The San Francisco call., 1910-09-04

FLOWER LORE

people who ever came near her abode.
II was said that she had the power OF
changing human beings into animals,
birds or plants, and that she could tax
TO oil things that lived in the forest IN
their own language. She was so old
that she was bent almost double, and
her face was wrinkled, but her eyes
were bright and seemed to see every
thing. She sat all day in the door OF
her hut weaving mats and baskets, but
no one ever knew what she did with
them.
one day late In the summer two chill
dren were seen wandering along the
shore of the lake. They skipped from
stone to stone and gathered the flowers
that grew almost to the water 3 euSe.
At last they sat down to rest. One OF
them had beautiful golden hair, ana
her companion, who had soft, deep pIue
ewes that looked like stars, called her
Goldenhair. They had heard OF the In
dian and her magical powers and as
they sat by the lake they talked OF
what they would choose to be IL she
should try her spells upon them.
Goldenhair wished to be something
that would make every one VINO saw
IL happy and cheerful, while timid nt-
tie StRr-eye wished that she mlght al
ways be near her friend.
At last the sun began to sink into the
west The wind stirred among the tree
tops and every now and then the
acorns fell with noise like rain drops
and the little girls began to get
frightened. They saw the hut In the
distance and holding each others hands
they ran toward It, AS they drew
near the old woman worked faster
than ever and pretended that she did
not see them. The children came quite
close to her and Goldenhair said:
Please, can you tell me where the
old woman lives who can make us
whatever we wished to be?"
The Indian, looking up, said:
Perhaps can. What do you want
of herr"
IT want" said the child, ito ask her
to make me into something that Will
please everybody. And Star-eye wants
to be always near to me-"
Come In" said the crone, "and sit
down. I will give you each cake
made of Indian corn, and when you
have eaten it we will talk about your
wishes"
The little girls were half afraid, but
they did not like to disobey, so they
went into the hut and sat down to eat
their cake.
That was long time ago, and no
one has ever seen those children since,
but the next morning there were two
new wild flowers blossoming In the
fields and on the prairies, and the
mountainsides; one was like bright
yellow plume that waved in the wind
and glowed like gold in the sunshine,
and the other was little starry purple
flower. and the two are never very far
apart and they are called goldenrod
and aster.
THE FLOWER IN LITERATURE
AS in legendary lore, so in literature,
tributes to the goldenrod are confined
almost entirely to American writer's,
but it lacks not for eulogy. Every time
the national flower discussion is re-
newed, much is written, both in prose
and poetry, in appreciation OF its
beauty, and the great among us have
not deemed it unworthy of their best
efforts. Longfellow, Whittier, Bryant,
Lowell and Bayard Taylor have all
helped to swell the chorus of love and
praise of the flower. Celia Thaxter
Elaine Goodale, Lucy Larcom and Helen
Hunt have added their words Of af-
fection, and one who has recently laid
down his pen, and of whom it has been
said that he was our unofficial poet
laureate" has written thus of the gold
enrod:
Grows a weed
More richly here beside our mellow seas
That is the autumn's harbinger and pride,
When fades the cardinal flower, whose red
heart bloom
CLOVIS like living coal upon the green
OF the midsummer meadows, then how bright
How deepening bright like mounting flame doth
v burn.
The Godcnrod upon thousand hills,
This is the auumn's flower. and to my soul
4 token fresh OF beauty and OF life,
Richard Watson Glider.
IT SP0MGES