The morning news., 1889-05-20
THE NATIONAL FLOWER.
WHAT SHOULD BE THE EMBLEM
ATTIC BLOSSOM OF AMERICA?

ATTIC BLOSSOM OF AMERICA
The Country Has a Flag and Bird,
Why Not Posyp-A Question Which
Many Women are Discussing Since
They Cheered Themselves Hoarse at
the Centennial.
| Copyright secured.
NEW YORK May 18.-Since Mrs. Harri-
son had the burr OAK leaf agured on the
| silk from which was made her gown for
the inaugural ball. and more especially since
| the centennial celebration of Washington's
! inaugu alton has quickensd the fesling of
nationality, the question, why have we not
an enlbematic flower, has begun to be dis
cussed among women. There are the roses
of England, the thistle Of Scotland, the
| shamrock of Ireland, the fuer de us Of
France, aud the violet OF the followers Of
| N poleon, the mignonette Of Saxony, the
| linden beloved Of Prussians, the pomegran-
ate of Spain, the lotus Of Egypt, and the
| humble leek of Wales Is there in this
broad country any flower or plant which is
| in any way entitled TO represent US! Have
we a posy or bit of green which is strongly
marked and may stand for our bign ess and
| SGIGLlSOu, Oul HlSu lOpCS Ghu nbuIuJ
character of our people? Is there any bloom
which is beautiful, which we all love and
| which could be wora as B9ac consheld'S
| friends wear the primrose, as the bride
wears the myrtle and the orange, as the vic
| tor used TO wear the laurel, for bit of SEN
timelt, for pride d loyalty9 If we have
a flag and a bird, why not a national
flowers
"The chrysanthemumm Mrs Margaret
| f. Sangster the new editor of Hdrper's
Bdzdr, was looking up at the same pictures
which used to hang before the eyes of Miss
Mary l.. B)oth, as she made the sugges-
tion.
"You see," she said 81 have changed
nothing. Il seemed s9crlege at first to sit
in her chair impossible to move har belong
ings. A woman in time must make a room
look more or less like herself. but have not
begun to alter this ones complexion.
"A national flower? The country Is too
large, and the clements of its civilization
are to mixed to MAKE it an easy task TO iu-
dicate any boom which could be accepted
as efnblematic or representative. Could any
single type or combination of types stand
for sucn diversity The mignonette would
be my choice personally, but that is too
modest for this land of booms. | do not
know flower moro beautiful than the
jasmine, which garlands the south with its
yellow blossoms, but no flower would meet
with general approval which is e2uiar to
a section. The golden rod has some things
to recommend it, but an lncliued to pin
my faith to the chrysanthe mum. 1t is a
beautiful flower and gloriously brave one,
Wanting its banners IN the very faco of
Jack Frost 1t is a vigorous flower and a
noble one, and it belongs to the asterS,
which grow everywhere, and whose cherry
autumn colors brighten the landscape. You
may count me for the chrY Ysanthemum."
The wild rose"
N
president of Mount Holyoke, the youngest
woman'S college rising on the foundations
of the Oldest seminary for girls in New
England, hesitate a minute bstween the
five petalled flower of the briar and tie
fringed gentian.
The gantian," caressiny all the while a
rose in her but onhole, 'the ge titan is the
most beautiful of our native wild flowers,
but it is comparatively rare and in many
sections unknown. The wild rosa, the pink,
single rose, is well defined ia
its characteristics, delicate in color, uncon-
ventional and extremely graceful II is a
strong luxuriant, almost riotus grower,
and yet not easily transplanted. 1t would
lend itself to decorative purposes, could be
painted or chiseled or carved. 1t gives out
its fragrance generously, and yet it has
thorns for too rude hand. 1t is unlike the
red and white roses OF England, free vir-
gin growth of our own soil"
) Mrs. Wilcox will choose the carnation," ="
said friend Of the poetess of passion. 'She
and the Glove pinks are inseparable,n but
Ella Wheeler eSchewed the deep-hearted,
the senSuously fragrant, in favor OF the
SIMPLE the sunny, the everyday.
"lhe daisy-it grows alike in every state
and is priced by rich and poor"
Master Tommy Russell, in a gorgeous
blue jersey Fauntleroy suit with cheeks al
most as ruddy as his scarlet sash, cama
bouncing out of Mrs. Frank Leslie's Office
in the new Arkell building, looking like the
best of national flowers himself, healthy,
happy American child. "a national fiswer!'
quiered Mrs Leslie. Isn't that rather
poetic idea! | couldn't give you really
typical flower without consideration. For
lack Of that | must fall back on loyalty to
my own state, and propose the magnolia,
beloved of Louisana. 1t is q stately, mag
niflcent flower, large, snowy, command az
and yet fragrant | do not know a more
beautiful sight than a magnolia tree with
its profuson OF closely massed bloom It's
a southern flower, and yet there are mag
noias in the Massachusetts, swamps, /
hear.
"Or, STAY, | have considered. Set me
down as advocating the laurel-0ur laurel
which grows only IN America and which
flourishes in every section OF our country
from Maine to Florida, aud from Massa-
chuSettS to California. The laurels are green
even as they fall. The laurel for Ameri-
cans!'
why not the pansyF' asked Mrs. Liisn
W. Belts, pleasantly known by her work
on the Christian Union. at is not wild
flower but does tho rapid peopling, the hur-
ried, almost forced civilization of our coli
tinent call for a wild flo Ser for its emblem9
We have here a minging of all the peoples
of the globe our flower may 10 something
which has como over seas with us rather
than a wild, natural growth, provided we
have made it. after getting it here, pecu-
liarly our owl. This is the case with the
| paasy. American florists have brought it
to a perfection nowhere else attained. They
have made it absolutely plastic in their
hands They can grow pan les of any Sizs,
any color, can vary the flower indefip-
itey; the pauSy, like men and women, at
taius its highest development on American
soil Other nations do not appreciate it.
The Norwegians call it the stepmother
flower likening the large, gold fiecked
petal TO the stepmother, the two bright but
less gorgeous petals on each side of it to her
| own daughters and TIE other tive humber
| petals, farther removed, to the s.epchildreu.
All Americans love the passy, and in
every garden bed you find it blossoming in
the spring. Even in the little apronful Of
ground in front of a dingy city tenement,
or in the window box, or the roof garden
the worker who has no other flower tends
! tho Wa noya odOnfad II heartily y