of our globe would be uninha¬ 
 bitable. 
 
 At the extremity of the earth, the Lapland¬ 
 ers cover with Moss the subterraneous abodes, 
 where, collected in families, they defy the 
 longest and severest winters. Their numerous 
 herds of reindeer have no other food, yet they 
 supply their owners with delicious milk, nutri¬ 
 tious flesh, and warm clothing; thus combining 
 for the poor Laplander all the advantages that 
 we derive from the cow, the horse, and the 
 sheep. 
 
JIOSS. 
 
 243 
 
 Thus Nature dispenses her bounty in the 
 most rigorous climates : she enwraps in Moss 
 all that vegetates and all that breathes, as in 
 a vegetable fleece, capable of preserving her less 
 gifted children from the effects of the intense 
 cold, and keeping them warm upon her maternal 
 bosom. 
 
244 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 LAURUSTINUS. 
 
 I DIE IF NEGLECTED. 
 
 This pretty plant, which is the gift of Spain, 
 is the ornament of our shrubberies in winter, 
 appearing in full leaf and flower at a time when 
 other plants are stripped of theirs. Neither the 
 scorching breath of summer nor the cold blast of 
 winter can despoil it of its charms : at the same 
 time assiduous care is necessary to preserve it. 
 The emblem of constant and delicate friendship, 
 it always seeks to please, but dies if neglected- 
 
CORNEL CHERRY-TREE. 
 
 245 
 
 CORNEL CHERRY-TREE. 
 
 DURABILITY. 
 
 The Cornel Cherry-tree grows no higher 
 than eighteen or twenty feet. It is of very slow 
 growth, but lives for ages. It blossoms in 
 spring, but its bright scarlet berries are not ripe 
 till winter. 
 
 The Greeks consecrated this tree to Apollo, no 
 doubt because that god presided over the produc¬ 
 tions of the mind, which require much time and 
 reflection :—a charming emblem, intimating to 
 those who were desirous to cultivate letters, elo¬ 
 quence, and poetry, that, before they could earn 
 the laurel crown, they must long wear that of 
 patience and meditation. 
 
 After Romulus had marked out the bounds of 
 his rising city, he threw his javelin on the Mount 
 Palatine. The weapon, made of the wood of the 
 Cornel Cherry-tree, stuck fast in the ground, 
 took root, grew, threw out leaves and branches, 
 
246 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 and became a tree. This prodigy was considered 
 as the happy presage of the power and duration 
 of the infant empire. 
 
LAUREL. 
 
 247 
 
 LAUREL. 
 
 GLORY. 
 
 The Greeks and the Romans consecrated 
 Laurel crowns to every species of glory. With 
 these they adorned the brows of warriors and 
 poets, of orators and philosophers, of vestals and 
 emperors. This beautiful shrub grows abun¬ 
 dantly at Delphi, on the banks of the river 
 Peneus. There its aromatic and evergreen 
 branches shoot up to the height of the loftiest 
 trees; and it is alleged that by means of some 
 secret virtue they avert lightning from the spots 
 which they adorn. 
 
 According to ancient fable, the fair Daphne 
 was the daughter of the river Peneus. Apollo 
 fell in love with her, but she, preferring virtue 
 to the love of the most eloquent of the gods, 
 fled in order to avoid the seducing magic of his 
 words. Apollo pursued, and was on the point 
 of overtaking her, when the nymph invoked 
 her father, and was changed into a Laurel. 
 The god, finding that it was an insensible tree 
 
248 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 that he held clasped in his arms, kissed its bright 
 leaves. “ Since thou canst not be my spouse,” 
 said he, “ thou shalt at least be my tree. Thou 
 shalt ever adorn my brow, my lyre, and my 
 quiver; and, as golden locks always cluster 
 around my youthful head, so shalt thou always 
 retain thy bright, beautiful foliage.” Thencefor¬ 
 ward the Laurel was sacred to Apollo. 
 
HOLLY. 
 
 249 
 
 HOLLY. 
 
 FORESIGHT. 
 
 The providence of Nature is most admirably 
 displayed in this beautiful evergreen tree, some¬ 
 times rising to the height of twenty or thirty 
 feet, with shining prickly leaves and white flow¬ 
 ers, which grow in clusters round the. branches, 
 and are succeeded by berries of a bright scarlet 
 colour, containing four very hard seeds. The 
 leaves form a grateful food to many animals : but 
 Nature has armed them for self-defence against 
 these depredators with sharp prickles: and 
 it is curious to observe that the thorny leaves 
 grow only on the Lwer parts of the tree where 
 they are most likely to be destroyed; and that 
 those above, out of the reach of cattle, invest 
 themselves with smooth le ves, as if conscious 
 that there they are safe. 
 
 The Holly is an ornament to our woods, 
 stripped bare by winter : its berries serve for 
 food to the little birds that never leave us, and 
 11 * 
 
250 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 its foliage affords them an hospitable shelter 
 during the cold season. Thus Nature by a 
 kind forethought has taken care to preserve the 
 verdure of this handsome tree all the year round 
 and to arm it with thorns, that it may furnish 
 both food and protection to the innocent creatures 
 which resort to it for refuge. It is a friend 
 which her all-powerful hand raises up for them 
 against the time when all other reliance fails. 
 As, however, this is not a world of unmixed 
 good, it may be added that, from the bark of the 
 common Holly, when fermented and washed 
 from the woody fibres, is made the bird-lime that 
 is used for catching small birds. 
 
 The Holly, with its scarlet berries, is the most 
 beautiful of the evergreens that have been used 
 for ages to adorn churches and houses at the 
 joyful season of Christmas : 
 
 Christmas, the joyous period of the year ! 
 
 Now with bright Holly all the temples strow, 
 
 With laurel green and sacred misletoe.' 
 
 Gay. 
 
 With holly and ivy, 
 
 So green and so gay, 
 
 We deck up our houses 
 As fresh as the day. 
 
HOLLY. 
 
 251 
 
 With bays and rosemary, 
 
 And laurels complete, 
 
 And every one now 
 Is a king in conceit. 
 
 Poor Robin’s Almanac, 1695. 
 
252 
 
 nANGU/VGE of flowers. 
 
 YEW. 
 
 SORROW. 
 
 There is in vegetables something that invites, 
 attracts, or repels us. The Yew is among all 
 nations the emblem of sorrow. Its barkless 
 trunk, its dark green foliage, with which its 
 fruit, looking like drops of blood, stands in harsh 
 contrast—in short, everything about it warns 
 the passenger to keep aloof from its dangerous 
 shade. Persons who sleep under a Yew-tree 
 are liable to be seized with dizziness, heaviness, 
 and violent head-ache. Its sprays poison asses 
 and horses, which eat them: its juice is per¬ 
 nicious to man ; but the fruit is harmless, for 
 children eat it without experiencing any ill 
 effects. It exhausts the soil which supports it, 
 and destroys all other plants that spring up 
 beneath it. 
 
 By our ancestors the Yew was planted in 
 burial-grounds, where trees of this kind, of 
 great age and size, may occasionally be seen to 
 
YEW. 
 
 253 
 
 this day. They were not destined merely to 
 overshadow the graves of the dead, but, before 
 the invention of fire-arms, their wood was chiefly 
 employed for making bows, cross-bows, and 
 arrows. The ancient Greeks used it for the 
 same purposes. 
 
 For a long time it served to adorn our gar¬ 
 dens, where it formed hedges clipped into the 
 shape of massive walls or tortured into fantastic 
 figures; but, thanks to the improved taste in 
 landscape-gardening introduced during the last 
 century, that barbarous perversion of nature is 
 quite exploded in this country, though it may 
 yet be met with in the formal gardens of Hol¬ 
 land. There, it is not uncommon to see the four 
 corners of a perfect square ornamented with 
 Yews clipped into the form of vases, pyramids, 
 or prodigious balls. 
 
 The Greeks, who had more just ideas of the 
 real beauties of Nature, impressed, like our¬ 
 selves, with the melancholy aspect of this tree, 
 invented the fable of the unhappy Smilax, who, 
 seeing that her love was rejected by the young 
 Crocus, was transformed into a Yew. In their 
 beautiful country, every plant, every tree, spoke 
 
25 4 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 to men of heroes, of gods, and of love. Let us 
 listen to their voices: to us, too, they will talk 
 of Providence, who, after bestowing a profusion 
 of them for the supply of our wants, reserves 
 some for our pleasures, or as monitors for our 
 guidance. Some she gives to be the playthings 
 of our childhood, to form wreaths for us in 
 youth, to afford us delicious fruits and refreshing 
 shade in every period of life. Are we melan¬ 
 choly, the willow invites us by soft murmurs; 
 are we disposed to love, the myrtle offers us its 
 flowers ; are we rich, the horse-ehesnut furnishes 
 its superb umbrage; are we sorrowful, the Yew 
 seems to say to us : “ Be of good cheer ; grief 
 desolates the heart, as I desolate the soil that 
 supports me: it is as dangerous to man as my 
 shade is to the weary passenger 1” 
 
HAZEL. 
 
 255 
 
 HAZEL. 
 
 PEACE, RECONCILIATION. 
 
 There was a time when men were not united 
 by any tie. Deaf to the voice of Nature, the 
 mother would snatch from her famished son the 
 wild fruit with which he was striving to appease 
 the craving of hunger. If calamity reconciled 
 them for a moment, all at once the sight of an 
 oak loaded with acorps, or a beech-tree covered 
 with mast, made them as bitter enemies as ever. 
 The earth was then a scene of misery. There 
 was neither law, religion, nor language. Man 
 knew not his high prerogatives ; his reason was 
 not yet awakened; and frequently he proved 
 himself more cruel than the ferocious beasts, 
 whose fearful howlings he imitated. 
 
 The gods at length took pity on men. Apollo 
 and Mercury made presents to each other, and 
 descended to the earth. The god of harmony 
 received from the son of Maia the shell of a 
 tortoise, out of which he had constructed a lyre, 
 
256 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 and gave him in exchange a Hazel stick, which 
 had the power of imparting a love of virtue and 
 of reconciling hearts divided by envy and hate. 
 Thus equipped, the two sons of Jupiter sought 
 the abodes of mortals. Apollo first sang the 
 eternal wisdom which created the universe; he 
 told how the elements were produced, how love 
 unites all the parts of nature in one general 
 bond, and, lastly, how men ought to appease by 
 prayer the wrath of the gods. At his voice 
 animosities were suspended, and revenge was 
 banished from every heart. Mercury then 
 touched men with the rod which Apollo had 
 given to him. He loosed their tongues, and 
 taught them to express their thoughts in words. 
 He then explained to them that union consti¬ 
 tutes strength, and that, without mutually as¬ 
 sisting each other, they could not render the 
 earth productive. Awakened by his exhorta¬ 
 tions, filial piety and love of country sprang 
 forth to unite mankind, and he made commerce 
 the general bond of the world. His last thought 
 was the most sublime, for it was devoted to the 
 gods: he taught men to resemble them in uni¬ 
 versal love and beneficence. 
 
HAZEL. 
 
 257 
 
 Adorned with two light wings, and entwined 
 with serpents, the Hazel rod given to the god of 
 eloquence by the god of harmony is still, by the 
 name of caduceus, the emblem of peace, com¬ 
 merce, and reconciliation. 
 
258 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 JUNIPER. 
 
 PROTECTION. 
 
 The ancients consecrated this shrub to the 
 Furies. The smoke of its green roots was the 
 incense which they offered in preference to the 
 infernal gods; and they burned its berries during 
 funerals to ban malign influences. In some 
 parts of the Continent, the simple villager still 
 believes that the perfume of Juniper berries 
 purifies the air, and drives evil spirits from his 
 humble cot. 
 
 The Juniper, which sometimes clothes itself 
 in a golden yellow livery, rarely thrives under 
 cultivation: when left at liberty, it loves to 
 grow on the margin of woods. Weak and 
 timorous animals frequently seek refuge under 
 its long branches, which droop to the ground. 
 The hare, when hard pressed, repairs to it, and 
 squats with confidence beneath its sprays, the 
 strong scent of which frequently sets the dogs 
 at fault. Often, too, the thrush entrusts to it 
 
JUNIPER. 
 
 259 
 
 her young brood, and feeds upon its fruit: while 
 the entomologist comes to study, around its 
 branches bristling with spikes, a thousand re¬ 
 splendent insects, which have no other defence, 
 and seem conscious that this shrub is destined to 
 protect their weakness. 
 
260 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 ILLUSTRATION 
 
 OF 
 
 FLOWER-WRITING. 
 
 The annexed plate furnishes an example of the 
 facility with which the principles laid down in 
 the preceding pages may be reduced to practice. 
 The subject is taken from the following song, by 
 a French poet, the Chevalier Parny : 
 
 Aimer est an plaisir charmant, 
 
 C’est un bonheur qui nous enivre, 
 
 Et qui produit l’enchantement. 
 
 Avoir aimC, c’est ne plus vivre ; 
 
 Hblas ! c’est avoir achetC 
 Cette accablante vbritb, 
 due les sermens sont un mensonge, 
 due 1’amour trompe tot ou tard, 
 due I'innocence n’est qu’un art, 
 
 Et que le bonheur n’est qu’un songe. 
 
 It may be thus rendered: 
 
 “To love is a pleasure, a happiness, which 
 intoxicates: to love no longer, is to live no 
 longer; it is to have bought this sad truth, that 
 innocence is falsehood, that love is an art, and 
 that happiness is a dream.” 
 
/ut/i/i t /ft: 
 
 /r reeeoc 
 
 -60 re (606 6/6/ 
 
 6 6/ 6? ore 66 re 
 
 a 
 
 a66 o'< / cine/ /er/t/ieete*Jo a c/lecm? 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 261 
 
 DICTIONARY 
 
 OF THE 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 WITH 
 
 THE ORIGIN OF THEIR SIGNIFICATIONS. 
 
 Absence, Wormwood. Absence, according to 
 La Fontaine, is the worst of evils : Wormwood 
 is the bitterest of plants. Its name, derived 
 from the Greek, signifies without sweetness. 
 
 Accommodating Disposition, Valerian. Page 
 131. 
 
 Activity, Thyme. Page 99. 
 
 Affection, Generous and Devoted, Honeysuckle. 
 Page 107. 
 
 After-thought, China Aster. Page 187. The 
 Aster begins to blow when other flowers are 
 
262 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 scarce. It is like an after-thought of Flora’s, 
 who smiles at leaving us. 
 
 Agitation, Shaking Sainfoin. It has been re¬ 
 marked that the terminating leaflet of this 
 plant is motionless, while the two others, 
 which are much smaller, shake incessantly 
 during the day. This motion is one of the 
 most singular phenomena of botany. It was 
 first observed in Bengal by Lady Monson. 
 
 Ambition , Hollyhock. Page 200. 
 
 Amiableness, Jasmine. Page 133. 
 
 Ardour, Broom. It is said that the spadix of 
 the plants of this family, of which there are 
 more than fifty species, acquires so strong a 
 heat as to be painful to the hand when touched 
 by it. This surprising fact is attested by 
 several naturalists, and among others by 
 Bory de Saint Vincent, and Hubert. 
 
 Artifice, Clematis. Beggars, in order to ex¬ 
 cite pity, make false ulcers on their flesh by 
 means of the Clematis. This infamous arti¬ 
 fice often produces in the end a real sore. 
 
 Arts, The, Acanthus. Page 102. 
 
 Attachment, • Devoted. Peruvian Heliotrope. 
 Page 192. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 263 
 
 Beauty, Capricious, Musk Rose. The small 
 flowers of the Musk Rose would be insignifi¬ 
 cant, if they did not grow in clusters of from 
 twenty to one hundred and more. Their 
 delicate musky scent is very agreeable. This 
 plant, however, is extremely capricious : all 
 at once it will languish, in situations which 
 at first appeared the most favourable for it; 
 and one year it will be loaded with flowers, 
 while the next perhaps it will have none at 
 all. 
 
 - Ever New. The Monthly Rose, which 
 
 flowers all the year. 
 
 - Fleeting, Withered Rose. When we 
 
 contemplate a withered Rose, and reflect 
 that only a few hours since it was revelling 
 in all the pride of beauty, we cannot but 
 regard it as an appropriate emblem of the 
 fleeting nature of personal charms; for, bril¬ 
 liant as they may be, how quickly do they 
 fade ! Still, the withered Rose, which, though 
 in decay, retains its fragrance, may teach us 
 that, even when beauty has fled, we may 
 yet, like it, have it in our power to please. 
 
 —- Lasting, Stock. Page 150. 
 
264 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Beloved Daughter, Cinquefoil. In wet weather 
 the leaves of this plant contract and bend 
 over the'flower, forming, as it were, a little 
 tent to cover it—an apt emblem of an affec¬ 
 tionate mother engaged in protecting a be¬ 
 loved child. 
 
 Beneficence, Mallow. Page 145. The Potato, 
 the peculiar vegetable of the poor, is also re¬ 
 garded as an emblem of beneficence. This 
 root, lasting bat for a year, escapes the mo¬ 
 nopoly of trade. Modest as true charity, the 
 potato hides its treasures: it bestows them 
 on the rich, and feeds the poor with them. 
 America presented us with this useful vege¬ 
 table, which has for ever banished from Eu¬ 
 rope one of the direst calamities—famine. 
 
 Beware of Excess, Saffron. A weak infusion of 
 Saffron cheers the spirits, but those who drink 
 too much of this liquor go mad. It is the 
 same with its odour : if you smell to it slightly) 
 it refreshes ; if to excess, it kills. 
 
 Blackness, Ebony-tree. Pluto, the sovereign 
 of the infernal regions, was seated on a throne 
 of Ebony. It is said of a wicked man—he 
 has a heart as black as Ebony. This saying 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 265 
 
 no doubt originated in this circumstance, that, 
 while the alburnum of the Ebony-tree is white, 
 its foliage soft and silvery, and its flowers bril¬ 
 liant and beautiful, the heart alone is really 
 black. 
 
 Bluntness, Borage. The leaves of Borage are 
 prickly, hairy, and wrinkled; but the whole 
 of the plant is wholesome. Its good qualities 
 make us endure and even forget its rough ap¬ 
 pearance, which reminds us that bluntness is 
 frequently accompanied by a good heart. 
 
 Boldness, Larch. This tree grows upon the 
 loftiest mountains, where it attains a pro¬ 
 digious height. In the North, it is often 
 covered with a species of lichen, which en¬ 
 velopes it as with a thick fur. The rustics 
 amuse themselves with setting fire to this 
 singular clothing : it catches freely, and a 
 light flame suddenly shoots up to the sky, 
 sparkling and going out in a moment. You 
 would imagine that these beautiful trees had 
 been placed in those situations for the express 
 purpose of exhibiting to the desert the asto¬ 
 nishing spectacle of the most magnificent fire¬ 
 works. 
 
 12 
 
266 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Calm Repose , Buck-bean. Page 101. 
 
 Calumny, Madder. Madder stains red. When 
 sheep have browsed this plant, their teeth 
 look as if they were stained by the blood of 
 some victim. Thus wickedness frequently 
 takes advantage of deceitful appearances to 
 calumniate innocence. 
 
 Candour, White Violet. Candour precedes Mo¬ 
 desty : it is a Violet still clothed in the colour 
 of Innocence. 
 
 Chastity, Sensitive Plant. Page 176. 
 
 -, Orange-flower. It is customary in 
 
 some countries for brides to wear a wreath of 
 Orange-flowers; and it is still usual in the 
 neighbourhood of Paris to deny this ornament 
 on their wedding-day to females who have not 
 preserved their chastity. 
 
 Child-birth, Dittany. When Juno presided at 
 the birth of children, by the name of Lucina, 
 she wore a crown of Dittany. The pleasing 
 smell of this shrub, and tbe medicinal proper¬ 
 ties for which it was so famous among the 
 ancients, cause it to be still held in esteem. It 
 is a native of the island of Crete. 
 
 Childhood, Primrose. Page 39. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 267 
 
 Confidence, Liverwort, or Hepatica. When 
 the gardeners see the pretty flowers of the 
 Hepatica, they say: “ The earth is in love ; 
 we may sow with confidence.” 
 
 Consolation, Poppy, Page 167. 
 
 -, Wild Poppy. The Wild Poppy 
 
 contains in its scarlet bosom an invaluable 
 soother of pain and sorrow. The ancients, 
 who regarded Sleep as the healer of all woes, 
 the great comforter of the world, gave him 
 for his only ornament a wreath of Poppies. 
 
 Constancy, Canterbury Bell. The stems of this 
 plant frequently shoot up to the height of 
 three or four feet, and are covered from bottom 
 to top with large beautiful flowers, that open 
 in July, and retain all their splendour till 
 October. The colour of these blue bell-shaped 
 flowers is that of constancy. 
 
 Coquetry, Desire to Please, Mezereon. Page 
 38. 
 
 -, Yellow Day Lily. Page 175. 
 
 Courage, Black Poplar. This tree was conse¬ 
 crated to Hercules. 
 
 Cruelty, Nettle. The sting of the Nettle 
 causes a pain like that from a burn. On ex- 
 
268 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 amining the leaves of the Nettle with a 
 microscope, you are suprised to see them 
 covered with stiff, articulated, sharp-pointed 
 bristles, which are so many conductors to a 
 sharp burning liquid, enclosed in a bladder 
 at the bottom of each. These hairs and blad¬ 
 ders are exactly like the stings of bees. In 
 the insect as in the plant, it is the sharp 
 humour which causes the pain. 
 
 Cure, Balm of Gilead. This exquisite balm, so 
 justly esteemed by the ancients, seems to 
 have been provided by Nature to soothe pain: 
 thus we often use the word balm in a moral 
 and figurative sense, to express anything 
 that allays and mitigates sorrow. Beneficent 
 virtue and affectionate friendship are true 
 balms, which heal the wounds of the heart, a 
 thousand times more painful than any phy¬ 
 sical evils. 
 
 Curiosity , Sycamore. This tree is mentioned 
 but once historically, and that is in the Bible. 
 Zaccheus the publican mingled with the crowd 
 on the day of our Saviour’s triumphal entry 
 into Jerusalem, and, in order to obtain a 
 better view of the Messiah, he climbed up 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 269 
 
 into a Sycamore-tree which has thence been 
 made the emblem of curiosity. 
 
 Dangerous Pleasures, Tuberose. Page 190. 
 
 Deceitful Charms, Thorn Apple/Page 159. 
 
 Delicacy, Corn-bottle. The beautiful blue of 
 this flower, which is like that of a cloudless 
 sky, is the emblem of a tender and delicate 
 affection, nourished by hope. 
 
 Desire, Jonquil. The Jonquil, which came to us 
 from Constantinople, is with the Turks the* 
 emblem of desire. 
 
 Despair, Marigold and Cypress. Cypress is the 
 emblem of death; the Marigold of sorrow. 
 The combination of the two expresses despair. 
 
 Dignity, Clove-tree. The aromatic Clove-tree is 
 a native of the Molucca Islands. .The 'people 
 of those islands wear its flowers, which we 
 call Cloves, as a mark of distinction. 
 
 Discretion, Maiden Hair. Page 203. 
 
 Disdain, Yellow Pink. As haughty people are 
 in general unaccommodating and unamiable, 
 so of all the pink tribe the yellow is the least 
 beautiful, the least fragrant, and yet requires 
 the most care. 
 
270 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Docility, Rush. It is a proverbial saying, as sup¬ 
 ple as a Rush. 
 
 Do Me Justice, Chesnut-tree. Chesnuts are in¬ 
 closed, two, three, or four, together, in one 
 green husk, armed with numerous spikes. 
 Those who are not acquainted with the tree 
 disregard the fruit on account of its rough 
 appearance. 
 
 Durability , Cornel cherry tree. Page 245. 
 
 , Elegance , Rose Acacia. The art of the toilet 
 cannot produce anything fresher or more 
 elegant than the attire of this pretty shrub. 
 Its drooping branches, its gay green, its beau¬ 
 tiful bunches of pink flowers, resembling bows 
 of ribands, all give it the appearance of a 
 fashionable female in her ball-dress. 
 
 Elevation, Fir-tree. The Fir delights in cold 
 . regions, and grows there to a prodigious 
 height. 
 
 Eloquence, Lotus. The Egyptians consecrated 
 the flower of the Lotus to the Sun, the god 
 of eloquence. This flowjer closes and sinks 
 into the water at sunset, rising from it and 
 opening again as soon as the brilliant lumi- 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 271 
 
 nary re-appears above the horizon. It con¬ 
 stitutes one of the ornaments of the head of 
 Osiris. The Indian gods are frequently re¬ 
 presented floating on the water upon a Lotus 
 flower: perhaps an emblem of the earth issuing 
 from the bosom of the deep. 
 
 Enchantment, Vervain. Page 142. 
 
 Envy, Bramble. The Bramble, like envy, creeps 
 and strives to stifle everything that comes near 
 it. 
 
 Error, Bee Orchis. The flowers of this plant so 
 nearly resemble a small humble-bee in shape 
 and colour that they might easily be mistaken 
 for that insect. 
 
 Esteem, Sage. The common garden Sage has 
 ever been held in great esteem by all domestic 
 practitioners for its medicinal virtues. By 
 the ancients it was supposed to possess the 
 virtue of prolonging life : hence a line in one 
 of their poets, which signifies: “ How can a 
 man die in whose garden there grows Sage ?” 
 
 Faith, Passion Flower. In the Passion Flower 
 you find a representation of the crown of 
 thorns, the scourge, the cross, the sponge, 
 
272 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 the nails, and the five wounds of Christ; 
 whence its name. 
 
 Falsehood, Bugloss. Page 82. 
 
 -, Man chin eel-tree. The fruit of the 
 
 Manchineel-tree resembles an apple. This 
 deceitful appearance, together with an agreea¬ 
 ble smell, invites you to eat it: but its soft 
 and spongy substance contains a milky and 
 perfidious juice, which at first appears insipid, 
 but soon becomes so caustic as to burn at once 
 the lips, the palate, and the tongue. All tra¬ 
 vellers agree in stating that the best remedy 
 for so violent a poison is sea-water. Luckily 
 it is always at hand, as the tree grows invari¬ 
 ably on the sea-shore. 
 
 False Riches, Sun Flower. Page 195. 
 
 Festivity, Parsley. Page 229. 
 
 Fidelity, Speedwell, or Veronica, formed from 
 vera-icon, a compound of Latin and Greek, 
 signifying true image. This derivation, illi¬ 
 terate and barbarous as it is, has the sanction 
 of the superstitious legend of St. Veronica, 
 whose handkerchief is recorded to have re¬ 
 ceived the impression of our Saviour’s face, 
 as he used it in bearing his cross to the place 
 of crucifixion. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 273 
 
 Fidelity in Misfortune, Wallflower. Page 59. 
 
 Finesse , Sweet-william. This plant, with its 
 large brilliant bunches of blossoms, displays in 
 all its parts exquisite beauty and delicacy. 
 
 Fire, Fraxinella. When the day has been hot 
 and dry, the Dittany emits an inflammable 
 gas, which, being condensed by the cool even¬ 
 ing air, forms around it an atmosphere that 
 takes fire at the approach of a light, without 
 injuring the plant. 
 
 Flame, Flower-de-Luce. The Flower-de-Luce, 
 or Iris Germanica, is a plant which the pea¬ 
 sants of Germany are fond of cultivating on 
 the roofs of their cottages. When the wind 
 waves its beautiful flowers, and the sun gilds 
 their petals, tinged with gold, purple, and 
 azure, it looks as if light flames were playing 
 on the top of those rustic dwellings. 
 
 Flattery, Venus’s Looking-glass. As soon as 
 the sun sheds his golden rays upon our corn¬ 
 fields, we see the bright purple flowers of a 
 pretty variety of campanula scattered over 
 them: but, should clouds intercept his beams, 
 the corollas of these flowers immediately close, 
 12 * 
 
274 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 as at the approach of night. It is related that 
 Venus one day dropped one of her mirrors. 
 A shepherd picked it up; but, no sooner had 
 he cast his eyes on this glass, which possessed 
 the property of embellishing whatever it re¬ 
 flected, that he forgot his mistress, and did 
 nothing but admire himself. Love, fearful 
 of the consequences of such a silly error, broke 
 the mirror, and changed its fragments into 
 this pretty plant, which has ever since re¬ 
 tained the name of Venus’s Looking-glass. 
 
 Folly , Columbine. This graceful flower has 
 been made the emblem of folly, but whether 
 on account of the party-colour which it fre¬ 
 quently takes in the garden, or in allusion to 
 the shape of the nectary, which turns over, 
 like the caps of the old jesters, or those 
 which painters give to Folly, we are left to 
 divine. 
 
 Foresight , Holly. Page 249. 
 
 Forgetfulness , Moonwort. This plant has not 
 received its name from its seed, as it has been 
 generally supposed, but from the partition 
 which divides its broad, flat pods, and is round 
 like the moon. Rene, duke of Bar and Lor- 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 275 
 
 raine, having been taken prisoner at the battle 
 of Toulongeon, painted, with his own hand, 
 a sprig of Moonwort, and sent it to his vassals, 
 to reproach them for their dilatoriness in ef¬ 
 fecting his deliverance. 
 
 Forget-me-not, Scorpion Grass. Page 183. 
 
 Forsaken, Anemone. Anemone was a nymph, 
 beloved by Zephyr. Flora, jealous of her, 
 banished her from her court, and transformed 
 her into a flower, that blows before the re¬ 
 turn of spring. Zephyr has abandoned this 
 unhappy beauty to the rude caresses of Bo¬ 
 reas, who, unable to gain her love, harshly 
 shakes her, half opens her blossoms, and causes 
 her immediately to fade. An Anemone, with 
 these words, Brevis est usus —“ Her reign 
 is short”—is admirably expressive of the tran¬ 
 sitory nature of beauty. 
 
 Friendship, Acacia. Page 157. 
 
 -Ivy. Page 236. 
 
 Frivolity, London Pride. Though Nature has 
 not painted any flower with more delicacy 
 than the spotted petals of this plant, whence 
 it received the name of None-so-pretty : still 
 it is considered as the emblem of a light and 
 
276 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 frivolous sentiment; so that a lover would 
 think it an insult to his mistress to offer her 
 a nosegay in which it was introduced. 
 
 Frivolous Amusement, Bladder-nut. The fruit 
 of the Bladder-nut tree, when pressed between 
 the fingers, bursts with a report. Idle persons 
 sometimes indulge, as well as little boys, in the 
 frivolous amusement of producing this noise. 
 
 Frugality, Chicory. Horace has celebrated the 
 frugality of his repasts, composed of Mallows 
 and Chicory. 
 
 Gallantry, A Nosegay. The attentions of gal¬ 
 lantry cannot be better expressed than by a 
 Nosegay. Such a present may be of little in¬ 
 trinsic value, but it is always a proof of 
 amiable and delicate attention. 
 
 Game, Play, Hyacinth. This flower, so cele¬ 
 brated in the songs of the poets, from the 
 time of Homer to the present day, is made 
 hieroglyphical of play, because a youth named 
 Hyacinthus was killed, while playing with 
 Apollo, by a quoit, which the jealous Zephyr 
 blew upon him. Apollo, unable to recall his 
 favourite to life, changed him into the flower 
 which bears his name. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 277 
 
 Generosity, Orange-tree. The Orange-tree is 
 covered at one and the same time with 
 flowers, fruit, and foliage. It is a generous 
 friend, which is continually lavishing kindness 
 upon us. 
 
 Genius, Plane-tree. The Portico at Athens was 
 surrounded by long avenues of majestic Plane- 
 trees. The Greeks paid a kind of worship to 
 those beautiful trees, and consecrated them to 
 genius and intellectual pleasures. 
 
 Girl , Rosebud. A young girl is a rose still in 
 bud. 
 
 Glory, Laurel. Page 247. 
 
 Good Education, Cherry-tree. It is generally 
 believed that the Cherry-tree was brought 
 from Cerasonte, a town in the kingdom of 
 Pontus, to Rome, by Lucullus. It is not the 
 less true, however, that our woods have al¬ 
 ways produced several species of wild cherry, 
 which require nothing but careful cultivation 
 to change their harsh, sour berries into that 
 delicious fruit which is an ornament to our 
 gardens and our desserts, and a favourite with 
 young and old. 
 
 Grace, Hundred-leaved Rose. When the Graces 
 
278 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 accompany Venus and the Loves, they are 
 crowned with myrtle; when they attend the 
 Muses, they are represented as adorned with 
 wreaths of the Hundred-leaved Rose. 
 
 Grandeur , Ash-tree. In the Edda, the gods are 
 said to hold their court under a miraculous 
 Ash-tree, which covers the surface of the whole 
 world with its branches. The top of this tree 
 reaches the sky; its roots penetrate to hell. 
 From the latter issue two springs; in one of 
 which wisdom is hidden, and in the other is 
 contained the knowledge of futurity. 
 
 Grief, Marigold. Page 153. 
 
 -, Aloe. Page 234. 
 
 Happiness, Sweet Sultan. In the harems of the 
 East, this lusciously sweet flower is an emblem 
 of supreme happiness. 
 
 -—, Return of, Lily of the Valley. 
 
 Page 85. 
 
 Hate, Basil. Poverty is sometimes represented 
 by the figure of a female covered with rags, 
 seated by a plant of Basil. It is common to 
 say that Hate has the eye of a basilisk, a fabu¬ 
 lous animal, which is supposed to kill with a 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 279 
 
 single glance. The name of Basil, however, 
 is derived from a Greek word, signifying royal, 
 a term indicating the excellence of this fra¬ 
 grant plant. 
 
 Heart unacquainted with Love, White Rosebud. 
 Before the breath of Love had animated the 
 world, all roses were white and all female 
 hearts insensible. 
 
 Hermitage, Milkwort. This pretty plant, which 
 grows to the height of a foot, never loses its 
 leaves, which resemble those of box. The 
 hermits, who formerly dwelt on elevated 
 places, planted it around their habitations. 
 The ancients regarded this plant as favourable 
 to cattle, and thought that it caused them to 
 yield a great deal of milk, as is expressed by 
 its Greek name, Polygala. 
 
 Hidden Merit, Coriander. Fresh Coriander 
 has an intolerable smell, as its Greek name, 
 Koris, a bug, implies: yet its aromatic seeds 
 are in request with cooks and confectioners, 
 who often use it to flavour pastry and made 
 dishes. 
 
 Hope, Snowdrop. Page 36. 
 
 -, Hawthorn. Page 67. 
 
280 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Horror, Virginia Cactus. This plant throws out 
 in every direction its trailing shoots, which re- 
 semble clusters of snakes. 
 
 Hospitality, Oak-tree. Page 222. 
 
 Humility, Broom. Page 109. 
 
 I attach myself to you, Ipomaea, Indian Jas¬ 
 mine. The scarlet Ipomaea requires a sup¬ 
 porter for its slender branches, and, without 
 fatiguing that supporter, it wreaths it with fo¬ 
 liage and flowers. 
 
 / declare war against you, Wild Tansey. This 
 plant resembles the pyramidal cypress. In 
 some parts of Italy, people present stalks of it 
 to those whom they mean to insult. 
 
 / die if neglected, Laurustinus. Page 244. 
 
 / feel your kindness, Flax. We are under so 
 many obligations to Flax, that we cannot open 
 our eyes without being deeply sensible of them. 
 W e are indebted to it for linen cloth, paper, 
 and lace. 
 
 I love you, Peruvian Heliotrope. Page 192. 
 
 I shall not survive you, Black Mulberry-tree. 
 Every body knows the affecting story of Pyra- 
 mus and Thisbe. Pyramus, in the belief that 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 281 
 
 his beloved Thisbe had been devoured by a 
 furious lioness, killed himself in despair. 
 Thisbe, who had fled affrighted from their 
 place of meeting, returned just in time to see 
 her lover expire. She could not survive him, 
 and the same dagger united the lovers in 
 death. 
 
 I share your sentiments, The Garden Daisy. 
 It appears that it is very long since cultivation 
 doubled the pretty field Daisy. When the 
 mistress of a knight permitted him to have 
 this flower engraven on his arms, it was a 
 public avowal that she returned his love. 
 
 1 surmount all difficulties , Misletoe. Page 
 238. 
 
 I will think of it, Wild Daisy. In the times 
 of chivalry, when a lady would neither reject 
 nor accept the suit of her lover, she adorned 
 her brow with a wreath of Wild Daisies, which 
 intimated: I will think of it. 
 
 Immortality, Amaranth. Page 226. The name 
 of this flower is composed of two Greek words, 
 which signify never-fading. 
 
 Impatience, Balsam. The seed-vessel of this 
 plant contains five cells. When maturity 
 
282 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 approaches, each of these divisions curls up 
 at the slightest touch, and scatters its seeds 
 to a distance by a spontaneous movement. 
 Hence its English appellation—Touch-me- 
 not. 
 
 Importunity , Burdock. Burdock takes pos¬ 
 session of a good soil, from which it is very 
 difficult to extirpate it. Everybody is ac¬ 
 quainted with its burs, which fasten on one’s 
 clothes in such a troublesome manner. 
 
 Inconstancy , Large-flowered Evening Prim¬ 
 rose. A native of Virginia, which, notwith¬ 
 standing its inconstancy, has been favourably 
 received in our gardens. 
 
 Independence , Wild Plum-tree. The wild 
 Plum is the least tractable of our native 
 trees. It will not bear the knife, neither can 
 it be transplanted. 
 
 Indiscretion , Bulrush. King Midas, having 
 preferred the singing of Marsyas, the satyr, 
 to that of Apollo, the god clapped upon him 
 a pair of ass’s ears. The king’s barber saw 
 them, and, unable to keep the secret, buried 
 it at the foot of a cluster of Bulrushes. These 
 reeds, shaken by the wind, continually mur¬ 
 mured, King Midas has ass's ears. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 233 
 
 Infidelity , Yellow Rose. It is well known that 
 yellow is the colour of false as well as of 
 jealous people. The Yellow Rose seems also 
 to be their flower. Injured by wet, scorched 
 by the sun, this scentless rose, which profits 
 neither by attention nor liberty, seems to 
 thrive only under restraint. When you would 
 see it in perfection, you must bend down its 
 buds towards the ground, and keep them by 
 force in that position. 
 
 Ingenuity, Pencilled-leaf Geranium. When 
 we compare the works of God with those of 
 man, how trifling the latter appear ! Take a 
 piece of the finest lawn, look at it through a 
 glass, and it appears like canvass: take, on 
 the other hand, the meanest of the Almighty’s 
 works, and the more you examine it the 
 greater harmony and symmetry you will find. 
 The pencilled-leaf Geranium to the negligent 
 and careless observer appears a simple flower; 
 but examine it closely, mark the pink veins 
 that meander in every direction over its leaves, 
 sometimes so delicate as to be scarcely visible; 
 study it well, and the more you do so the 
 more beautiful it will appear: and learn thence 
 
284 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 to admire the skill and ingenuity displayed 
 in the works of the Creator. 
 
 Ingratitude, Buttercup. This plant is the 
 most mischievous of any in our meadows : 
 cultivation makes its bad qualities worse. It 
 flower from May to August. 
 
 Injustice, Hop. The Hop is made the emblem 
 of injustice, because its climbing tendrils 
 stifle the trees and plants which they entwine 
 in their. embrace; and the prodigious vege¬ 
 tation of the whole plant speedily exhausts 
 the soil upon which it grows. 
 
 Innocence, Daisy. Page 51. 
 
 Inspiration, Angelica. This beautiful plant, 
 which grows in the northernmost countries, 
 is employed to crown the Lapland poets, who 
 fancy themselves inspired by its odour. 
 
 Intoxication, Vine. Anacharsis said that the 
 Vine produces three kinds of fruit, intoxi¬ 
 cation, debauchery, and repentance; and 
 that he who is temperate in speech, in diet, 
 and in amusement, must be an excellent 
 man. 
 
 Irony, Sardonia. This plant has some resem¬ 
 blance to parsley. It contains a poison, which 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 285 
 
 has the effect of contracting the mouth in so 
 singular a manner as to give the appearance 
 of laughter to a person at the point of death. 
 Hence this horrible laugh is called the sar¬ 
 donic : it is often seen playing on the lips of 
 Satire and cold Irony. 
 
 Joking, Balm Gentle. This plant gives out an 
 agreeable lemon smell: an infusion of it 
 composes the nerves and excites mirth. 
 
 Joy, Wood Sorrel. The Wood Sorrel, vulgarly 
 called Cuckoo’s Bread, flowers about Easter. 
 This pretty plant every evening folds up its 
 leaves, closes its flowers and lets them droop, 
 as if to indulge in sleep: but at the first 
 dawn of day, you would say that it was filled 
 with joy, for it expands its leaves, opens its 
 flowers, and, from this circumstance, no doubt, 
 it is said by the country-people to give praise 
 to God. 
 
 Justice shall be done to you, Sweet-scented 
 Tussilage. Page 208. 
 
 Keep your promises, Plum-tree. The Plum- 
 tree is every year covered with flowers; but, 
 
286 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 if the hand of the skilful gardener does not 
 remove a portion of this useless luxury, these 
 trees will not have a crop oftener than once in 
 three years. 
 
 Life, Lucern. Page 106. 
 
 Lightness, Larkspur. The flower of the Lark¬ 
 spur is papilionaceous, and of many different 
 colours. It owes its name to the singular 
 form of its seed-vessel, on which may be dis¬ 
 tinguished the joints and claws of a bird’s 
 foot. 
 
 Longevity, Fig. The Fig has been made the 
 emblem of longevity, on account of its whole¬ 
 someness, when ripe, and eaten in modera¬ 
 tion. The Andalusians eat this fruit before 
 breakfast, and they have this saying: En eso 
 va la vida —“On this life depends.” 
 
 Love, Myrtle. Page 104. 
 
 -, Rose. Page 114. 
 
 -, Conjugal, Linden-tree. Page 94. 
 
 -, Declaration of. Tulip. Page 71. 
 
 -, First Emotions of, Lilac. Page 79. 
 
 -, Fraternal, Syringa. One of the Ptole¬ 
 mies, kings of Egypt, acquired celebrity for 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 287 
 
 the love which he manifested for his brother. 
 A species of the Syringa was consecrated to 
 his memory; and, his surname, Philadelphus, 
 which signifies one who loves his brother, has 
 been used to distinguish this genus, two spe¬ 
 cies of which are cultivated. 
 
 Love, Maternal, Moss. Page 241. 
 
 -, Pure, Pink. Page 137. 
 
 Majesty, Lily. Page 148. 
 
 Meanness, Cuscuta or Dodder. This plant, of 
 whichj there are five species, springs up out 
 of the earth from seed, and no sooner does 
 its stalk meet with that of another plant than 
 it fastens upon it; its own root dies, and it 
 then lives entirely at the expense of others. 
 Like a vile parasite, it absorbs all the juices of 
 its supporter, and it is not long before it 
 causes its destruction. 
 
 Melancholy, Dead Leaves. Page 232. 
 
 - Mind, Sorrowful Geranium. This 
 
 charming species of Geranium, like the melan¬ 
 choly mind, seeks obscurity, but it delights 
 those who cultivate it by its delicious scent. 
 Its colour is dark and unobtrusive, and it 
 
288 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 differs in every respect from the scarlet Gera¬ 
 nium, the emblem of stupidity. 
 
 Message , Iris. There are more than thirty 
 species of Iris, both bulbous and with other 
 roots. From their brilliant and diversified 
 colours, resembling- those of the rainbow, 
 these beautiful flowers have been named after 
 tire messenger of the gods. It is well known 
 that the fair Iris was the bearer of good news 
 only. 
 
 Misanthropy , Fuller’s Teasel. The flowers of 
 the Fuller’s Teasel are armed witlj long, 
 sharp thorns: the whole plant has a surly 
 look. It is, nevertheless, handsome and' 
 useful: it is used by clothiers and fullers to 
 raise the nap on their cloths, and has thence 
 derived its name. 
 
 Mistrust, Lavender. It was formerly believed 
 that the asp, a dangerous species of viper, 
 made Lavender its habitual place of abode, 
 for which reason that plant was approached 
 with extreme caution. The ancients used it 
 largely in their baths, whence its name, de¬ 
 rived from the Latin verb, lavare, to wash. 
 
 Modesty, Violet. Page 48. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 289 
 
 Morals, Wild Rue. The Moly, which Mercury is 
 said to have given to Ulysses, as an antidote to 
 Circe’s beverage, is supposed to have been the 
 root of the wild Rue. 
 
 Mourning, Weeping Willow. Page 44. 
 
 -, Cypress. Page 216. 
 
 Music, Reeds. Pan, who was in love with the 
 beautiful Syrinx, was pursuing her one day 
 on the bank of the river Ladon in Arcadia. 
 The Nymph implored the help of the river, 
 which received her into its waters, and trans¬ 
 formed her into a cluster of Reeds. Pan cut 
 several of the stalks of these Reeds of different 
 lengths, and with them is said to have con¬ 
 structed the shepherd’s pipe, 
 
 My Bane, My Antidote, White Poppy. Page 
 167. 
 
 My best days are past, Meadow Saffron. Page 
 204. 
 
 My regrets follow you to the grave. Asphodel. In 
 ancient times, the Asphodel was planted near 
 tombs, and it was thought that beyond the 
 Acheron the shades of the deceased wandered 
 in a vast field of Asphodels, and drank the ob¬ 
 livious waters of Lethe. 
 
 13 
 
290 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Night, Night Convolvulus. There are several 
 species of beautiful bindweed that open only 
 at night. They are natives of hot coun¬ 
 tries. 
 
 Oracle, Rustic, Dandelion. Page-164. 
 
 Ornament , Hornbeam. This tree formerly con¬ 
 stituted a principal ornament of large gardens. 
 It was employed to form long screens of ver¬ 
 dure, arches, obelisks, pyramids, and colon¬ 
 nades. Le Nhtre has shown at Versailles with 
 what skill and taste he could introduce it into 
 his noble compositions. 
 
 Patience, Patience Dock. The root of this plant 
 is frequently used in medicine : it is extremely 
 bitter. 
 
 Peace, Olive. Peace, Wisdom, Concord, Cle¬ 
 mency, Joy, and the Graces, are crowned 
 with Olive. The dove sent out by Noah 
 brought back to the ark an Olive branch, as an 
 emblem of that peace which heaven had grant¬ 
 ed to the earth. 
 
 -, Iiazel. Page 255. 
 
 Perfection, Strawberry. Page 127. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 291 
 
 Poetry , Eglantine. The Eglantine is the poet’s 
 flower. In the Floral Gaines it was the prize 
 for the best composition on the charms of study 
 and eloquence. 
 
 Power , Crown Imperial. The Crown Imperial, 
 which belongs to the family of the lilies, 
 grows to the height of two or three feet. The 
 flowers are formed by a circle of tulip-shaped 
 corollas, turned downwards, which have the 
 appearance of so many gay bells, the stigma 
 answering for the clapper; the whole being 
 crowned by a coma, or tuft of green leaves, 
 which gives to it a singular and agreeable 
 effect. Each pf the bells contains some drops 
 of water, which adhere to the bottom of the 
 corolla till it withers : the foot-stalks of the 
 flowers then raise themselves to ripen the 
 seed. 
 
 Prediction , Prophetic Marigold. This species 
 of Marigold opens regularly at seven o’clock 
 and remains open till four, if the weather is 
 dry : if it does not open, or if it closes before 
 its accustomed hour, you may be sure that 
 there will be rain during the day. 
 
 Preference, Apple Blossom. A handsome flower, 
 
292 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 which promises fine and useful fruit, may be 
 preferred to the rose itself. 
 
 Preference, Rose-scented Geranium. There 
 are more than a hundred species of the 
 Geranium: some are sad, others brilliant, 
 some scented, and others without smell. 
 This, which is rose-scented, is distinguished 
 by the softness of its leaves and the beauty 
 of its flowers, as well as by its fragrant 
 smell. 
 
 Presumption, Snapdragon. On pressing the 
 sides of this flower, it opens like a gaping 
 mouth, the stigma representing the tongue. 
 On removing the pressure, the lips of the 
 corolla snap together, and hence its name. 
 The monopetalous corolla forms a mask, 
 which resembles the face of an animal. The 
 French call it Calf’s Snout, from a supposed 
 resemblance in the form of its seed-vessel or 
 fruit; This beautiful plant has been judi¬ 
 ciously introduced into our gardens, but, like 
 presumptuous people, it is sometimes trouble¬ 
 some by spreading too far, find is consequently 
 eradicated. 
 
 Pride, Amaryllis. Gardeners account the Ama- 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 293 
 
 ryllis, of which there are numerous varieties, 
 a proud plant, because even after the greatest 
 care it refuses to blossom. The Guernsey lily 
 is a splendid species. The number of flowers 
 is commonly from eight to twelve, and the 
 circumference of each about seven inches. 
 The corolla in its prime has the colour of a 
 fine gold tissue wrought on a rose-coloured 
 ground, and when it begins to fade it is pink. 
 In full sunshine it seems to be studded with 
 diamonds ; but, by candle-light, the specks or 
 spangles appear more like find gold-dust: 
 when the petals are somewhat withered, they 
 assume a deep crimson colour. The name of 
 these beautiful plants is derived from a 
 Greek word signifying to shine, sparkle, 
 flash. 
 
 Privation , Myrobolan. This tree is not unlike 
 the plum-tree, and produces a fruit having the 
 colour and appearance of a beautiful cherry, 
 but containing only a juice of a disagreeable 
 flavour, so that the very birds refuse to feed 
 upon it. 
 
 Prohibition, Privet. Page 88. 
 
 Promptness, Ten Weeks Stock. This plant 
 
294 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 springs up very soon after it is sown, and 
 blossoms within ten weeks. As the flowers 
 are but short-lived, if you would enjoy them 
 for any length of time, you ought to keep 
 sowing them from March till August. Nothing 
 can be more delightful than the red, white, 
 and purple tints of these flowers, which give 
 out a most fragrant smell. 
 
 Prosperity , Beech. The beech may be con¬ 
 sidered as the rival of the oak for beauty of 
 form and the utility of its wood. It grows in 
 any situation, and shoots up with such rapidity 
 that it is common to say you may see it 
 grow. 
 
 Protection , Juniper. Page 258. 
 
 Purity, Star of Bethlehem. Nothing can be 
 more pure and pleasing than the appearance 
 of this lovely plant, which throws up in the 
 month of June a long bunch of star-like 
 flowers, as white as milk. 
 
 Rarity, Mandrake. The ancients attributed 
 extraordinary virtues to the Mandragora, or 
 Mandrake, but, as they have not left any accu¬ 
 rate description of this plant, we know not the 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 295 
 
 species to which they gave the name. Our 
 quacks, ever eager to profit by ignorance* 
 contrive, by a gross artifice, to give the 
 miniature figure of a man to different roots, 
 which they show to the credulous, assuring 
 them that these arc real Mandrakes, which 
 are found only in a small and almost inacces¬ 
 sible district of China. They tell them also 
 that the Mandrake cries lamentably when 
 pulled up out of the ground; that the person 
 who pulls up one of these roots is sure to 
 die soon afterwards: that, in order to procure 
 it, the earth must be dug away from it, a 
 cord tied round it, and the other end fastened 
 to a dog, which pulls it away, and then has to 
 pay the penalty of the impious deed. Were 
 we to collect all the absurd and superstitious 
 notions that have originated in ancient errorfe, 
 respecting the supposed virtues of plants 
 which never existed, they would form a curi¬ 
 ous volume. 
 
 Recollections, Painful, Flos Adonis. Page 147. 
 
 _ Tender, Periwinkle. Page 89. 
 
 Reconciliation, Hazel, Page 255. 
 
 Reserve, Maple. The Maple has been made 
 
296 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 the emblem of reserve, because its flowers are 
 late in opening and slow to fall. 
 
 Resistance , Tremella Nostoc. This is a gela¬ 
 tinous plant, which has much engaged the 
 attention of men of science, but has hitherto 
 escaped their researches. It was in high repute 
 with the alehymists of old, who, like the vulgar 
 of the present day, considered it to be the 
 substance of what are termed falling stars, 
 and employed it as such in their attempts to 
 compose the philosopher’s stone and a uni¬ 
 versal panacea. Other sages have regarded 
 this gelatine as matter cast up by hawks 
 after eating frogs; and others, again, have 
 supposed it to be a real animal. It appears, 
 however, that, as if to escape their investiga¬ 
 tions, this plant and several more of the same 
 nature mutually transform themselves one 
 into another. It is found in the alleys of 
 gardens and in meadows. After cool and 
 rainy nights, it has been observed to cover 
 the ground completely in certain spots ; but a 
 few hours’ sunshine causes it to disappear. 
 In short, nothing positive is yet known con¬ 
 cerning the Tremella, which continues to be a 
 secret of Nature. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 297 
 
 Resolution, Cress. The ancients were of opinion, 
 that those who eat Cress become firm and de¬ 
 cided, for which reason this plant was in great 
 request. 
 
 Riches, Corn, Page 171. 
 
 - False, Sunflower. Page 195. 
 
 Royalty, Angrec. This is a parasitical plant of 
 the Molucca Isles. In Ternate, the females 
 of the blood royal wreathe it in their hair, but 
 do not allow slaves or servants to wear it. 
 They have reserved to themselves this ex¬ 
 clusive right says a traveller, persuaded that 
 Nature, by causing this plant to grow only on 
 elevated situations, has clearly indicated that 
 its flowers are designed for the exclusive deco¬ 
 ration of royalty. 
 
 Rudeness, Clot Bur. The rough and prickly 
 Clot Bur, which possesses neither beauty nor 
 utility, though continually banished from our 
 fields, always finds its way back to them. 
 
 Rupture, Greek Valerian. Pliny relates that 
 several Kings contested the honour of having 
 first discovered this plant: hence it received 
 the name of Polemonium from the Greek word 
 polemos, signifying war. 
 
 13* 
 
298 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Rupture of a Contract, Broken Straw. Page 
 183. 
 
 Sadness, Dead Leaves. Page 232. 
 
 Secrecy, Maiden Hair. Page 203. 
 
 Self-love, Narcissus. Page 63. 
 
 Separation, Carolina Jasmine. Page 161. 
 
 Sickness, Field Anemone. In some countries 
 people imagine that the flowers of the Field 
 Anemone are so pernicious as to taint the air, 
 and that those who breathe its emanations are 
 liable to severe illness. 
 
 Silence, White Rose. The god of silence was 
 represented under the form of a young man, 
 half-naked, with the fore-finger of one hand 
 on his lips, and holding a White Rose in the 
 other. Love was said to have given him 
 this Rost;, in order to propitiate his favour. 
 The ancients placed a carved Rose over the 
 doors of their banqueting rooms, to caution 
 their guests not to repeat anything that might 
 be said there. 
 
 Simplicity, Single Rose. Simplicity embellishes 
 beauty itself, and throws a veil over deformity. 
 Clemence Isaure, who instituted the Floral 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 299 
 
 Games, allotted a Single Rose as the prize of 
 eloquence. 
 
 Skill, Spider Ophrys. Arachne was a very 
 clever embroideress, who ventured to chal¬ 
 lenge Minerva to a trial of skill in the 
 practice of the art. The offended goddess 
 changed her imprudent rival into a spider. 
 The Spider Ophrys resembles the insect, which, 
 under its repulsive form, has lost none of the 
 skill of its predecessor. 
 
 Sleep, Poppy. From the Poppy is obtained 
 laudanum, which soothes the senses and in¬ 
 duces sleep. Page 167. 
 
 Snare, Catchfly. The Catchfly is an appropriate 
 emblem of the gross snares spread for impru. 
 dent youth. Flies, attracted by its smell, are 
 caught by the viscous matter which covers its 
 flower-stalks, and holds them so fast that they 
 cannot escape. 
 
 Solitude, Heath. Page 91. 
 
 Sorroiv, Yew-tree. Page 252. 
 
 Sourness of Temper, Barberry. The fruit of the 
 Barberry is extremely sour: the shrub that 
 bears it is armed with thorns, and the flowers 
 possess such irritability, that, at the slightest 
 
300 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 touch, all the stamina fold round the pistil. 
 Thus this tree exhibits all the different charac¬ 
 ters of ill-tempered persons. 
 
 Spell, Circaja or Enchanters’ Nightshade. 
 This plant, as its name intimates, is famous 
 in magical incantations. Its flower is rose- 
 coloured, streaked with purple. It is found 
 in damp, shady situations: and is fond of 
 growing upon the ruins ,^f buildings and 
 
 jbJr >!*> 
 
 Stoicistii, Box-tree. The Box is fond of the 
 shade: it is an evergreen, enduring cold and 
 heat, requiring little care, and flourishing for 
 many years. 
 
 Stratagem, Walnut. The city of Amiens was 
 taken by the Spaniards, in 1599, by a singu¬ 
 lar stratagem. Some soldiers, disguised as 
 countrymen, came up to the gate with a cart¬ 
 load of Walnuts. Here they untied one of the 
 sacks containing the nuts ; the latter fell out, 
 as soon as the gate was opened and the cart 
 began to move, and, w’hile the guards were 
 busy picking them up, a body of Spaniards, 
 who were in ambush, fell upon them, and made 
 themselves masters of the city. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 301 
 
 Strength, Fennel. The gladiators mixed this 
 plant with their food, to increase their strength ; 
 and, after the games in the arena, the victor 
 was crowned with Fennel. 
 
 Stupidity, Scarlet Geranium. Page 210. 
 
 Surliness, Thistle. The Scotch order of the 
 Thistle is a gold chain, entwined with flowers 
 of the Thistle, and bearing this motto —Nemo 
 me impune lacessit —“ Nobody annoys me with 
 impunity.” 
 
 Surprise, Truffle. This curious vegetable has 
 ever been a subject of surprise to the ob¬ 
 server. It has neither root, stalk, nor leaves. 
 The Truffle grows under the ground, and 
 never appears above the surface. 
 
 Suspicion, Champignon. There are several 
 species of Champignons, which are known to 
 be deadly poisons. The Ostiaks, a Siberian 
 tribe, make with three heads of the Agaricus 
 muscarius a preparation which will kill the 
 strongest man in twelve hours. Several of 
 the Champignons of this country also are very 
 dangerous; some of them contain so acrid 
 a liquid, that a single drop will blister the 
 tongue : yet the Russians, during their long 
 
302 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Lent, subsist almost entirely on Champig¬ 
 nons ; and by the French they are esteemed 
 a great delicacy. People ought, however, to 
 be very suspicious of them, and to steep before 
 they eat them in boiling water. This process 
 deprives them at once of their smell and 
 dangerous properties, if they are not of a 
 wholesome sort. 
 
 Sympathy , Thrift. This plant is mentioned by 
 Pliny under the name of Statice, derived from 
 a Greek word, which signifies making to 
 stop, as this plant, by growing in sandy situ¬ 
 ations, is found to retain and stop the move¬ 
 ment of the sands and to bind them together 
 by its roots. Thrift is chiefly employed in 
 gardens, for borders. It is found on every 
 part of our coasts, 'where its favourite soil 
 seems to be a marine mud or ooze, mixed 
 with the shingles of the sea-beach, and on 
 this account, as well as from its grassy leaves, 
 it is generally called the Sea-Pink. Phillips 
 says, that he has seen it so abundant on a 
 little common between Lancing and Worth¬ 
 ing, in Sussex, as to form a complete green 
 turf in winter, enamelling the ground from 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 303 
 
 May until August by a mass of pink flowers, 
 which form a charming contrast with the blue 
 of the ocean. 
 
 Tears, Helenium. The flowers of the Helenium 
 resemble small suns of a beautiful yellow. 
 They blow in autumn with the asters. They 
 are said to have been produced by the tears 
 of Helen. 
 
 Temptation, Quince. It has been asserted that 
 the golden fruit in the garden of the Hes- 
 perides were Quinces, and that these tempted 
 Hercules to attack the dragon which guarded 
 them: in confirmation of this conjecture, a 
 statue of the demi-god, holding a Quince in 
 his hand, as a trophy, is referred to. It is 
 also alleged that it was by means of Quinces 
 given to him by Venus that Hippomenes 
 amused Atalanta during the race with her, 
 and won it. It is further supposed that the 
 fruit of the forbidden tree, which Eve was 
 tempted to pluck, was the Quince and not the 
 apple, as it is generally believed. 
 
 Thankfulness, Agrimony. This is a pretty 
 campanula, whose flowers, of the most deli- 
 
304 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 cate lilac colour, hang from the stalk like 
 bells. The French call it Religieuse des 
 Champs, “ Nun of the Fields,” a name, pro¬ 
 bably given out of gratitude to this pretty* 
 salutary, and useful campanula, in memory 
 of some kind, tender and compassionate 
 nurse. 
 
 Think of me, Heart’s-ease. Page 56. 
 
 Ties, Tendrils of climbing plants, which en¬ 
 twine and bind fast everything they come 
 near. 
 
 Time, White Poplar. The White Poplar raises 
 its lofty head on a straight trunk, covered 
 with silvery bark, to the height of ninety 
 feet or more. The ancients consecrated it 
 to Time, because the leaves of this handsome 
 tree are in constant motion, and, being dark 
 on one side and white on the other, they in¬ 
 dicate the alternation of day and night. 
 
 Timidity, Marvel of Peru. Page 219. 
 
 Tranquillity, Stonecrop. The ancients re¬ 
 garded Stonecrop as a cure for hydrophobia; 
 it is still sometimes resorted to in that dread¬ 
 ful malady. 
 
 Treachery, Bilberry, or Whortleberry. CEno- 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 305 
 
 maiis, father of the beautiful Hippodamia, 
 chose for his attendant the young Myrtillus, 
 son of Mercury. Proud of his skill, he in¬ 
 sisted that all the suitors who aspired to the 
 hand of his daughter should compete for the 
 prize in a chariot-race with him. Pelops, 
 who wished to obtain Hippodamia, promised 
 Myrtillus a large reward, if he would take 
 out the linch-pin of his master’s chariot. 
 Myrtillus was not proof against the offer: in 
 consequence, the chariot was overturned and 
 OEnomatis killed: but, as he expired, he im¬ 
 plored Pelops to avenge him, which he did, 
 by throwing the treacherous attendant into 
 the sea. The waters having borne back his 
 body to the shore, Mercury changed it into 
 the shrub, called, by a corruption from his 
 name, Whortleberry, or Bilberry. It grows 
 on the sea-shore in cool and shady places. 
 Its pretty bell-flowers are succeeded by ber¬ 
 ries of a dark blue, of a tart and agreeable 
 flavour. 
 
 Truth , Bitter-sweet Nightshade. The ancients 
 thought that Truth was the mother of Virtue, 
 the daughter of Time, and queen of the world. 
 
306 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 It is a common saying- with ns that the Truth 
 conceals herself in the bottom of a well, and 
 that she always mingles some bitterness with 
 her blessings: and we have given for her 
 emblem a useless plant that, like her, delights 
 in shade and is always green. The bitter¬ 
 sweet Nightshade is, I believe, the only plant 
 in this country that loses and re-produces its 
 leaves twice a year. 
 
 Union , Whole Straw. Page 183. 
 
 Uselessness, Meadow-Sweet. This plant is con¬ 
 sidered as an emblem of uselessness, because 
 doctors have not discovered any medicinal 
 virtues in it, and animals refuse to eat it. 
 
 Utility, Grass. Grasses are the most com¬ 
 mon, but perhaps the most useful family of 
 the vegetable kingdom. 
 
 War, Achillea-millefolia. This plant heals all 
 wounds made with iron. It is said to have 
 been used by the hero whose name it bears to 
 heal the wounds of Telephus. 
 
 Warmth of Feeling, Peppermint. Minthes 
 w T as surprised by Proserpine in the company 
 of her gloomy spouse. The enraged goddess 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 307 
 
 changed her rival into a plant, which seems 
 to comprehend in its double flavour the 
 coldness of fear and the warmth of love. 
 This plant we cultivate by the name of 
 Peppermint, to which we are indebted for 
 the cordial water and lozenges named after 
 it. 
 
 Weakness, Musk plant. This plant has so mild 
 and delicate a scent, that it is agreeable even 
 to persons who have a particular dislike to 
 musk. 
 
 Wisdom, White Mulberry-tree. The ancients 
 called the White Mulberry the wisest of trees, 
 because it is very late before it unfolds its 
 leaves, in which respect it is the reverse of 
 the almond-tree. A spray of the almond-tree 
 tied up with one of the mulberry intimates 
 that wisdom ought to temper activity. 
 
 You are cold, Hortensia. The Hortensia is a 
 plant of recent introduction into our European 
 gardens. Though its clusters of flowers are 
 alternately tipped with white, red, and purple, 
 though its general figure is showy, and it 
 looks well in a room; still the eye soon tires 
 
308 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 of its cold beauty: it is the image of a coquet, 
 who, destitute of the qualities of the mind, 
 and heart, strives to please solely by the arts 
 of dress. 
 
 You are my Divinity , American Cowslip. The 
 elegant and single stalk of this plant rises 
 from the centre of tuft of broad leaves that 
 lie flat on the ground. In April, it is crowned 
 with twelve pretty pink flowers reversed. 
 Linneus has given to it the name of Dodeca- 
 theon, which signifies twelve divinities. It 
 is, perhaps, rather a pompous name for so 
 modest a flower: but on that point botanists, 
 and especially lovers, are not very parti¬ 
 cular. 
 
 You are perfect, Pineapple. The Pineapple, 
 surrounded with its handsome leaves, and 
 surmounted by a crown, which is employed 
 for its propagation, has the appearance of 
 being sculptured in pale gold. It is so beau¬ 
 tiful that it seems to be made only to delight 
 the eye; so delicious, that it combines the 
 varied flavours of all our best fruits; and so 
 fragrant, that it would deserve to be culti¬ 
 vated solely for the sake of its perfume. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 309 
 
 You are radiant with Charms , Ranunculus. 
 Early in spring, the dazzling Ranunculus 
 adorns our gardens with its brilliant flowers, 
 glowing with a thousand colours, resplendent 
 with a thousand charms. Scarcely any plant 
 rewards the cultivator with such a striking 
 diversity of tints, or affords so rich a view. 
 
 Your charms are engraven on my heart , Spindle- 
 tree. This shrub is thus named, because its 
 wood is used for making spindles. Crayons 
 also are prepared from it. It is in request 
 with sculptors and turners. If its wood is va¬ 
 luable to artists, the shrub which furnishes 
 it ought to be esteemed by the farmer : the 
 hedges formed with if appear in autumn 
 loaded with red berries that produce a very 
 pretty effect. 
 
 Your looks freeze me , Ice plant. The leaves 
 of this singular plant are covered with trans¬ 
 parent vesicles full of water. When the plant 
 is in the shade, it looks as if covered with 
 dew; when in the sunshine, it seems to be 
 powdered with frozen crystals, that give it a 
 brilliant appearance, and hence it derives its 
 
 name. 
 
310 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Your presence revives me, Rosemary. Hun¬ 
 gary water is made with Rosemary: it re¬ 
 freshes the spirits and dispels dizziness and 
 fainting. 
 
 Your qualities surpass your charms, Mignonette. 
 Page 156. 
 
 Youth, White Lilac. From the purity of colour 
 and the short duration of its beautiful clusters 
 of blossom, White Lilac is the emblem of 
 youth, of that fleeting and inestimable blessing 
 which all the treasures of the world cannot re¬ 
 deem. 
 
DICTIONARY OF FLOWERS, 
 
 WITH 
 
 THEIR EMBLEMATIC SIGNIFICATIONS. 
 
 Acacia, 
 
 -Rose, 
 
 Acanthus, 
 
 Achillea millefolia, 
 Adonis, Flos, 
 Almond-tree, 
 
 Aloe, 
 
 Amaranth, 
 
 Amaryllis, 
 
 Anemone, 
 
 -, field, 
 
 Angelica, 
 
 Angrec, 
 
 Friendship. 
 
 Elegance. 
 
 The Arts. 
 
 War. 
 
 Painful Recollections. 
 Indiscretion. 
 
 Grief. 
 
 Immortality. 
 
 Pride. 
 
 Forsaken. 
 
 Sickness. 
 
 Inspiration. 
 
 Royalty. 
 
312 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Apple blossom, 
 
 Ash-tree, 
 
 Asphodel, 
 
 Aster, China, 
 
 Balm of Gilead, 
 
 -gentle, 
 
 Balsam, 
 
 Barberry, 
 
 Basil, 
 
 Beech, 
 
 Bilberry, 
 
 Bladder-nut, 
 
 Borage, 
 
 Box-tree, 
 
 Bramble, 
 
 Broom, 
 
 Buck-bean, 
 
 Bugloss, 
 
 Bulrush, 
 
 Burdock, 
 
 Buttercup, 
 
 Preference. 
 
 Grandeur. 
 
 My regrets follow you to 
 the Grave. 
 
 Variety. 
 
 After-thought. 
 
 Cure. 
 
 Joking. 
 
 Impatience. 
 
 Sourness of Temper. 
 Hate. 
 
 Prosperity. 
 
 Treachery. 
 
 Frivolous Amusement. 
 Bluntness. 
 
 Stoicism. 
 
 Envy. 
 
 Humility. 
 
 Ardour. 
 
 Calm Repose. 
 
 Falsehood. 
 
 Indiscretion. 
 
 Touch me not. 
 Ingratitude, 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 313 
 
 Cactus, Virginia, 
 
 Canterbury Bell, 
 
 Catchfly, 
 
 Champignon, 
 
 Cherry-tree, 
 
 Chesnut-tree, 
 
 Chicory, 
 
 Cinquefoil, 
 
 Circsea, 
 
 Clematis, 
 
 Clot-bur, 
 
 Clove-tree, 
 Columbine, 
 Convolvulus, night, 
 Coriander, 
 
 Corn, 
 
 Cornbottle, 
 
 Cornel Cherry-tree, 
 Cowslip, American, 
 Cress, 
 
 Crown Imperial, 
 Cuscuta, 
 
 Cypress, 
 
 Daffodil, 
 
 Horror. 
 
 Constancy. 
 
 Snare. 
 
 Suspicion. 
 
 Good Education. 
 
 Do me justice. 
 Frugality. 
 
 Beloved Daughter. 
 Spell. 
 
 Artifice. 
 
 Rudeness. 
 
 Dignity. 
 
 Folly. 
 
 Night. 
 
 Hidden Merit. 
 Riches. 
 
 Delicacy. 
 
 Durability. 
 
 You are my divinity. 
 Resolution. 
 
 Power. 
 
 Meanness. 
 
 Mourning. 
 
 Self-love. 
 
 14 
 
LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 314 
 
 Daisy, 
 
 -, garden, 
 
 -, wild, 
 
 Dandelion, 
 
 Day-Lily, yellow, 
 Dittany, 
 
 Dock, patience, 
 Dodder, 
 
 Ebony-tree, 
 
 Eglantine, 
 
 Fennel, 
 
 Fig, 
 
 Fir-tree, 
 
 Flax, 
 
 Flower-de-Luce, 
 
 Forget-Me-Not, 
 
 Frkxinella, 
 
 Fuller’s Teasel, 
 
 Geranium, pencilled- 
 leaf, 
 
 -, rose-scented, 
 
 -, scarlet, 
 
 Innocence. 
 
 I share your sentiments- 
 I will think of it. 
 
 The rustic Oracle. 
 Coquetry. 
 
 Childbirth. 
 
 Patience. 
 
 Meanness. 
 
 Blackness. 
 
 Poetry. 
 
 Strength. 
 
 Longevity. 
 
 Elevation. 
 
 I feel your kindness. 
 Flame. 
 
 Forget me not. 
 
 Fire. 
 
 Misanthropy. 
 
 Ingenuity. 
 
 Preference. 
 
 Stupidity. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 315 
 
 Geranium, sorrowful, 
 
 —-, wild, 
 
 Grass, 
 
 Hawthorn, 
 
 Hazel, 
 
 Heart’s-ease, 
 
 Heath, 
 
 Heliotrope, Peruvian, 
 Hellenium, 
 
 Hepatiea, 
 
 Holly, 
 
 Hollyhock, 
 
 Honeysuckle, 
 
 Hop, 
 
 Hornbeam, 
 
 Horse-chesnut, 
 
 Hortensia, 
 
 Hyacinth, 
 
 Ice-plant, 
 
 Ipomaea, 
 
 Iris, 
 
 Ivy, 
 
 Melancholy Mind. 
 Steadfast Piety. 
 Utility. 
 
 Hope. 
 
 Peace, Reconciliation. 
 Think of me. 
 
 Solitude. 
 
 Devoted Attachment. 
 Tears. 
 
 Confidence. 
 
 Foresight. 
 
 Ambition. 
 
 Generous and Devoted 
 Affection. 
 
 Injustice. 
 
 Ornament. 
 
 Luxury. 
 
 You are cold. 
 
 Game, Play. 
 
 Your looks freeze me. 
 I attach myself to you. 
 Message. 
 
 Friendship. 
 
316 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Jasmine, 
 
 -, Carolina, 
 
 -, Indian, 
 
 Jonquil, 
 
 Juniper, 
 
 Larch, 
 
 Larkspur, 
 
 Laurel, 
 
 Laurustinus, 
 
 Lavender, 
 
 Leaves, Dead, 
 Lilac, 
 
 -, white, 
 
 Lily, 
 
 Lily of the Valley, 
 
 Linden-tree, 
 
 Liverwort, 
 
 London Pride, 
 Lotus, 
 
 Lucern, 
 
 Madder, 
 
 Maiden Hair, 
 Mallow, 
 
 Amiableness. 
 
 Separation. 
 
 I attach myself to you. 
 Desire. 
 
 Protection. 
 
 Boldness. 
 
 Lightness. 
 
 Glory. 
 
 I die if neglected. 
 Mistrust. 
 
 Sadness, Melancholy. 
 First emotions of love. 
 Youth. 
 
 Majesty. 
 
 Return of Happiness. 
 Conjugal Love. 
 Confidence. 
 
 Frivolity. 
 
 Eloquence. 
 
 Life. 
 
 Calumny. 
 
 Secrecy. 
 
 Beneficence. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 317 
 
 Manchineel-trce, 
 
 Mandrake, 
 
 Maple, 
 
 Marigold, 
 
 -, prophetic, 
 
 -and Cypress, 
 
 Marvel of Peru, 
 Meadow Saffron, 
 Mezereon, 
 
 Mignonette, 
 
 Milkwort, 
 
 Misletoe, 
 
 Moonwort, 
 
 Moss, 
 
 Mulberry-tree, black, 
 
 -, white, 
 
 Musk-plant, 
 
 Myrobolan, 
 
 Myrtle, 
 
 Narcissus, 
 
 Nettle, 
 
 Falsehood. 
 
 Rarity. 
 
 Reserve. 
 
 Grief. 
 
 Prediction. 
 
 Despair. 
 
 Timidity. 
 
 My best days are past. 
 Coquetry, Desire to 
 please. 
 
 Your Qualities surpass 
 your Charms. 
 Hermitage. 
 
 I surmount all Diffi¬ 
 culties. 
 
 Forgetfulness. 
 
 Maternal Love. 
 
 I shall not survive you. 
 Wisdom. 
 
 Weakness. 
 
 Privation. 
 
 Love. 
 
 Self-love. 
 
 Cruelty. 
 
318 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Nightshade, bitter¬ 
 sweet, 
 
 - f enchan¬ 
 ter’s, 
 
 Nosegay, 
 
 Oak, 
 
 Olive, 
 
 Ophrys, spider, 
 Orange-flower, 
 
 -tree, 
 
 Orchis, Bee, 
 
 Parsley, 
 
 Passion Flower, 
 Peppermint, 
 Periwinkle, 
 Pine-apple, 
 
 Pink, 
 
 -, yellow, 
 
 Plane-tree, 
 
 Plum-tree, 
 
 -, wild, 
 
 Poplar, Black, 
 
 -, White, 
 
 Truth. 
 
 Spell. 
 
 Gallantry. 
 
 Hospitality. 
 
 Peace. 
 
 Skill. 
 
 Chastity. 
 
 Generosity. 
 
 Error. 
 
 Festivity. 
 
 Faith. 
 
 Warmth of feeling. 
 Tender Recollections. 
 You are perfect. 
 
 Pure Love. 
 
 0 
 
 Disdain. 
 
 Genius. 
 
 Keep your promises. 
 
 Independence. 
 
 Courage. 
 
 Time. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 319 
 
 Poppy, Consolation. 
 
 -, Sleep. 
 
 -, White, My Bane, my Antidote. 
 
 Potato, Beneficence. 
 
 Primrose, Childhood. 
 
 -, large-flowered 
 
 Evening, Inconstancy. 
 
 Privet, 
 
 Quince, 
 
 Ranunculus, 
 
 Reeds, 
 
 Rose, 
 
 -, Hundred-leaved, 
 
 -, Monthly, 
 
 -, Musk, 
 
 -, Single, 
 
 -, White, 
 
 -, Withered, 
 
 -, Yellow, 
 
 Rosebud, 
 
 -, White, 
 
 Prohibition. 
 
 Temptation. 
 
 You are radiant with 
 charms. 
 
 Music. 
 
 Love. 
 
 Grace. 
 
 Beauty ever new. 
 Capricious Beauty. 
 Simplicity. 
 
 Silence. 
 
 Fleeting Beauty. 
 Infidelity. 
 
 A young Girl. 
 
 A heart unacquainted 
 with Love. 
 
320 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Rosemary, 
 
 Your presence revives 
 me. 
 
 Rue, Wild, 
 
 Morals. 
 
 Rush, 
 
 Docility. 
 
 Saffron, 
 
 Beware of Excess. 
 
 Sage, 
 
 Esteem. 
 
 Sainfoin, shaking, 
 
 Agitation. 
 
 St. John’s wort, 
 
 Superstition. 
 
 Sardonia, 
 
 Irony. 
 
 Sensitive Plant, 
 
 Chastity. 
 
 Snapdragon, 
 
 Presumption. 
 
 Snowdrop, 
 
 Hope. 
 
 Sorrel, Wood 
 
 Joy. 
 
 Speedwell, 
 
 Fidelity. 
 
 Spin die-tree. 
 
 Your charms are en¬ 
 graven on my heart. 
 
 Star of Bethlehem, 
 
 Purity. 
 
 Stock, 
 
 Lasting Beauty. 
 
 -, Ten Week, 
 
 Promptness. 
 
 Stonecrop, 
 
 Tranquillity. 
 
 Straw, Broken, 
 
 Rupture of a Contract. 
 
 -, Whole, 
 
 Union. 
 
 Strawberry, 
 
 Perfection. 
 
 Sunflower, 
 
 False Riches. 
 
DICTIONARY. 
 
 321 
 
 Sweet Sultan, 
 
 Sweet-william, 
 
 Sycamore, 
 
 Syringa, 
 
 Happiness. 
 
 Finesse. 
 
 Curiosity. 
 
 Fraternal Love. 
 
 Tansey, Wild, 
 
 I declare war against 
 
 Tendrils of climbing 
 plants, 
 
 Thankfulness, 
 
 Thistle, 
 
 Thorn-apple, 
 
 Thrift, 
 
 Thyme, 
 
 Tremella Nostoc, 
 Truffle, 
 
 Tuberose, 
 
 Tulip, 
 
 Tussilage, sweet- 
 scented, 
 
 you. 
 
 / 
 
 Ties. 
 
 Agrimony. 
 
 Surliness. 
 
 Deceitful Charms. 
 Sympathy. 
 
 Activity. 
 
 Resistance. 
 
 Surprise. 
 
 Dangerous Pleasures. 
 Declaration of Love. 
 Justice shall be done to 
 you. 
 
 Valerian, 
 
 An accommodating 
 disposition. 
 
 -, Greek, 
 
 Rupture. 
 
 14* 
 
32a 
 
 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Venus’s Looking- 
 glass, 
 
 Veronica, 
 
 Vervain, 
 
 Vine, 
 
 Violet, 
 
 -, White, 
 
 Flattery. 
 
 Fidelity. 
 
 Enchantment. 
 
 Intoxication. 
 
 Modesty. 
 
 Innocence, Candour. 
 
 W allflower, 
 
 Walnut, 
 Whortleberry, 
 Willow, Weeping, 
 Wormwood, 
 
 Fidelity in Misfortune. 
 Stratagem. 
 
 Treachery. 
 
 Mourning. 
 
 Absence. v 
 
 Yew. 
 
 Sorrow. 
 
THE 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 The Roman Catholic Monks, or the observers 
 of the Roman Catholic ritual, have compiled a 
 Catalogue of Flowers for every day in the year, 
 and dedicated each flower to a particular saint, 
 on account of its blooming about the time of that 
 saint’s festival. These appropriations form a 
 complete Calendar of the Flowers. 
 
 The figures attached express the year in which 
 the saint died. 
 
 JANUARY. 
 
 1. Laurustinus, Vibernum tinus. St. Faine, 
 
 or Fanchea, an Irish saint of the sixth 
 century. 
 
 2. Groundsel, Senecio vulgaris. St. Macarius of 
 
 Alexandria, 394. 
 
 * 
 
324 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 3. Iris, Persian, Iris persica. St. Genevieve, 
 
 patroness of Paris, 422. 
 
 4. Hazel, Corylus avellana. St. Titus, disciple 
 
 of St. Paul. 
 
 5. Hellebore, Helleborus foetidus. St. Simeon 
 
 Stylites of Rome. 
 
 6. Moss, screw, Tortula rigida. St. Nilam- 
 
 mon. 
 
 7. Laurel, Portugal, Prunus lusitanica. St. 
 
 Kentigerna. 
 
 8. Tremella, yellow, Tremella deliquescens. St. 
 
 Gudula, patroness, of Brussels. 
 
 9. Laurel, common, Prunus lauro-cerasus, or 
 
 common small-fruited cherry. St. Mar- 
 ciana of Rome. 
 
 10. Gorse, or Furze, Ulex europceus. St. Wil¬ 
 
 liam of Bourges, 1207. 
 
 11. Moss, early, Bryum hornum. Swan-neck 
 
 thread-moss. St. Theodosius. 
 
 12. Moss, hygrometric, Funaria hygrometrica. 
 
 St. Arcadius. 
 
 13. Yew-tree, common, Taxus baccata. St. Ve¬ 
 
 ronica, a nun of Milan, 1497. 
 
 14. Strawberry, barren, Fragaria sterilis. St. 
 
 Hilary, 368. 
 
 » 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 325 
 
 15. Ivy, Hedera helix. St. Paul, the first 
 
 hermit. 
 
 16. Nettle, common red Dead, Lamium pur- 
 
 pureum. St. Marcellus, Pope. 
 
 17. Anemone, garden, Anemone hortensis. St. 
 
 Anthony, patriarch of monks, 251. 
 
 18. Moss, four-toothed, Bryum pellucidnm. St. 
 
 Prisca, a Roman martyr. 
 
 19. Nettle, white Dead, Lamium album. St. 
 
 Martha, a Roman martyr, 270. 
 
 20. Nettle, woolly Dead, Lamium Gargaricum. 
 
 St. Fabian, Pope. 
 
 21. Hellebore, black, Helleborus niger. St. Ag¬ 
 
 nes, a special patroness of purity: be¬ 
 headed at the age of thirteen, 304. 
 
 22. Grass, early whitlow, Draba verna. St. 
 
 Vincent, a Spanish martyr. 
 
 23. Peziza, Peziza acetabolum. St. Raymond 
 
 of Pennafort, 1275. 
 
 24. Moss, stalkless, Phascum muticum. St. 
 
 Timothy, disciple of St. Paul, 250. 
 
 > 25. Hellebore, winter, Helleboris hyemalis. The 
 Conversion of St. Paul. 
 
 26. Butter-bur, white, Tussilago alba , or Colt’s- 
 foot. St. Poly carp. 
 
326 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 27. Moss, earth, Phascum cuspidatum. St. 
 
 Chrysostom. 
 
 28. Daisy, double, Beilis perennis plenus. St. 
 
 Margaret of Hungary, 1271. 
 
 29. Fern, flowering, Osmunda regalis. St. Fran- 
 
 cis of Sales, 1622. 
 
 30. Spleen-wort, Asplenium trichomanes. St. 
 
 Martin. 
 
 31. Hart’s Tongue, or Spleen-wort, Asplenium 
 
 scolopendrium. St. Marcella, 410. 
 
 FEBRUARY. 
 
 1. Moss, lesser water, Fontinalis minor. St. Ig¬ 
 
 natius; and Bay-tree, Laurus nobilis. St. 
 Bridget, patroness of Ireland. 
 
 2. Snow-drop, Galanthus nivalis. Purification of 
 
 the Virgin Mary. 
 
 3. Moss, great water, Fontinalis anti-pyretica. 
 
 St. Blase of Armenia, 316. 
 
 4. Moss, common hair, or Goldilocks, Polytri¬ 
 
 chum commune. St. Jane, or Queen Joan, 
 1505. 
 
 Bay, Indian, Laurus Indica. St. Margaret of 
 England. 
 
 5. Primrose, common, Primula vulgaris. St. 
 
 Agatha, a Sicilian martyr. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 327 
 
 Primrose, red, Primula acaulis. St. Ade¬ 
 laide, 1015. 
 
 6. Hyacinth, blue, Hyacinthus orientalis. St. 
 
 Dorothy, 308. 
 
 7. Cyclamen, round-leafed, Cyclamen coum. St. 
 
 Romuald, 1027. 
 
 8. Moss, narrow-leafed spring, Mnium androgy- 
 
 num. St. John of Matha, 1213. 
 
 9. Narcissus, Roman, Narcissus Romanus. St. 
 
 Apollonia, 249. 
 
 10. Mezereon, Daphne mezereon, St. Scholastiea, 
 
 543. 
 
 Moss, silky fork, Mnium heteromallum. St. 
 Coteris, fourth century. 
 
 11. Primrose, red, Primula verna rubra. St-. 
 
 Theodora, empress, 367. 
 
 12. Anemone, noble Liverwort, Anemone hepati- 
 
 ca. St. Eulalia of Barcelona. 
 
 13. Polyanthos, Primula Polyanthos. St. Cathe¬ 
 
 rine de Ricci, 1589. 
 
 14. Crocus, yellow, Crocus mcesiacus, or Crocus 
 
 aureus. St. Valentine, the lovers’ saint. 
 He was a priest at Rome, and married 
 there about the year 270. 
 
 15. Crocus, cloth of gold, Crocus sulphu - 
 
328 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 reus. St. Sigifred, bishop of Sweden, 
 
 1002. 
 
 16. Primrose, lilac, Primula acaulis plena. St. 
 
 Juliana. 
 
 17. Crocus, Scotch, Crocus susianus. St. Fla¬ 
 
 vian, archbishop of Constantinople, 449. 
 
 18. Speedwell, wall, Veronica vernus arvensis. 
 
 St. Simeon, bishop of Jerusalem, 116. 
 
 19. Speedwell, - field, Veronica agrestis. St. 
 
 Barbatus, patron of Benevento, bishop, 
 682. 
 
 20. Cynoglossum omphalodes, or C. lusitanicum. 
 
 St. Mildred, abbess of Munster. 
 
 21. Crocus, white, Crocus albus. St. Servianus, 
 
 bishop, 452. 
 
 22. Margaret, herb, Beilis perennis. St. Marga¬ 
 
 ret of Cortona, 1297. 
 
 23. Apricot-tree, Prunus armeniaca. St. Mil- 
 
 burge of England. 
 
 24. Fern, great, Osmunda regalis. St. Ethel- 
 
 bert, King of Kent. 
 
 25. Peach blossom, Amygdalus persica. St. Wal- 
 
 burg, abbess, of Swabia, Germany. 
 
 26. Periwinkle, lesser, Vinca minor. St. Victor, 
 
 seventh century. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 329 
 
 27. Lungwort, Pulmonaria officinalis. St. Lean- 
 
 der, bishop, 596. 
 
 28. Crocus, purple, Crocus vernus. St. Proteri- 
 
 us, patriarch of Alexandria, 557. 
 
 MARCH. 
 
 1. Leek, common, Allium porrum. St. David 
 
 of Wales, archbishop, 544. 
 
 2. Chickweed, dwarf mouse-ear, Cerastium 
 
 pumilum. St. Chad, or Ceada, martyr, 
 under the Lombards, in the sixth cen¬ 
 tury. 
 
 3. Marigold, golden fig, Mesembryanthemum 
 
 aureum. St. Cunegunda, empress, 1040. 
 
 4. Chickweed, common, Alsine media. St. 
 
 Casimir, prince of Poland, 1458. 
 
 5. Hellebore, green, Helleborus viridis. St. 
 
 Adrian, 309. 
 
 6. Lily, Lent, Pseudo narcissus multiplex. St. 
 
 Colette, bishop. 
 
 7. Daffodil, early, Narcissus simplex. St. Per- 
 
 petua, martyred under the emperor Seve- 
 rus, 203. 
 
 8. Rose, ever-blowing, Rosa semperflorens. St. 
 
 Rosa, of Viterbo, 1261. 
 
330 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 Jonquil, great, Narcissus Icetus. St. Felix, 
 646. 
 
 9. Daffodil, hoop-petticoat, Narcissus bulbocodi- 
 um. St. Catherine of Bologna, 1463. 
 
 10. Chickweed, upright, Veronica triphyllos. St. 
 
 Droctavseus, abbot, 580. 
 
 11. Heath, Cornish, Erica vagans. St. Eulogius 
 
 of Cordova, 851. 
 
 12. Ixia, or crocus-leaved Misletoe, Ixia bulbo- 
 
 codium, or Viscum albus bulbus. St. 
 Gregory the Great, Praetor of Rome, 
 574. 
 
 13. Heart’s Ease, Viola tricolor. St. Euphrasia, 
 
 410. 
 
 14. Bindweed, mountain, Soldanella alpina. St. 
 
 Maud or Matilda, queen, 968. 
 
 15. Colt’s-foot, common, Tussilago farfara. St. 
 
 Zachary, Pope, 752. 
 
 16. Daffodil, nodding, Narcissus nutans. St. 
 
 Julian of Cilicia. 
 
 17. Violet, sweet, Viola odorata. St. Gertrude, 
 
 abbess, 626. 
 
 Shamrock, White Trefoil, Trifolium repens. 
 St. Patrick, apostle of Ireland. 
 
 18. Leopard’s bane, great, Doronicum parda- 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 331 
 
 lianches. St. Cyril, archbishop of Jeru¬ 
 salem, 386. 
 
 19. Star of Bethlehem, yellow, Ornithogalum 
 
 luteum. St. Joseph, spouse of the Virgin 
 Mary. 
 
 20. Violet, dog’s, Viola canina. St. Wolfram, 
 
 archbishop of Sens, 720. 
 
 21. Fumitory, bulbous, Fumaria bulbosa. St. 
 
 Bennet, or Benedict, founder of the- Order 
 of Benedict, of Rome, 543. 
 
 22. Ficaria verna. St. Catherine of Sweden, 
 
 abbess, 1381. 
 
 23. Daffodil, peerless, Narcissus incomparabilis. 
 
 St. Alphonsus Turibius, archbishop of 
 Lima, 1606. 
 
 24. Saxifrage, golden, Chrysosplenium oppositi- 
 
 folium. St. Irenseus, bishop of Sirmium, 
 304. 
 
 25. Marigold, Calendula officinalis. Annunci¬ 
 
 ation of the Virgin Mary. 
 
 26. Henbane, nightshade-leafed, Hyosciamus sco- 
 
 palia. St. Braulio, bishop of Saragossa, 
 646. 
 
 27. Jonquil, sweet, Narcissus odorus. St. John 
 
 of Egypt, hermit, 394. 
 
332 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 28. Leopard’s bane, Doronicum plantagineum. 
 
 St. Priscus, 260. 
 
 29. Ox-lip, or great Cowslip, Primula elatior. 
 
 St. Eustatius, abbot, 625. 
 
 Fumitory, Fumaria officinalis. St. Jonas, 327. 
 
 30. Water-cress, Cardamine hirsuta. St. John 
 
 of Climacus. 
 
 Daffodil, lessor, Narcissus minor. St. Zosi- 
 mus, bishop of Syracuse, 660. 
 
 31. Benjamin-tree, Laurus benzoin. St. Benja¬ 
 
 min, deacon, martyr, 424. 
 
 APRIL. 
 
 1. Mercury, French annual, Mercurialis annua. 
 
 St. Hugh, bishop, 1132. 
 
 2. Violet, white, Viola alba. St. Francis of 
 
 Paula, a native of Calabria. 
 
 3. Alkanet, evergreen, Anchusa sempervirens. 
 
 St. Agape, 304. 
 
 4. Crown Imperial, red, Fritillaria imperialis. 
 
 St. Isidore, bishop of Seville, 636. 
 
 5. Crown Imperial, yellow, Fritillaria imperi¬ 
 
 alis lutea. St. Vincent Ferrer, 1419. 
 
 6. Hyacinth, starch, Hyacint/ms racemosus. 
 
 St. Sixtus I., Pope. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 333 
 
 7. Anemone, wood, Anemone nemorosa. St. 
 
 Aphraates, fourth century. 
 
 8. Ground-ivy, Glechoma hederacea. St. Diony¬ 
 
 sius, bishop of Corinth. 
 
 9. Polyanthos, red, Primula. St. Mary, of 
 
 Egypt, 421. 
 
 10. Violet, pale, Viola tonbrigens. St. Mech- 
 
 tildes, abbess, fourteenth century. 
 
 11. Dandelion, Lcontodon taraxacum. St. Leo 
 
 the Great, Pope, 461. 
 
 12. Saxifrage, great thick-leafed, -Saxifraga cras- 
 
 sifolia. St. Zeno, bishop, 380. 
 
 13. Narcissus, green, .Narcissus viridiflorus. St. 
 
 Hermenegild, martyr, 586. 
 
 14. Borage, common, Borago officinalis. St. 
 
 Lidwina, 1184. 
 
 15. Stitchwort, greater, Stellaria lwlostea. St 
 
 Peter Gonzales, 1246. 
 
 16. Tulip, yellow, Tulipa sylveslris. St. Joa¬ 
 
 chim of Sienna, 1305. 
 
 17. Arum, Friar’s cowl, broad-leafed, Arum ari. 
 
 sarum. St. Stephen of Citeaux, abbot, 
 1134. 
 
 18. Narcissus, musk, Narcissus moschatus. St. 
 
 Apollonius, 186. 
 
334 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 19. Garlic, Allium ursinum. St. Leo IX., Pope, 
 
 1054. 
 
 20. Snowflake, spring, Leucoium vernum. St. 
 
 Agnes of Monte Pulciano, 1317. 
 
 21. Narcissus, cypress, Narcissus orientalis albus. 
 
 St. Anselm, Archbishop of Canterbury. 
 
 22. Crowfoot, wood, or Goldilocks, Ranunculus 
 
 auricomus. St. Rufus of Glcndaloch. 
 
 23. Harebell, Hyacinlkus non scriptus. St. George 
 
 the martyr, patron of England. 
 
 24. Black thorn,' Prunus spinosa. St. Fidelis. 
 
 25. Tulip, clarimond, Tulipa prcccox. St. Mark, 
 
 the Evangelist. 
 
 26. Erysimum, yellow, Erysimum barbarea. St. 
 
 Richarius, abbot, 645. 
 
 27. Daffodil, great, Narcissus major. St. Anas- 
 
 tasius, Pope, 401. 
 
 28. Arum, spotted, Arum maculatum. Sts. Didy- 
 
 mus and Theodora, 304. 
 
 29. Herb Robert, Geranium robertianum. St. Ro¬ 
 
 bert, abbot ofMolesme, 1110. 
 
 30. Cowslip, Primula veris. St. Catherine of 
 
 Sienna, 1380. 
 
 MAY. 
 
 1. Tulip, Gesner, Tulipa gesnerina. St. Philip, 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 335 
 
 supposed to have been the first of Christ’s 
 Apostles. 
 
 Bachelor’s Button, Lychnis dioica. St. James 
 the just and the less, apostle, martyred in 
 the tumult in the Temple. 
 
 2. Charlock, Raphanus raphanistrum , or Sina- 
 
 . pus arvensis. St. Athanasius, patriarch 
 of Alexandria, 373. 
 
 3. Narcissus, poetic, Narcissus poeticus. The 
 
 discovery* of the Cross, 326. 
 
 4. Stock Gilliflower, Cheiranthus incanus. St. 
 
 Monicla, mother of St. Augustine. 
 
 5. Apple-tree, Pyrus malus. Sts. Angelus and 
 
 Pius V. Pope, 1572. 
 
 6. Globe Flower, bright-yellow, Trollius euro- 
 
 pccus. St. John Damascene, 780. 
 
 7. Globe Flower, Asiatic, bright-orange, Trol¬ 
 
 lius asiaticus. St. John of Beverly. 
 
 8. Lily of the Valley, Convallaria majalis. St. 
 
 Selena. 
 
 9. Lily of the Valley, Convallaria multiflora. 
 
 St. Gregory of Nazianzen, 389. 
 
 10. Peony, slender-leafed, PcEonia tenuifolia. St. 
 Comgal, Irish abbot, 601. 
 
336 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 11. Asphodel, Lancashire, Asphodelus luteus. St. 
 
 Mammertus, archbishop of Vienna, 477. 
 
 12. Iris, German, Iris Germanica. St. Germa- 
 
 nus, patriarch of Constantinople, 733. 
 
 13. Comfrey, common, Symphytum, officinalis. 
 
 St. John the silent, bishop, 558. 
 
 14. Peony, common, Pceonia officinalis, and 
 
 Peony, corralline, P. corrallina. St. Pon¬ 
 tius, 258. 
 
 15. Poppy, Welsh, Papaver eambricum. St. 
 
 Dympna, seventh century. 
 
 16. Star of Bethlehem, great, Ornithogalum 
 
 umbellatum. St. John Nepomucene, 1383. 
 
 17. Poppy, early red, Papaver argemone. St. 
 
 Paschal, 1592. 
 
 18. Mouse-ear, or Hawkweed, llieracium pilo- 
 
 sella. St. Eric, King of Sweden, 1151. 
 
 19. Monk’s hood, Aconitum napellus. St. Dun- 
 
 stan, archbishop of Canterbury, 988. 
 
 20. Horse Chesnut, AEschylus hippocastanum. 
 
 St. Bernardine of Sienna, 1444. 
 
 21. Ragged Robin, Lychnis Jlos cuculi. St. Felix 
 
 of Cantalicio, 1587. 
 
 22. Star of Bethlehem, yellow, Tragopogon pra- 
 
 tensis. St. Yvo, 1303. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 337 
 
 23. Lilac, Syringa vulgaris. St. Julia, fifth cen- 
 
 tury. 
 
 24. Poppy, monkey, Papaver orientale. St. Vin¬ 
 
 cent, of Lerins, 450. 
 
 25. Herb Bennet, common, Geum urbanum. St. 
 
 Urban, Pope, 223. 
 
 26. Rhododendron, purple, Rhododendron ponti- 
 
 cum. St. Augustine, archbishop of Can¬ 
 terbury, 604. 
 
 Azalea, yellow, Azalea pontica. St. Philip 
 Neri, 1595. 
 
 27. Buttercup. Ranunculus acris. St. John, Pope, 
 
 526. 
 
 Bachelor’s Button, yellow, Ranunculus acris 
 plenus. St. Bede, 735. 
 
 28. Iris, lurid, Iris lurida. St. Germain, bishop 
 
 of Paris, 576. 
 
 29. Blue-bottle, Centaurea montana. St. Cyril, 
 
 about 275. 
 
 30. Spearwort, lesser, Ranunculus flammula. St. 
 
 Ferdinand III. Confessor, King of Castile 
 and Leon, 1252. 
 
 31. Lily, yellow Turk’s cap, Lilium pomponium , 
 
 St. Petronilla, first century. 
 
 15 
 
338 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 JUNE. 
 
 1. Rose, yellow, Rosa luica. St. Justin, martyr, 
 
 167. 
 
 2. Pimpernel, common scarlet, Anagallis arven- 
 
 sis. St. Erasmus, 303. 
 
 3. Rose of Meaux, Rosa provincialis. St. Ceci- 
 
 lius, 211. 
 
 4. Indian Pink, Dianthus chinensis. St. Qui- 
 
 rinus, bishop, 304. 
 
 5. Rose, three-leafed China, Rosa sinica. St. 
 
 Boniface, first missionary from England 
 to Friesland; afterwards archbishop of 
 Mentz, and primate of Germany and Bel¬ 
 gium, eighth century. 
 
 6. Pink, common, Dianthus delloides. St. Nor- 
 
 bert, 1134. 
 
 7. Centaury, red, Chironia centaureum. St. 
 
 Paul, bishop of Constantinople, 350. 
 
 8. Money-wort, Herb Two-pence, or creeping 
 
 Loosestrife, Lysimachia nummularia. St. 
 Medard, bishop, sixth century. 
 
 9. Barberry, Berberis vulgaris. St. Colurnba, 
 
 597. 
 
 10. Iris, bright yellow, Iris pseudo-acorus. St. 
 Margaret, queen of Scotland, 1093. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 339 
 
 11. Daisy, midsummer, Chrysanthemum leu- 
 
 canthemum. St. Barnabas, apostle, first 
 century. 
 
 12. Rose, white dog, Rosa arvensis. St. John, 
 
 hermit, 1479. 
 
 13. Ranunculus, garden, Ranunculus asiaticus. 
 
 St. Anthony of Padua, 1231. 
 
 14. Basil, sweet, Ocimum basilicum. St. Basil, 
 
 archbishop, 379. 
 
 15. Sensitive plant, Mimosa sensitiva. St. Yitus, 
 
 martyr, fourth century. 
 
 16. Rose, Moss, Rosa muscosa. St. Julietta, 
 
 martyr, 304. 
 
 17. Monkey-flower, yellow, Mimulus luteus. St. 
 
 Nicandeo, about 303. 
 
 18. Poppy, horned, Chelidonium glaucum. St. 
 
 Marina, eighth century. 
 
 19. La Julienne de Nuit, Hesperis tristis. St. 
 
 Juliana Falconieri, 1340. 
 
 20. Poppy, doubtful, Papaver dubium. St. Silve- 
 
 rius, Pope, 538. 
 
 21. Bugloss, Viper’s, Echium vulgare. St. Aloy- 
 
 sius, 1591. 
 
 22. Canterbury Bell, Campanula medium. St. 
 
 Paulinus, bishop ofNola, 431. 
 
340 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 23. Ladies’ Slipper, Cypripedium calceolus. St. 
 
 Etheldreda, 679. 
 
 24. St. John’s wort, Hypericum pulchrum. Na¬ 
 
 tivity of St. John the Baptist. 
 
 25. Sweet William, Dianihus barbatus. St. Wil¬ 
 
 liam of Monte Vergine, 1142. 
 
 26. Sowthistle, Alpine hairy blue, Sonchus cceru- 
 
 leus. St. Rcingarda, 1135. 
 
 27. St. John’s wort, perforated, Hypericum perfo¬ 
 
 ratum. St. John of Montier, sixth cen¬ 
 tury. 
 
 28. Cornflower, blue, Centaurea cyanus. St. Ire- 
 
 naeus, bishop of Lyons, 202. 
 
 29. Rattle, yellow, Rhinanthus crisla-galli. St. 
 
 Peter the apostle. 
 
 30. Cistus, yellow, Cistus helianthemum. St. 
 
 Paul the apostle. 
 
 JULY. 
 
 1. Agrimony, Agrimonia eupatoria. St. Aaron. 
 
 2. Lily, white, Lilium candidum. Virgin Mary. 
 
 3. Mallow, common, Malva sylveslris. St. 
 
 Phocas, a gardener, 303. 
 
 4. Day Lily, tawny, Hemerocallis fulva. St. 
 
 Ulric, bishop of Augsburg. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS, 
 
 341 
 
 5. Rose, double yellow, Rosa sulphurea. St, 
 
 Edana, of Elphin and Tuam. 
 
 6. Hawkweed, Crepis barbata. St. Julian, 
 
 anchorite, fourth century. 
 
 7. Nasturtium, Tropoeolum majus. St. Felix, 
 
 bishop of Nantes, 584. 
 
 8. Primrose, evening-, CEnothera biennis. St. 
 
 Elizabeth, queen of Portugal, 1336. 
 
 9. Sowthistle, marsh, Sonchus palustris. St. 
 
 Everildis. 
 
 10. Snapdragon, speckled, Antirrhinum tri- 
 
 phyllum. Sts. Rufina and Secunda, 257. 
 
 11. Lupine, yellow, Lupinus Jlavus. St. James, 
 
 bishop of Nisibis, 350. 
 
 12. Snapdragon, great, Antirrhinum purpureum. 
 
 St. John Gualbert, abbot, 1073. 
 
 13. Lupine, blue, Lupinus hirsutus. St Euge- 
 
 nius, bishop, 505. 
 
 14. Lupine, red, Lupinus perennis. St. Bona- 
 
 venture, cardinal bishop, 1274. 
 
 15. Marigold, small Cape, purple and white, 
 
 Calendula pluvialis. St. Swithin, bishop, 
 862. 
 
 16. Convolvulus, Convolvulus purpureus. St. 
 
 Eustathius, patriarch of Antioch, 338. 
 
342 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 17. Sweet-Pea, Lathyrus odoralus. St. Mar- 
 
 cellina, 397. 
 
 18. Marigold, autumn, Chrysanthemum corona- 
 
 rium. St. Bruno, bishop, 1125. 
 
 19. Hawkweed, golden, Hieracium auranticum. 
 
 St. Vincent de Paule, 1660. 
 
 20. Dragon’s head, Virginian, Dracocephalus 
 
 Virginianum. St. Margaret of Antioch. 
 
 21. Lily, Philadelphian, Lilium philadelphicum. 
 
 St. Praxedes. 
 
 22. Lily, African, Agapanthus umbellatus. St. 
 
 Mary Magdalen. 
 
 23. Musk flower, Scabius atro-purpurea. St. 
 
 Apollinaris, bishop of Ravenna. 
 
 24. Lupine tree, Lupinus arboreus. St. Lupus, 
 
 bishop, 478. 
 
 25. Herb Christopher, white Actcca spicata. St. 
 
 Christopher. 
 
 26. Chamomile, or Corn Feverfew, Matricaria 
 
 chamomilla. St. Ann, mother of the 
 Virgin Mary. 
 
 27. Loose-strife, Lythrum salicaria. St. Panta- 
 
 leon, 303. 
 
 28. Groundsel, mountain, Senecio montanus. St. 
 
 Innocent I., Pope, 417. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 343 
 
 29. Chironia, red, Chironia centaurium. St. 
 
 Martha. 
 
 30. Mullein, white, Verbascum lychnitis. St. 
 
 Julietta, 303. 
 
 31. Mullein, yellow, Verbascum virgatum. St. 
 
 Ignatius, of Loyola, founder of the Jesuits, 
 1556. 
 
 AUGUST. 
 
 1. Stramony, or Thorn-apple, Datura stramo■ 
 
 nium. St. Peter ad Vincula. 
 
 2. Tiger Lily, Lilium tigrum, St. Alfrida, 
 
 834. 
 
 3. Hollyhock, Althea rosea. Discovery of the 
 
 relics of St. Stephen, 415. 
 
 4. Bluebell, Campanula rotundifolia. St. Do¬ 
 
 minic, founder of the Friar Preachers, 
 
 1221. 
 
 5. Lily, Egyptian water, Nelumbo nilotica. St. 
 
 Mary ad Nives. 
 
 6. Meadow Saffron, Colcliicum autumnale. 
 
 Transfiguration of our Lord on Mount 
 Tabor. 
 
 7. Amaranth, common, Amaranthus hypochon- 
 
 driacus. St. Cajetan, 1547. 
 
 8. Love lies bleeding, Amaranthus procumbens. 
 
 St. Hormisdas. 
 
344 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 9. Ragwort, yellow, Senecio jacobaa. St. Ro- 
 manus. 
 
 10. Balsam, Impatiens balsamea. St. Lawrence, 
 
 martyr, 258. 
 
 11. China Aster, Aster cliinensis. St. Susanna, 
 
 third century. 
 
 12. Sowthistle, great corn, Sonc/ms arvensis. 
 
 St. Clare, abbess, 1253. 
 
 13. Groundsel, marsh, Great Fen Rag-wort, or 
 
 Bird’s Tongue, Senecio paludosus. St. 
 Radigunda. 
 
 14. Zinnia, Zinnia elegans. St. Eusebius, third 
 
 century. 
 
 15. Virgin’s Bower, white, Clematis vitalba. 
 
 Assumption of the Virgin Mary; or the 
 miraculous ascent of her body into 
 heaven. 
 
 16. Lily, belladonna, Amaryllis belladonna. St. 
 
 Hyacinth, 1257. 
 
 17- Snapdragon, Toadflax, Antyrrliinum linaria. 
 St. Manus, 275. 
 
 18. Marigold, African, Tagetes erecta. St. 
 
 Helen, empress, 382. 
 
 19. Timothy grass, branched Cat’s Tail grass, 
 
 Phleum panniculatum , or Ph. asperum. 
 St. Timothy, 304. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 345 
 
 20. Dandelion, Leontodon serotinus. St. Bernard, 
 
 abbot, 1153. 
 
 21. Marigold, French, Tagetes patula. St. Jean 
 
 Francois de Chantal, 1641. 
 
 22. Timothy, common Cat’s Tail grass, Phleum 
 
 pratense. St. Timothy, 311. 
 
 23. Tansy, common, Tanaceium vulgare. St. 
 
 Philip Beniti, 1285. 
 
 24. Sunflower, tall, Helianthus nnnuus. St. Bar¬ 
 
 tholomew, apostle. 
 
 25. Sunflower, perennial, Helianthus multijlorus. 
 
 St. Louis, king of France, 1270. 
 
 26. Amaryllis, banded, Amaryllis vitata. St. 
 
 Zephyrinus, Pope, 219. 
 
 27. Hawkweed, hedge, Hieracium umbellatum. 
 
 St. Caesarius, archbishop of Arles, 542. 
 
 28. Golden rod, Solidago, Virga aurea. St. Au¬ 
 
 gustine, bishop, 430. 
 
 29. Hollyhock, yellow, Althea Jlava. St. Sabi- 
 
 nus, king, about 697. 
 
 30. Lily, Guernsey, Amaryllis sarniensis. St. 
 
 Rose of Lima, 1617. 
 
 31. Pheasant’s eye, Adonis autumnalis. St. Ray- 
 
 mund Nonnatus, 1240. 
 
 15 * 
 
346 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 SEPTEMBER. 
 
 1. Orpine, or Livelong, great, Sedurn telephium. 
 
 St. Giles, patron of beggars and cripples. 
 Born at Athens; abbot of Nismes, in 
 France; died, 750. 
 
 2. Golden rod, Solidago. St. Margaret, thir¬ 
 
 teenth century. 
 
 3. Flea-bane, common yellow, Inula dysente- 
 
 rica. St. Simeon Stylites, the younger, 
 592. 
 
 4. Soapwort, pale pink, Saponaria officinalis. 
 
 St. Rosalia, 1160. 
 
 5. Mushroom, or champignon, Agaricus cam- 
 
 pestris. St. Laurence Justinian, first pa¬ 
 triarch of Venice, 1455. 
 
 6. Dandelion, Leontodon autumnalis. St. Pam- 
 
 bo, of Nitria, 385. 
 
 7. Starwort, golden, A sty solidaginoides. St. 
 
 Cloud, 560. 
 
 8. Starwort, Italian blue, Aster amellus. St. 
 
 Adrian, 306. 
 
 9. Golden rod, Canadian, Solidago canadensis. 
 
 St. Omer, 607. 
 
 10. Crocus, autumnal, Crocus autumnalis. St. 
 Pulcheria, empress, 453. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 347 
 
 11. Meadow Saffron, variegated, Coldiicum varie- 
 
 gatum. St. Hyacinthus, 257. 
 
 12. Passion-flower, semilunar, Passiflora pel- 
 
 tata. St. Earnswith, abbess, seventh cen¬ 
 tury. 
 
 13. Crocus, officinal, Crocus sativus. St. Eulo- 
 
 gius, patriarch of Alexandria, 608. 
 
 14. Passion flower, blue, Passiflora carulea. Ex¬ 
 
 altation of the Holy Cross, 629. 
 
 15. Saffron, Byzantine, Coldiicum Byzanticum. 
 
 St. Nicetas, fourth century. 
 
 16. Starwort, sea-blue, Aster tripolium. St. Edi- 
 
 tha, 984. 
 
 17. Mallow, narrow-leafed, Malva angustifolia. 
 
 St. Lambert, bishop, 709. 
 
 18. Starwort, pendulous, Aster pendulus. St- 
 
 Thomas, archbishop of Valencia, 1555. 
 
 19. Scabius, Devil’s bit, Scabiosa succisa. St. 
 
 Lucy, 1090. 
 
 20. Meadow Saffron, common, Coldiicum autum- 
 
 nale. St. Eustachius. 
 
 21. Passion-flower, fringed-leafed, variegated, 
 
 Passiflora ciliata. St. Matthew, the Evan¬ 
 gelist. 
 
 22. Boletus, tree, Boletus arboreus. St. Maurice, 
 
 fourth century. 
 
348 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 23. Starwort, white bushy, Aster duinosus. St. 
 
 Thecla, first century. 
 
 24. Fungus, Agaricus fimetarius. St. Gerard, 
 
 bishop, 1046. 
 
 25. Boletus, great, order Fungi, Boletus bovinus. 
 
 St. Ceolfrid, abbot, 716. 
 
 26. Golden rod, great, Solidago gigantea. St. 
 
 Justina, 304. 
 
 27. Starwort, white small-leafed N. American, 
 
 Aster multiflorus. St. Dclphina, 1323. 
 
 28. Golden rod, evergreen, Solidago sempervirens. 
 
 St. Eustochium, 419. 
 
 29. Michaelmas Daisy, Aster Tradescanli. St. 
 
 Michael and all Angels. 
 
 30. Amaryllis, golden, Amaryllis aurea. St. 
 
 Jerome, 420. 
 
 OCTOBER. 
 
 1. Amaryllis, lowly, Amaryllis humilis. St. Re- 
 
 migius, bishop of Rheims, 533. 
 
 2. Soapwort, Saponaria officinalis. Feast of the 
 
 holy guardian Angels. 
 
 3. Helenium, downy, Helenium pubescens. St. 
 
 Dionysius, the Areopagite, 51. 
 
 4. Southernwood, dwarf, Artemisia abrota- 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 349 
 
 num. St. Francis of Assisi, founder of the 
 order of Franciscans, 1226. 
 
 5. Chamomile, starlike, a fungus, Boltonia 
 
 asteroides. St. Placidus, 546. 
 
 6. Feverfew, creeping-rooted, Pyrethrum sero- 
 
 tinum. St. Bruno, founder of the Car¬ 
 thusian order, 1101. 
 
 7. Chrysanthemum, Indian, Chrysanthemum 
 
 , indicum. St. Mark, Pope, 336. 
 
 8. Maudlin, sweet, Achillea ageraturn. St. 
 
 Bridget, 1373. 
 
 9. Mushroom, milky, Agaricus laclifluus acris, 
 
 or A. Listen. St. Denys, patron saint 
 of France. 
 
 10. Aletris, Cape waved-leafed, Alctris viridi- 
 
 folia. St. Francis Borgia, 1572. 
 
 11. Holly, common Ilex aquifolium. St. Ethel- 
 
 burga, 664. 
 
 12. Fleabane, wavy, Inula undulata. St. Wil¬ 
 
 fred, bishop ofYork, 709. 
 
 13. Helenium, yellow smooth, Helenium autum- 
 
 nale. St. Edward, King and Confessor, 1066. 
 
 14. Fleabane, Indian, Inula indica. St. Calix- 
 
 tus, Pope, 222. 
 
 15. Sweet Sultan, purple, Centaurea moschata. 
 
 St. Teresa, 1582. 
 
350 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 16. Harrow, Achillea millefolium. St. Gall, 
 
 abbot, 646. 
 
 17. Sunflower, dwarf, Helianthus indicus. St. 
 
 Anstrudis, '668. 
 
 18. Mushroom, Agaricus Jloccosus. St. Luke, 
 
 Evangelist, 63. 
 
 19. Tick-seed, perennial, Coreopsis procera. St. 
 
 Frideswitb, patroness of Oxford, eighth 
 century. 
 
 20. Sweet Sultan, yellow, Centaurea suaveolens. 
 
 St. Artemius, 362. 
 
 21. Silphium, hairy-stalked, Silphium asteris- 
 
 cus. St. Ursula, fifth century. \ 
 
 22. Silphium, rough three-leafed Silphium tri- 
 
 foliatum. St. Nunilo, 840. 
 
 23. Starwort, slender-stalked, Aster junceus. 
 
 St. Theodoret, 362. 
 
 24. Starwort, Carolina, Aster■ carolinus jlexu- 
 
 osus. St. Proclus, archbishop of Con¬ 
 stantinople, 447. 
 
 25. Starwort, fleabane, Aster Conizoides. St. 
 
 Crispin, 287. 
 
 Starwort, meagre, Aster miser. St. Cris- 
 pinian, 287.—These were brothers and 
 martyrs, shoemakers, and patrons of that 
 art. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 351 
 
 26. Golden-rod, late-flowered, Solidago petiolaris. 
 
 St. Evaristus, Pope, 112. 
 
 27. Starwort, floribund, Aster Jloribundus. St. 
 
 Frumentius, apostle of Ethiopa, fourth 
 century. 
 
 28. Chrysanthemum, late-flowering- creeping, 
 
 Chrysserotinum, St. Simon, Apostle, the 
 Zealot. 
 
 Starwort, scattered, Aster passiflorus. St. 
 Jude, Apostle. 
 
 29. Narcissus, green autumnal, Narcissus viridi- 
 
 Jlorus. St. Narcissus, bishop of Jeru¬ 
 salem, second century. 
 
 30. Mushroom, mixen, Agaricus fimetarius. St. 
 
 Marcellus, the centurion, 298. 
 
 31. Tick-seed, fennel-leafed, Coreopsis ferula- 
 
 folia. St. Quintin, 287. 
 
 NOVEMBER. 
 
 1. Laurustinus, Laurustinus sempervirens. St. 
 
 Fortunatus. 
 
 2. Cherry, winter, Physalis. St. Marcian, 387. 
 
 3. Primrose, Primula vulgaris. St. Flour, 
 
 389. 
 
 4. Strawberry tree, Arbutus. St. Brinstan, 
 
 bishop of Winchester, 931. 
 
352 
 
 CALENDAR OP FLOWERS. 
 
 5. Cherry, common winter, Physalis alkakengi. 
 
 St. Bertflle, abbess of Chelles, 692. 
 
 6. Yew-tree, common, Taxus baccata. St, 
 
 Leonard, sixth century. 
 
 7. Furcrma, Furcrcea gigantea. St. Willebord, 
 
 first bishop of Utrecht, 738. 
 
 8. Aletris, Cape, Veltheimia. The four crown¬ 
 
 ed Brothers, martyrs, 304. 
 
 9. Aletris, glaucous-leafed, Veltheimia glauca. 
 
 St. John Lateran. 
 
 10. Fir, Scotch, Pinus sylvestris. St. Nympha, 
 
 fifth century. 
 
 11. Pine, Weymouth, Pinus stnobus. St. Mar¬ 
 
 tin, bishop, 397. 
 
 12. Aloe, great orange-flowering, Veltheimia , 
 
 or Aletris uvaria. St. Nilus, 390. 
 
 13. Bay, Laurus poetica. St. Homobonus, 
 
 1197. 
 
 14. Laurel, Portugal, Cerasus lusitanica. St. 
 
 Lawrence, archbishop of Dublin, 1180. 
 
 15. Colt’s-foot, sweet-scented, Tussilago fra - 
 
 grans. St. Gertrude, abbess, 1292. 
 
 16. Hemp, African bow-string, Sanseviera gui- 
 
 neensis. St. Edmund, archbishop of 
 Canterbury, 1242. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 353 
 
 17. Stramony, or Thorn-apple tree, Datura 
 
 arborea. St. Gregory Thaumaturgus, 
 bishop, 270. 
 
 18. Passion-flower, notched-leafed, Passiflora 
 
 serratifolia. Dedication of the Churches 
 of St. Peter and St. Paul at Rome. 
 
 19. Passion-flower, apple-fruited, Passiflora 
 
 maliformis. St. Elizabeth of Hungary, 
 1231. 
 
 20. Stapelia, red, Stapelia rubra. St. Edmund, 
 
 King and martyr, 870. 
 
 21. Sorrel, wood, Oxalis grandiflora. Present¬ 
 
 ation of the Virgin Mary. 
 
 22. Sorrel, wood, tube-flowered, Oxalis tubiflora. 
 
 St. Cecilia, martyr and patroness of music, 
 particularly of sacred music ; supposed to 
 be the inventress of the organ, 230. 
 
 23. Sorrel, convex, Oxalis convexula. St. Cle¬ 
 
 ment, Pope, 100. 
 
 24. Stapelia, stari'y, Stapelia radiata. St. John 
 
 of the Cross, 1591. 
 
 25i Butterbur, sweet, Tussilago fragrans. St. 
 Catherine, patroness of spinsters, third 
 century. 
 
 26. Sorrel, linear, Oxalis linearis. St. Conrad, 
 bishop of Constance, 976. 
 
354 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 27. Sorrel, lupine-leafed. Oxalis lupinifolia. St. 
 
 Virgin, bishop of Salzburg, 784. 
 
 28. Stapelia, variegated, Slapelia variegata. St. 
 
 Stephen the younger, 764. 
 
 29. Sphenogyne, S', pilijlora. St. Saturninus, 
 
 bishop, 257. 
 
 30. Sorrel, three-coloured, Oxalis tricolor. St. 
 
 Sapor, bishop. 
 
 DECEMBER. 
 
 1. Stapelia, dark, S. pulla , St. Eligius, bishop of 
 
 Noyon, 659. 
 
 2. Geodorum, lemon, Geodorum citrinum. St. 
 
 Bibiania, 363. 
 
 3. Indian tree, Euphorbia tirucalle. St. Francis 
 
 Xavier, 1552. 
 
 4. Gooseberry, Barbadoes, Cactus pereskia. 
 
 St. Chrysologus, 450. 
 
 5. Hibiscus, long-stalked, H. pedunculaius. St. 
 
 Crispina, 304. 
 
 6. Heath, nest-flowered, Erica nudiflora. St. 
 
 Nicholas, archbishop of Myra, 342. 
 
 7. Achania, hairy, Achania pilosa. St. Am¬ 
 
 brose, 397. 
 
 8. Arbor Vitae, American, Thuja occidentalis. 
 
 Blessed Virgin Mary. 
 
CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 355 
 
 9. Spruce, Corsican, Pinus laricio. St. Leo- 
 cadia, 304. 
 
 10. Cypress, Portugal, Cupressus pendula. St. 
 
 Eulalia. 
 
 11. Pine Aleppo, Pinus halepensis. St. Damas¬ 
 
 cus, Pope, 384. 
 
 12. Heath, crowded, Erica abietina. St. Ead- 
 
 burga, 751. 
 
 13. Arbor Vitae, African, Thuja cupressoides. 
 
 St. Lucy, martyr, of Syracuse, 304. 
 
 14. Pine, swamp, Pinuspalustris. St. Spiridion, 
 
 archbishop, 348. 
 
 15. Pine, pitch, Pinus resinosa. St. Florence, 
 
 abbot. 
 
 16. Arbor Vitae, Chinese, Thuja orientalis. St. 
 
 Adelaide, empress, 999. 
 
 17. Cedar, white, Cupressus thyoides. St. Olym¬ 
 
 pias, 410. 
 
 18. Cypress, New Holland, Cupressus australis. 
 
 St. Winebald, 760. 
 
 19. Heath, two-coloured, Erica bicolor. St. 
 
 Samthana, abbess, 738. 
 
 20. Stone-pine, Pinus pinea. St. Philogonius, 
 
 bishop of Antioch, 322. 
 
 21. Sparrow-wort, Erica passerina. St. Thomas, 
 
 apostle. 
 
356 
 
 CALENDAR OF FLOWERS. 
 
 22. Heath, pellucid, Erica pellucida. St. Cyril, 
 
 881. 
 
 23. Cedar of Lebanon, Pinus cedrus. St. Vic¬ 
 
 toria, 250. 
 
 24. Pine, frankincence, Pinus tceda. Sts. Thra- 
 
 silla and Emiliana. 
 
 25. Holly, Ilex aculeata baccifera. Nativity of 
 
 our Saviour. 
 
 26. Heath, purple, Erica purpurea. St. Ste¬ 
 
 phen, first martyr. 
 
 27. Heath, flame, Erica Jlammea. St. John, 
 
 the Evangelist. 
 
 28. Heath, bloody-flowered, Erica crucnta. The 
 
 Holy Innocents, who suffered from Herod’s 
 cruelty. 
 
 29. Heath, Erica genistoplia. St. Thomas, 
 
 archbishop of Canterbury, 1170. 
 
 30. Ponthieva, glandular, Ponthiem glandulosa. 
 
 St. Anysia, 304. 
 
 31. There is no flower appropriated to this day. 
 
INDEX. 
 
 Acacia, J57. 
 
 -, rose, 270. 
 
 Acanthus, 102 
 Achillea millefolia, 30G. 
 Adonis, Flos. 146. 
 Agrimony, 303. 
 Almond-tree, 41. 
 
 Aloe, 234. 
 
 Amaranth. 226, 281. 
 Amaryllis, 292. 
 Anemone, 275. 
 
 —-, field, 298. 
 
 Angelica, 284. 
 
 Angrec, 297. 
 
 Apple blossom, 291. 
 Ash-tree, 278. 
 
 Asphodel, 289. 
 
 Aster, China, 187, 261. 
 Autumn, 179. 
 
 Balm of Gilead, 268. 
 
 -, gentle, 285. 
 
 Balsam, 281. 
 
 Barberry, 299. 
 
 Basil, 278. 
 
 Beech, 394. 
 
 Bilberry, 304. 
 Bladder.nut, 276. 
 
 Borage, 265. 
 
 Box-tree, 300. 
 
 Bramble, 271. 
 
 Broom, 109, 262. 
 Buck-bean, 101. 
 
 Bugloss, 82. 
 
 Bulrush, 282. 
 
 Burdock, 282. 
 
 Buttercup, 284. 
 
 Cactus, Virginia, 280. 
 Calendar of Flowers, 323. 
 Canterbury Bell, 267. 
 Catchfly, 299. 
 Champignon, 301. 
 Cherry-tree, 277. 
 Chesnut-tree, 270. 
 Chicory, 275. 
 
 Cinquefoil, 264. 
 
 Circaea, 300. 
 
 Clematis, 262. 
 
 Clot Bur, 297. 
 
 Clove-tree, 269. 
 Columbine, 274. 
 Convolvulus, night, 290. 
 Coriander, 279. 
 
 Corn, 171. 
 
 Corn-bottle, 271. 
 
358 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Cornel Cherry-tree, 245. 
 Cowslip, American, 308. 
 Cress, 297. 
 
 Crown Imperial, 241. 
 Cruscuta, 287. 
 
 Cypress, 210. 
 
 Daffodil, 63. 
 
 Daisy, 51. 
 
 -, garden, 281. 
 
 -, wild, 281. 
 
 Dandelion, 164. 
 
 Day Lily, yellow, 175. 
 Dictionary of the Language 
 of flowers, 261. 
 
 -Flowers, with 
 
 their emblematic signi¬ 
 fications, 311. 
 
 Dittany, 266. 
 
 Dock, patience, 230. 
 Dodder, 287. 
 
 Ebony-tree, 264. 
 
 Eglantine, 291. 
 
 Fraxinella, 273. 
 
 Fuller’s Teasel, 288. 
 
 Geranium,pencilled leaf, 287.^ 
 
 -, rose-scented, 292. 
 
 -, scarlet, 210. 
 
 —, sorrowful, 287. 
 
 Grass, 306. 
 
 Hawthorn, 67. 
 
 Hazel, 255. 
 
 Heart’s ease, 56. 
 
 Heath, 91. 
 
 Helenium, 303. 
 
 Heliotrope, Peruvian, 192. 
 Hepatica, 267. 
 
 Holly, 249. -M™ 
 
 Hollyhock, 200. 
 Honeysuckle, 107. 
 
 Hop, 284. 
 
 Hornbeam, 290. 
 Horse-chesnut, 77. 
 Hortensia, 307. 
 
 Hyacinth, 276. 
 
 M' 
 
 Fennel, 301. Ice-plant, 309. 
 
 Fig, 286. Introduction, 9. 
 
 Fir-tree, 270. Ipomrea, 280. 
 
 Flax, 280. Iris, 288. 
 
 Flower-de-Luce, 273. Ivy, 236. 
 
 Flowers, Calendar of, 317. 
 
 -Dictionary of the Jasmine, 132. 
 
 Language of, 261.-, Carolina, 161. 
 
 -,-, with-, Indian, 280. 
 
 their emblematic signi- Jonquil, 271. 
 fications, 311 Juniper, 258. 
 
 Flower-writing, illustra¬ 
 tion of, 260. Language of Flowers, Dic- 
 
 Forget-Me-Not, 183. tionary of, 261. 
 
INDEX, 
 
 359 
 
 Larch, 2G5. 
 
 Larkspur, 286. 
 
 Laurel, 247. 
 
 Laurustinus, 244. 
 Lavender, 288. 
 
 Leaves, Bead, 232. 
 
 Lilac, 79. 
 
 -, white, 310. 
 
 Lily, 
 
 Lily of the Valley, 85. 
 Linden-tree, 94. 
 Liverwort, 267. 
 
 London Pride, 275. 
 
 Lotus, 270. 
 
 Lucern, 106. 
 
 Madder, 266. 
 
 Maiden Hair, 203. 
 Mallow, 145. 
 
 Manchineel tree, 272. 
 Mandrake, 294. 
 
 Maple, 295. 
 
 Marigold, 153. 
 
 -, prophetic, 291. 
 
 -and Cypress, 
 
 269. 
 
 Marvel of Peru, 219. 
 Meadow Saffron, 204. 
 Meadowsweet, 306. 
 Mezeron, 38. 
 
 Mignonette, 156. 
 Milkwort, 279. 
 
 Misletoe, 238. 
 
 Moonwort, 274. 
 
 Moss, 241. 
 
 Mulberry-tree, black, 280. 
 
 -, white, 307. 
 
 Musk-plant, 307. 
 Myrobolan, 293. 
 
 Myrtle, 104. 
 
 Narcissus. 63. 
 
 Nettle, 267. 
 
 Nightshade, bitter-sweet, 
 305. 
 
 -, Enchanter’s, 300. 
 
 Nosegay, 276. 
 
 Oak, 222. 
 
 Olive, 290. 
 
 Ophrys spider, 299. 
 Orange-flower, 266. 
 
 -tree, 277. 
 
 Orchis, bee, 271. 
 
 Parsley, 229. 
 
 Passion Flower, 271. 
 Peppermint, 306. 
 Periwinkle, 89. 
 
 Pineapple, 308. 
 
 Pink, 13.7. 
 
 -, yellow, 269. 
 
 Plane-tree, 277. 
 
 Plum-tree, 285. 
 
 -, wild, 282. 
 
 Poplar, black, 267. 
 
 -, white, 304. 
 
 Poppy, 167, 299. 
 
 -, wild, 267. 
 
 Potato, 264. 
 
 Primrose, 39. 
 
 -, large flowered 
 
 Evening, 281. 
 
 Privet, 88. 
 
 Quince, 303. 
 
 Ranunculus, 309. 
 
 Reeds, 289. 
 
 Rose, 114. 
 
 -, Hundred-leaved, 277. 
 
360 
 
 INDEX. 
 
 Rose, Monthly, 263. 
 
 -, Musk, 263. 
 
 -, single, 298. 
 
 -, white, 298. 
 
 -, withered, 263. 
 
 -, yellow, 283. 
 
 Rosebud, 277. 
 
 -, white, 279. 
 
 Rosemary, 310. 
 
 Rue, wild, 289. 
 
 Rush, 270. 
 
 Saffron, 264. 
 
 Sage, 271. 
 
 Sainfoin, shaking, 262. 
 St. John’s wort, 130. 
 Sardonia, 284. 
 
 Sensitive Plant, 176. 
 Snapdragon, 292. 
 Snowdrop, 36. 
 
 Sorrel, wood, 285. 
 Speedwell, 272. 
 Spindle-tree, 309. 
 Spring, 35. 
 
 Star of Bethlehem, 294. 
 Stock, 150. 
 
 -, Ten-week, 293. 
 
 Stonecrop, 304. 
 
 Straw, broken, 183, 298. 
 
 -whole, 183, 306. 
 
 Strawberry, 127. 
 Summer, 112. 
 Sunflower, 195. 
 
 Sweet Sultan, 278, 
 
 Sweet William, 273. 
 Sycamore, 268. 
 
 Syringa. 288. 
 
 Tansey, wild, 280. 
 
 Tendrils of climbing plants, 
 304. 
 
 Thistle, 301. 
 
 Thorn-apple, 159 
 Thrift, 302. 
 
 Thyme, 99. 
 
 Tremella Nostoc, 296. 
 Truffle, 301. 
 
 Tuberose, 190. 
 
 Tulip, 71. 
 
 Tussilage, Sweet-scented, 
 208. 
 
 Valerian, 131, 261. 
 
 -, Greek, 297. 
 
 Venus’s Looking-glass, 273. 
 Veronica, 272. 
 
 Vervain, 142. 
 
 Vine, 284. 
 
 V olet, 48. 
 
 -, white, 266. 
 
 Wallflower, 59. 
 
 Walnut, 300. 
 
 Whortleberry, 304. 
 
 Willow, weeping, 44. 
 Winter, 231. 
 
 Wormwood, 261. 
 
 Yew, 252. 
 

 I 
 
 K ■ 
 
 4 
 

 I 
 
 K ■ 
 
 4