The Greenville journal. [volume] (Greenville, Ohio) 1850-1918, 1911-04-13

which are nVe spots or stains OF the
hue of blood, evidently setting forth
the FIVE wounds received by the Sa-
vior on the cross. The crown itself
is surrounded by kind of skein, OF a
violet color, the strands of which
number 72, answering to the number
of thorns with which, according to
tradition, our Lords crown was set.
And the leaves of the plant, abundant
and beautiful, are shaped like the
head of a lance or pike-referring no
doubt to the weapon that pierced the
sides of the Savior-while they are
marked beneath with round spots,
signifying the 80 pieces Of silver for
which Judas sold him"
Today this wonderful blossom is
comparatively familiar and is known
as the passion flower. Botanists call
it Passifiora incarmata. While its
peculiarities of structure are undeni-
ably interesting, there is nothing
about it that to the sane eye suggests
the miraculous.
Holy Ghost Orchid.
The same observation does not ap-
ply, however to another plant, far
more remarkable, which Is even at
the present day so great a rarity that
probably there are not dozen speci-
mems of it in all the United States.
Two of these are in the president s
greenhouse at Washington. 1t will
not survive unless kept in an ex.
tremely hot atmosphere laden with
moisture-a fact from which it may
be correctly inferred that this inter
esting vegetable species is a native
of the torrid zone. Indeed, it grows
nowhere except close to the equator
in wet and marshy places not far
from sea level, where the humid air
oppresses the traveller like so much
almost unbreathable steam.
"LiIics of the Field"
1t is wholly uncertain what flower
Jesus had in mind when he spoke OF
the lilies of the field" which
though they toiled not, neither did
they spin-were adorned more beau
tifully than Solomon in all his glory
Certainly he was not speaking of any
blossoms of the type now represented
by what is called the Easter lily, be
cause no such lilies were known in
the Palestine of his day, all of them
being Of exclusively eastern Asiatic
origin. OF these lilies there are many
varieties, as everybody knows, the
finest of them all, and the one gener
ally grown at the present time in the
greenhouses of this country, being q
native of Japan-the Lilium Harrisii
A similar lily, though Of different
variety, is the Lilium candidum, OIL
Madonna lily, which is SO called be
cause it is the flower that is supposed
to have been presented to the virgin
by the angel of the annunciation
One finds it thus depicted in one ot
the most famous paintings of Murillo
But, as above suggested, this lovely
type of blossom was not known IL
Palestine 1900 years ago-a fact, how
ever, which does by no means pre-
clude the possibility that an ange
might have obtained bunch.
Resurrection Plant.
One Of the most interesting Of the
vegetable species associated with Eas
ter is the so-called resurrection plant
which is q kind of "tumble-wee6," ma
tive to the region of the Dead sea
Some of it's relatives, botanically
speaking, are found in our own coun
try and have similar habits. This
tumble-weed during part of the year
dries up and, detaching itself from
the ground, assumes the form of q
ball, seemingly dead---in which shape
it rolls before the wind, scattering its
seeds as it goes, to take root ant
grow into more tunble-weeds.