The Londonderry sifter. (South Londonderry, Vt.) 1883-19??, 1884-10-09
MYSTERY OF FLOWERS.
Curious Studies in Floral
Beauty.
Significance Of Some Flowers--Tns Origin
of Familiar Line.

The name of the peony is derived
from Peon, celebrated Greek physi-
clan, who taught the Greeks that this
pretty flower was of divine origin, en-
anating from the light of the moon,
and valuable cure, therefore, for cpl
lepsy, which was supposed to be a
moonstruck malady. The peony was
thought to have power over the winds,
to protect the harvest from storms,
and to avert tempests.
The floral kingdom furnishes plants
which flower unfailingly on certain
days, and superstition has seized on
this fact and associated some with the
qualities of great persons who hap
pened to be born on tine day they plant
flowers. The cyclamon opens in
Southern Europe on st. Romoald's
Day, and is dedicated to this romantic
recluse, who abandoned noble career
for monastery, because he witnessed
his father kill kinsman in a duel.
The rose bay willow herb, the French
called st. Anthony's fire, because of
its red hue. and its having appeared
first in the eleventh century, when the
plague of erysipelas was raging, and
accord to it the powers of intercession
with disease which its patron, st. An
thony, was believed to possess.
The early Christians, attracted to
some flowers by their peculiar beauty,
gathered number of these into her.
barium, and dedicated them to the Vir-
gin Mary. Among these are the
snowdrop, the lily of the valley, white
daffodil, white rose, white hyacinth,
white clematis, lady's-fnger, lady's-
slipper, lady's-glove, marigold, lady's-
mantle, ETC., to all of which supersti-
tion attached qualities of purity and
goodness, and conferred these upon the
wearer of any of the symbolical flow
ers. The common hollyhock is cor
ruption of holy oak. and is reverenced
in parts of rural England, where tradi-
tions percolate through centuries, be-
cause crusaders brought it from the
Holy Land. The modest, shrinking
blue bell is, despite these most oppo-
site qualities, a plant of war in the
superstitious belief of the same people
1t is dedicated to ST. George, their
patron saint. By the French the
white variety Of this plant is, in Curl
/ Gus contrast, associated with the peace
full character of nun, and is called la
religieuSe deS champs.
The familiar line "balm of Gilead,"
is the name of plant whose nearest
summer relation is our acacia. In the
earliest ages it was celebrated by Pliny,
Strabo, Tacitus and Justin, not alone
for it's medicinal qualities, but the
lofty spirit and dignity its meaning
was supposed to increase. The Queen
of Sheba brought it to King Solomon,
and Cleopatra planted one species Of it
near Matrara, which ripened into a
shrub celebrated by travellers for ages
afterwards. The Eastern Christians
believed the plant would grow only
under the care of a Christian garden
er, and that were the bark incised by
any instrument Of metal, the flow of
balsam would be corrupt. Under
their fostering care, the plant grew as
large as a fir tree, and such was the re-
spect that it exerted that when Chris
tianity spread into European courts
the balm of Gilead came to be min
gled in the oil used at the coronation
Of monarchs. The Coptic Christians
had a tradition that when the Holy
Family were leaving Egypt to return
to Judea, they stopped to rest at Mata
ra and went from house to house beg
ging a cup Of water, and were every
where refused. Faint with thirst and
sorrow the Virgin Mary sat down
under balm of Gilead tree, and i'm
mediately fountain sprang up beside
her, and the tree rustled its leaves and
famed gentle breeze as the Mother
and Child drank of the water and rest
| Ocean.