The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1907-03-31

to their lore. was once a handsome
young god who became so lost in adj
miration of his own shadow that he
cruelty sighted the affections OF the
fair Echo As a punishment for this
crime he was changed into a narcissus,
the flower of self-love. Shakespeare
allUdes to another romantic legend i'm
his Winters Tale" The narcissus
was said TO have been the flower that
the daughter Of Ceres was gathering
when she was carried off by Pluto of
| Internal region fame. The mighty
! gOddesSes also chose it for their an
cient coronet, and it was a highly i'm
fpOrtant factor in the customs of Greek
life. The Chinese, too, have a great
fancy for this flower. They use it I'm
many Of their sacred ceremonies, and
every family in the mikado's realm
takes great pride in having a plant in
full bloom at the new, year.
< X
Love and jealousy played leading
parts in the story of the birth of the
hyacinth, another Oriental favorite.
There was 4 charming youth. Hya-
Cinthus by name who was much be-
| loved by Apollo and Zephyr. He pre-
ferred the warm. steady of affection of
the sun to the fitfuI love of the wind.
This made the passionate Zephyr wild
terrible revenge. While Apollo and
Hyacinthus were playing quoits, which
was a favOrite game with the gods,
Zephyr saw mis- awaited opportunity.
He made his rival the slayer of Hya-
cinthus by blowing the gods quot to-
ward the head of the youth. But while
the dying boy was held in the arms of
Apollo, he was transformed into the
fair, fragrant hyacinth. The flower
has always meant game, or play, be-
cause of this tale.
X X X
Every tradition associated with that
| peerless Easter flower, the iris, makes
| it a beauty of richest promise. 1t sig
nifies message, and because it grows
! in every part Of the world, it is a uni
versal message. The Greeks named it
| for that azure winged messenger of the
gods. the rainbow, but the Egyptians
| lay special claim TO the flower. 1t is
/ the plant spoked of in Exodus as being
/ the hiding place of the infant Moses
when he lay in the cradle of the rushes
/ on the rivers bosom. 1t may be that
! the flowers whispered to him then that
his destiny was to lead his people to
the promised land. The ancient Egyp-
tianS placed the iris on the brow of the
sphinx and on the scepters of their
mOndrchs, and among all the eastern
nations it has ever been the symbol of
| power Another land that highly hon
/ Ors it is France, for it is the veritable
| fieur-de-is thar figures on the arms of
| that country. But there is a most
beautiful legend that makes the iris a
| sacred flower as we'll as national en-
blem. The story tells that it was a
trembling, agonized witness of the cru
cihxion.
! When it heard the anguished cry.
| Ny God, my God, why hast thou for
| saken me2" il sobbed out tire VOW.
! "HenCefOrth 1 will peTpetually mourn
and lest man should ever lose sight of
this solemn hour, above my golden cha
lice will carry a veil of violet"
x = X
Ancient and important is the history
of the lily which was also high in favor
| with the old Egyptians, for it appears
prominently IN their hieroglyphics. Ac-
cOrding to a pretty legend when lilies
first grew on the earth, they were none
! of them pure white, but all of a lovely
yellow hue. Seaborn Aphrodite, in her
happy wanderings, suddenly appeared
before them wondrously fair and bright
and white as the foam of the waves
from wrich she sprang. The lilies trem-
bled before her beauty, and grew so
pale with jealousy that ever after they
blOsSOmed white. First the goddess
Juno chose it as her favorite flower.
and then passing to the Virgin Mary,
it was dedicated to the early Christian
church. The old Italian masters when
they pictured Gabriel bringing his
heavenly message to Mary, placed in
the angel herald's hand a branch of
snowy lilies and so gave ii the world
wide title 'Annunciation lily" Besides
being the chosen flower of the church,
it is also an imperial blossom. Away
back in the days of 104S Garcius, the
fourth king of Navarro, established the
Order of the Knights of St. Mary of the
4 Lily. and another Order of the Lily was
founded by Ferdinand of Aragon. Dun
dee carries lilies argent on it's arms,
and beautiful Florence claims the
GUeenly flower as its emblem.
But perhaps the sweetest legend of
the lily is one that is of Spanish origin.
The story is that a kind-bearted abbot,
plying a poor half-witted lad, took him
to dwell IL his monastery and tried to
give him religious instruction. The
boys clouded brain could neither I'M
derStand or remember the holy lore of
the monks, but all the brothers loved
him for his gentleness and patience.
They noticed that each evening when
his humble manual tasks for the day
were done. he would quietly slip away
to the church and spend hours on his
knees before the altar. Knowing that
their unfortunate charge could not re-
member the simplest form of prayer,
they watched and listened wondering.
over and over again he earnestly said,
Il believe in God, hope for God. 1 love
God One day they missed him and,
seeking, found him lying on the stones
of his cell with folded hands and the
kiss of peace upon his face. To a quiet
burial ground near Seville they carried
bin, and the good abbot had the words
he said at the altar cut on a rude cross
above his grave. Next morning one of
the monks went to the spot and found
blooming there the most beautiful flow
er he had ever seen. They opened the
grave and discovered that the root of
the first lily that ever grew on earth
was in the heart of the boy.
X X X
The bright little crocus that springs
up out of the chill soil of lawns and by
ways, often sticking its head through
holes in a coverlet of snow. to tell
passers-by He has risen. risen indeed. "