THE LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES Tlie ^&J± 1ST C3- TJ J± G- E * And c |o E T F^Y Of Xa O "W IE IB, S. «>lilllt|^|lllM»W LONDON: MILNER AND COMPANY, LIMITED, PATERNOSTER ROW, Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2013 http://archive.org/details/languagepoetryofOOunse L3 PREFACE. Flowers are universally acknowledged and appreci- ated as the most graceful and lovely objects among the productions of nature, and few preliminary remarks are therefore necessary in presenting to the acceptance of the public, a little work on a subject so truly de- lightful and interesting as the Language of Flora. Flowers are calculated to raise generous and tender emotions in the heart, and to swell the bosom with gratitude and praise to the " Giver of every blessing," for the rich and inexhaustible treasures he has thought fit to scatter in such profusion around us, to delight our senses by their rich tints, delicate forms, and de- lightful perfumes— filling the air with the most deli- cious fragrance throughout the summer months — " When 'stead of one unchanging breeze, There blow a thousand gentle airs, And each a different perfume bears:— As if the loveliest plants and trees Had vassel breezes of their own To watch and wait on them alone, And waft no other breath than theirs." V mm VI PREFACE. Poets have from the time of Chaucer to the present day adorned their verse with singing the praises and extolling the perfume of the breath of the flowers, which so delightfully blend in the zephyrs of the sum- mer skies ; and have spoken of them in language al- most divine, — terming them the " Stars of the earth ;" —indeed, poetry without them would lose its chief beauty, for it derives from them its richest charms. The associations connected with flowers are equally pleasing, for are there not some of our commonest plants which we have held in the highest esteem, since the days of our infancy, when we rambled about the meadows and woods in careless innocence, that bear to us sweet memories of the happy days of childhood, and speak eloquently to the heart? And in later years have not the rose's blush, the tulip's varied hues, and the lily's grace, attracted our admiring gaze ? Whilst the carnation, mignionette, and violet, with a variety of others, delighted us with their sweet perfume. Pages may be filled in speaking the praises of these lovely gems of the earth ; but what we have to consi- der in the present little work, is the sentiments attach- ed to them, which may not inappropriately be called the "Language of Angels." On searching the historic page, in all ages we find flowers were in requisition at festivals as well as at funerals, and among the Heathens, the Jews, and the Christians, they were used as emblems. In the East, in particular, we have abundant proof that the feelings <$> <* PREFACE, Vll were expressed by them, and that there were flowers to represent hope, love, grief, joy, care, fear, hatred, and every other sentiment ; and that the acceptance or refusal of a proffered flower had great effect on the one presenting it, as we find in a passage in the Bride of Abydos, where Selim allows the rose offered by Zulei- ka to remain untouched, which leads her to exclaim — " What ! not receive my favourite flower ? Nay, then I am indeed unblesk" In the West, too, we read of the homage paid and sen- timents attached to trees and flowers ; and among the numerous instances we find the reward of the victor was the laurel, and the chaplet of the poet the bay ; palms were the emblem of triumph — cypress of mourn- ing — and the holly of festivals. We are told of the respect paid to the oak by our Roman and British ancestors, and the solemnity with which the Druids regarded the misletoe and the crab apple ; and the superstitions attached to several others, as the black poplar and the Rowan tree. In the Language of Flowers— The rose is a sign of joy and love, — Young blushing love in its early dawn, And the mildness that suits the gentle dove. From the myrtle's snowy flower is drawn. ** Innocence shines in the lily's bell, Pure as the heart in its native heaven ; Fame's bright star, and Glory's swell, By the glossy leaf of the bay is given. Vlll PREFACE. " The silent, soft, and humble heart In the violet's hidden sweetness breathes; And the tender soul that cannot part, A twine of evergreen fondly wreathes. " The cypress that daily shades the grave, Is sorrow that mourns her bitter lot ; And faith, that a thousand ills can brave, Speaks in thy blue leaves— forget-me-not." But the same flower is made to convey several senti- ments — according to the manner in which it is present- ed, and the state it is in when given. For example :— if a rosebud, or other flower with pricky or thorny stalks be presented with the thorns and leaves on, it expresses the sentiment of "I fear but I hope:" for the thorns imply fear, and the leaves hope : but divest the sprig of the thorns and leaves, and then it becomes a warning "neither to fear nor hope;"— if the thorns only are cut off, you imply that "fear is to be banish- ed ;" but if you leave the thorns, and take away the leaves, you warn the receiver that "there is every thing to fear." Forthe purpose of making the Language of Flowers fully understood, it is necessary to lay down certain rules for the guidance of the learner ; and by attention to the following instructions, it will soon become a delightful occupation, and a perfect knowledge of the art will in a short time be gained. <# <*? *^mI^ DIRECTIONS ft. : 1 . A flower presented with leaves on its stem expresses affirmatively the sentiment of which it is the em- blem; — stripped of its leaves it has a negative meaning :— if the plant be 'flowerless, the latter is expressed by cutting the tops off the leaves. 2. When a flower is given, the pronoun I is implied by inclining it to the left, and the word thou by in- clining it to the right. 3. If an answer to a question is implied by the gift of a flower, presenting it to the right hand gives an affirmative, and to the left a negative reply. 4. The position in which a flower is worn may alter its meaning — on the head it conveys one senti- ment, as Caution ; on the breast another, as Re- membrance or Friendship ; and over the heart a third, as Love. 5. If the flower be sent, the knot of the ribbon or silk with which it is tied should be on the left as you look at the front of the blossoms, to express / or me ; and on the front thee or thou. ix LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS, PART THE FIRST. Flowers. Meanings. Abecedary Volubility. Acacia Chaste Love. Acacia Pink Elegance. Acanthus The Arts. Achillea Millefol ia War. Aconite-leaved Crow- foot, or Fair Maid Of France Adonis Almond Lustre. Sorrowful remembrance. Heedlessness. Aloe Acute Sorrow or Afflic- tion. Althaea Frutex Persuasion. 11 mm LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flowers. Meanings, Alyssum, Sweet Amaranth Amaranth, Globe Amaryllis Ambrosia American Cowslip American Elm American Linden American Starwort Anemone Angelica Angrec Apocynum Apple Apple-tree Blossom Arbor Vitae Arum, Wake Robin Asclepias Ash Ash -leaved Trumpet Flower Aspen Tree Worth beyond Beauty. Immortality. Unfading Love. Unchangeable. Pride. Love returned. Pensiveness. Patriotism. Matrimony. Welcome to a Stranger. Sickness. Inspiration. Rudeness. Falsehood. Temptation. Fame speaks him great and good. Unchaugingfriendship. Ardour. Cure for the Heart-ache. Grandeur. Separation. Lamentation. <$> *£ LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 13 Floicers. Meanings. Asphodel My regret will follow you to the grave. Auricula Painting. Azalea Temperance. Bachelor's Button Single blessedness. Balm Sympathy. Balm of Gilead A cure. Balsam Impatience. Bar-berry Sourness. Basil Hatred. Bay-berry Instruction. Bay-leaf I change but in dying. Bay-wreath The Reward of Merit. Bear's breech Art. Beech Tree Grandeur. Bell Flower Constancy. Belvidere I declare against you. Bee Orchis Industry. Betony Surprise. Birch Gracefulness. Bird Cherry Hope. Bird's foot Trefoil Revenge. Bearded Crepis Protection. Black Poplar Courage. It LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flower*. Meanings. Black Thorn Difficulty. 4i Bladder Senna Frivolous Amusements, ^ w Bluebottle Centaury Delicacy. Blue flowered Grec k \llj Valerian Rupture. ^d Blue Pyramidal Bell ^-v ^^^ Flower Constancy. ^irfit/lfei Bonus Henricus Goodness. KJ Wm Borage Bluntness or roughness of manners. %\T*r ' Box Stoicism. Bramble Remorse. Branch of Currants You please all. Branch of Thorns Seventy or Rigour. Bryony Prosperty. aXM Buck-bean Calm Repose. "/*®ak Bud of a White Rose A Heart ignorant of Love. %Jf|| Bugloss Falsehood. Bundle of Reeds with their Panicles Music. Buttercup Childishness. Riches, Butterfly Orchis Gaiety. Cabbage Profit. Mm r LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 15 Flowers. Meanings. : ? Calla Ethiopica Calycanthus Canary Grass Candy-tuft Canterbury Bell Cardamine Catesby's Star- Wort Cardinal's Flower Catalpa Tree Catch Fly Cedar of Lebanon Cedar Trees Chamomile Chequered Fritillary Cherry Tree Blossom Chesnut Tree China Aster or Chi- nese Starwort China or India Pink China Rose Chinese Chrysanthe mum Cistus, or Rock Rose Feminine modesty. Benevolence. Perseverance. Architecture. Gratitude. Paternal Error. After-thought. Distinction. Beware of the Coquette. Youthful Love. Incorruptible. Strength. Energy in Adversity. Persecution. Spiritual Beauty. Render me Justice. Variety. Aversion. Beauty always new. Cheerfulness under ad- versity. Popular Favour. 16 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flowers. Meanings. Cobcena Gossip. Cock's Comb or Crest- ed Amaranth Singularity. Colchicum or Meadow Saffron My best flays are past. Coltsfoot Maternal Care. Columbine Folly. Common Cactus or In- dian Fig I burn. Convolvulus Major Extinguished Hopes. Convolvulus Minor Night. Corchorus Impatience of Absence. Coriopsis Love at First Sigbt. Coriander Concealed Merit. Coronilla Success Crown your wishes. Cowslip Pensiveness. Attractive grace. Cranberry Hardiness. Creeping Cereus Horror. Crocus Smiles. Cheerfulness. Cross of Jerusalem Devotion. Crown Imperial Majesty and Power. Crown of Roses Reward of Merit. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 1? Flowers, Meanings, Cuckoo-pint Cyclamen Cypress Cypress Tree Daffodil Dahlia Daisy Double Ox Eye Wild Damask Rose Dandelion Daphne Odorata Darnel or Ray Grass Day Lily Dew Plant Diosma Dittany Dock Dodder of Thyme Dogwood, or Cornel Tree 121 B Ardour. Diffidence. Despair. Death & eternal Sorrow. Deceitful Hope. Instability. Beauty & Innocence. I partake your Senti- ments. A Token. Innocence. Freshness of complexion Oracle. Sweets to the Sweet, Vice. Coquetry. Serenade, Inutility, Birth. Patience. Business, Durability, 18 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flowers. Meanings. Dragon Plant Snare. — The Betrayer. Dried Flax Utility. Ebony Blackness. Eglantine, or Sweet- Brier Poetry. Elder Zealousness. Elm Dignity. Enchanter's Night- shade Witchcraft. Endive Frugality. Eupatorium Delay. Ever-flowering Candy tuft Indifference. Evergreen Poverty. Evergreen Thorn Solace in Adversity. Everlasting Never-ceasing Remein brance. Everlasting Pea Lasting Pleasure. Fennel Worthy all Praise. Fern (Flowering) Fascination. Fern Sincerity. Fig Argument. Fig Marigold Idleness. Fig-Tree Prolific. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Floivertt, Meanings, 19 Filbert Fir Flax Flax-leaved Goldy- Locks Flower of an Hour Flowering Reed Fly Orchis Forget-me-not Fox-glove Frankincense French Honeysuckle French Marigold French Willow Frog Ophrys Full Blown Eglantine Full Blown Rose Fuller's Teasel Fumitory Fuschia. Scarlet Garden Marigold Garden Ranunculus Reconciliation. Time. Fate. Tardiness. Delicate Beauty. Confidence in Heaven, Error. True Love. South. The incense of a Faith- ful Heart. Rustic Beauty. Jealousy. Bravery and Humanity, Disgust. Simplicity. Beauty. Importunity. Spleen. Taste. Uneasiness. You are rich in attnic- tions. 20 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS, Flowers* Garden Sage Gentian Genista Geranium, Dark ~ — Nutmeg - — — Pink — - — — Scarlet Silverleaved Germander Speedwell Gilly-Flower Glory-Flower Goat's Rue Golden Rod Good King Henry Gooseberry Gourd Grape, Wild Great Bindweed Great Flowered Even- ing Primrose Gueldre Rose Hare-Bell Meanings* Esteem. Virgin Pride. Neatness. Melancholy. An unexpectedMeeting. Preference. Comforting. Recall. Facility. Bonds of Affection. Glorious Beauty. Reason. Precaution. Goodness. — Same plant as Bonus Henricus. Anticipation. Extent, Bulk. Charity. Dangerous insinuation, Inconstancy. Winter or Age. Delicate & lonely as this flower. Submisssion, LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 21 Flowers, Meanings, \ M Hawk-weed Hawthorn Hazel Heart's Ease or Heath Helenium Heliotrope Hellebore Hemlock Hemp Henbane Hepatica Hibiscus Horehound Holly Hollyherb Hollyhock Honesty Honeyflower Honeysuckle _ _ Wild Hop Hornbeam Tree Quick-sightedness, Hope. Reconciliation. Pansy You occupy my thoughts Solitude. Tears. Devoted to you. Calumny. You will cause my death ^Fate. Imperfection. Confidence. Delicate Beauty, Frozen Kindness. Foresight. Enchantment. Fecundity. Honesty Love, sweet and secret Bond of Love. Sweet- ness of Disposition, Inconstancy in Love, Injustice. Ornament 22 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flowe rx. Meanings. Horse Chesnut House Leek Houstonia Hoya Humble Plant Hundred-leaved Rose Hyacinth Hydrangea Hyssop Iceland Moss Ice Plant Indian Cress I ris Ivy Japan Rose Jonquil Judas Tree Juniper Justicia Kennedia King-cup Luxuriancy. Vivacity. Domestic In- dustry. Content. Sculpture. Despondency. Grace. Play, or Games. Boaster. "Cleanly. Health. You freeze me. Resignation. Message. Fidelity. Beauty is your only at- traction. Desire. Unbelief. Asylum. The Perfection of Fe» male Loveliness. Mental Beauty. I wish I was rich. 4 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 23 Floivers. Meanings. Laburnum Lady's Slipper Larkspur Laurel Laurel Common Flower in Laurel-leaved Mag- nolia Laurustinus Lavender Lemon Lettuce Lichen Lilac Lily of the Valley Lime or Linden Tree Live Oak Lobelia Locust London Pride Lotus-Flower Love in a Mist Love in a puzzle Love lies bleeding Pensive Beauty. Capricious Beauty. Levity. Glory. i Perfidy. Dignity. I die if I'm neglected. Assiduity. Zest. Cold-hearted. Solitude. Forsaken. Return of Happiness. Conjugal Fidelity. Liberty. Arrogance. Vicissitude. Frivolity. Silence. Perplexity. Embarrassment. Hopeless not Heartless. 24 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS, Flowers, Meanings. Lucerne Life. Lupine Voraciousness. Lychnis Religious Enthusiasm. Ly thrum Pretension. Madder Calumny. Madwort, Rock Tranquillity. % Maize Plenty. Mallow Sweet Disposition. Mandrake Rarity. 4 Maple Reserve. Marjoram Blushes. i Marshmallow Humanity. Marvel of Peru Timidity. Marygold Despair. May Rose Precocity. G Meadow Saffron My best days are pa3t. w Meadow Sweet Uselessness. Mercury Goodness. Mesembryanthemum Idleness. Mezereon Desire to please. Co- quette. I Michaelmas Daisy Cheerfulness in old age. Milfoil, or Yarrow War. K % LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 27 Flowers. Meanings. Penny Royal Flee away. Peony Shame. Pepper Plant Satire. Periwinkle Pleasures of memory. Persicaria Restoration. Persimon Bury me amid Nature's Beauties. Peruvian Heliotrope Intoxicated with plea- sure.— Devotion. Pheasant's Eye or Floss Adonis Remembrance. Phlox Unanimity. Pimpernal Assignation. Pine Pity. Pine Apple You are perfect. Plane Tree Genius. Plum Tree Independence. Polyanthus Confidence. Pomegranate Foolishness. Poppy Oblivion. Consolation to the sick. Prickly Pear Satire. Pride of China Dissension. Primrose Youth. —Early days. 2S LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Floicers. Meanings, Privet Defence. Purple Clover Provident. Pyrus Japonica Fairies' Fire. Quamoclet Busybody. Queen's Rocket You are the Queen cf Coquettes. Ragged Robin Wit. 1 Raspberry Envy. Red Bay Love's Memory. Red Mulberry Wisdom. A Red Pink Lively and pure love. Rhododendron Danger. / Rocket Rivalry. s Rose Genteel, pretty. Rose, Acacia Elegance. 1 Rosebay Willow Herb Celibacy. Rosemary Fidelity. Remembrance. Rudbeckia Justice. Rue Grace, or Purification. Rush Docility. "W Sage Domestic Virtue. Saffron Flower Do not abuse. Saffron Crocus Mirth. « Sardony Irony. LANGUAGE OF FLOWE1W. 25 Floicers. Meanings. Mignionette Your qualities surpass charms. Milk Vetch Your presence softens my pain. Mimosa Sensitiveness. Mint Virtue. Mistletoe Obstacles to be over- come or surmounted. Mock Oral ge Counterfeit. Monk's Hood Knight-errantry. Moschatell Weakness. Moss Recluse. Moss Rose Voluptuous Love. Mosses Ennui. Mossy Saxifrage Maternal Love, Motherwort Concealed Love. Mountain Ash Prudence. Mouse Ear Chici weed Ingenious simplicity. Mouse Ear Scorpion Grass Forget-me-not. Moving Plant Agitation. Mulberry Tree Wisdom. Mushroom Suspicion. 20 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flowe rs. Musk Rose Myrtle Narcissus Nasturtium Nettle Night-blooming Oak Oats Oleander Olive Orchis Orange Flowers Orange Tree Osier Ox-eye Palm Parsley Passion-flower Patience Dock Pea Peach Blossom Meanings, Capricious Beauty. Love. Self-esteem. Patriotism. Slander, cereus Transient beauty. True affection, wealth of. Hospitality. The witching soul of music. Beware. Peace. A Belle. Chastity. Bridal festi- vity. Generosity. Frankness. Obstacle. Victory. Feast or banquet. Religious superstition. Patience. An appointed meeting I am your captive. 'fT^C*/ ^U~ t£< >&> .f' AND LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 29 mi. Flowers. Meanings. Scabious Unfortunate attachment. Scarlet Flowered Ipo- raoea Scarlet Geranium Scarlet Ipomcea Scarlet Nasturtium Scotch Fir Sensitive Plant Shamrock Attachment. Preference. I attach myself to you- Splendour. Elevation. Bashful modesty. Deli- cate feelings. Light-heartedness; also the Emblem of Ire- land. Siberian Crab Tree Blossom Deeply Interesting. Silver Fir Elevation. Small Bindweed Obstinacy. Small White Violet Candour and Innocence* Small White Bell Flower Gratitude. Snap Dragon Presumption. Snow Ball Thoughts of Heaven, Snow Drop Consolation. Adven* turous Friendship. Sorrel War ill-timed. 80 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flowers. Sorrel, Wild Sorrowful Geranium Southern Wood Spanish Jasmine Speedwell Spiked Spider Orphys Wort Spirse Hypericum Fru tex Spring Caroline Squirting Cucumber St. John's Wort Star of Bethlehem Stinging Nettle Stock, or Gillyflower Straw, whole Strawberry Striped Pink Sumach Sunflower Tall Dwarf Swallow Wort Meanings. Parental Affection. Sorrowful remembrance Jest or Bantering. Sensuality. Female Fidelity. Resemblance. Adroitness. Transient Happiness. Uselessness. Disappointment. Critic. Superstitious Sanctity. The light of our path. Cruelty. Lasting Beauty. Union. Perfect Goodness. Refusal. Splendour. False Riches. Lofty and pure thoughts Your devoted Adorer. Medicine. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 31 Flowers. Meanings. Sweet Briar Sweet Flag - — Pea - — Scabious Sweet Sultan ■ Scented Tussilago ■ William Sycamore Syringa Tamarisk Tansy Teasel I Ten Week's Stock V Thistle, common Thorn Apple Thrift Throat Wort Thyme Tiger Flower Traveller's Joy Tree of Life Tuberose Poetry. Fitness. Delicate Pleasure. De- parture. Widowhood. Felicity. You shall have Justice. Craftiness. Woodland Beauty. Memory. Crime. Resistance. Misanthropy. Promptitude. Austerity. Deceitful Charms. Mutual Sensibility. Neglected Beauty. Activity. For once may Pride be- friend me. Safety. Old Age. I have seen a lovely Girl. 82 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. i Flowers. Tulip Red Tulip Variegated Tulip Tree Turnip Valerian Various Coloured Lan- tana Venetian Sumach Venus's Fly Trap — Looking Glass Verbena Vernal Grass Vervain Vetch Bush Vine Violet Sweet Violet Yellow Blue Dame Virgin's Bower Virginian Spider Wort Volkamenica Japonica "Wall Flower Meanings. Declaration of Love. Beautiful Eyes. Fame. Charity. Accommodating Dispo- sition. Rigour. Intellectual excellence, Deceit. Flattery. Sensibility. Poor but Happy* Superstition. Shyness. Drunkenness. Modesty. Rural Happiness B Faithfulness. Watchfulness. Artifice. Momentary Happiness. May you be Happy. Fidelity in Misfortune LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 33 Flower*. Meaning*, Wall Speedwell Walnut Water Melon Wax Plant Wheat Whin White Jasmine — Lily — - Mullein — — Oak — - Pink — — Poplar — ~- Rose, Dried _ — Violet Wortle Berry Willow — — Water — Weeping Creeping - Herb Winter Cherry Witch Hazel 121 Fidelity. Intellect. Bulkiness. Susceptibility. Riches. Anger. Amiableness. Purity and Modesty, Good Nature. Independence. Talent. Time. Death preferable to losa of innocence. Purity of Sentiment. Treason. Forsaken. Freedom. Melancholy. Love Forsaken, Pretension. Deception. A spell. 34 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Flowers. Meanings. Woodbine Wood Sorrel Wormwood Xanthium, Clot Bur Yellow Carnation Day Lily — -— Gentian — ins — Rose Yew Fraternal Love. Maternal Tenderness. Absence. Rudeness. Disdain. Coquetry. Ingratitude. Flame of Lova Infidelity. Sorrow. END OF THE FIRST TAUT. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. PAUT THE SECOND. Meanings. Flowers, A Belle Orchis. Absence Wormwood. Accommodating Dis- position Valerian. Activity Thyme. Acute Sorrow or Afflic- tion Aloe. Adroitness Spider Orphys. After-thought Catesby's Star- wort. Agitation Moving Plant. Amiable White Jasmine. An appointed meeting Pea. Anger Whin. 85 36 LANGUAGE OF FLOWEttS. Meanings. Flowers. Anticipation Gooseberry. Architecture Candy-Tuft. Ardour Cuckoo-pint. Arum. Argument Fig. Arrogance Lobelia. Art Bear's-breech. Arts, The Acanthus. Artifice Virgin's Bower. Jis) A Spell Witch Hazel. ii Assiduity Lavender. Assignation Pimpernel. Asylum Juniper. Attachment Scarlet Flowered Ipo- moea, Jy Attractive Grace Cowslip. Austerity Common Thistle. Aversion China or Indian Pink. Bashful modesty — De- *? licate feelings Sensitive Plant. Bashful Shame Peony. Beauty Full-blown Rose. Beauty always new China "Rose. Beauty is your only at- traction Japan Rose. ^Ji LANGUAGE OF FLOWEJ18. 37 i Meanings. Flowers. \ Beautiful eyes Benevc-Ienre Betrayer, The Beware Beware of the Co- quette Birth Blackness Bluntness of manners Blushes Boaster Bond of Love Bonds of Affection Bravery and humility French Willow. Bulkiness Water-Melon. Bury me amid Nature's beauties Persimon. Business Dodder of Thyme. Busybody Quamoclet. Calm repose Buckbean. Calumny Hellebore. Madder. Candour and Inno- cence Small white violet. Capricious beauty Musk rose. Variegated Tulip. Cal yean thus. Dragon Plant. Oleander. Catalpa Trea Dittany. Ebony. Borage. Marjoram. Hydrangea. Honeysuckle. Gilly- Flower. j.? 33 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings. Flowers. Celibacy Charity Chaste love Chastity Cheerfulness Cheerfulness in old age Cheerfulness in adver sity Childishness Cleanly Cold-hearted Comforting Complaisance Concealed love Concealed merit Confidence Confidence in heaven Conjugal fidelity Conclusion Consolation to the sick Constancy Content Coquetry Counterfeit Rosebay. Willow herb. Wild Grape. Acacia. Orange flower. Crocus. Michaelmas daisy. ChineseChrysanthemum Butter-cup. Hyssop. Lettuce. Scarlet geranium. Common reed. Motherwort. Coriander. Hepatica. Polyanthus. Flowering reed. Lime or Linden tree. Snow-drop. Poppy. Blue py ram id bellflo wer. Houstonia. Yellow day lily. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 89 Meanings. Flouer&. & \ Courage Black poplar. Craftiness Sweet William, Crime Tamarisk. Critic Squirting Cucumber. Cruelty Stinging Nettle. Cure, A Balm of Gilead. Cure forthe heart-ache Asclepias. Danger Rhododendron. Dangerouslnsinuation b Great Bindweed. Death and eternal sor- row Cypress Tree. Death preferable to loss of innocence White Rose dried Deceit Venus's fly trap, Deceitful charms Thorn apple. Deceitful Hope Daffodil. Deception Winter cherry. Declaration of Love Red Tulip. Deeply interesting Siberian crab-tree bios som. Defence Privet. Delay Eupatorium. Delicacy Blue-bottle centaury. 40 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings. Delicate and lovely ai this flower Delicate beauty Delicate pleasure Desire Desire to please Despair Despondency Devoted to you Devotion Difficulty Diffidence Dignity Disappointment Disdain Disgust Dissension Distinction Docility Domestic industry Domestic virtue Do not abuse Flowers, Harebell. Hibiscus. Flower of an hour. Sweet pea. Jonquil. Mezereon. Cypress. Mangold. Humble plant. Heliotrope. Cross of Jerusalem. Black thorn. Cyclamen. Elm. Laurel-leaved magnolia. Spring Caroline. Yellow carnation. Frog Orphrys. Pride of China. Cardinal's flower. Rush. Houseleek. Sage. Saffron flower. x & i <*& LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 41 Meanings. Flowers. Drunkenness Vine. \ \j Durability Dogwood or CornelTrea Early youth Primrose. Elegance Acacia Pink. Elevation Silver Fir. Embarrassment Love in a puzzle, . Enchantment Hollyherb. Energy in adversity Camomile. fjfi- "."* Ennui Mosses. m£jt\ Envy Raspberry. Error Fly Orchis. jwkip Esteem Garden sage. JU£ ; Extent, bulk Gourd. § } Extinguished hopes Convolvulus major. Facility Germander speedwell. Falsehood Apocynum. Bugloss. False riches Sun Flower. Fame speaks him great and good Apple-tree blossom, i#3 $jjT Fascination Flowering Fern. Fate Flax. \MA " Feast or banquet Parsley. Fecundity Hollyhock. Felicity Sweet Sultan. ^M 42 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings. Flowers. Female fidelity Feminine modesty Fidelity in friendship Fidelity in misfortune Fitness Flame of love Flee away Fraternal love Freedom Frozen Kindness Flattery Folly Foolishness Foresight Forget-me-not For once may pride befriend me Forsaken Frankness Fresh complexion Friendship Frivolity Wall speedwell. Rose- mary Calla iEthiopica. Ivy. Wall-flower. Sweet-flag. Yellow Iris. Penny Royal. Woodbine. Water Willow. Horehound. Venus's looking-glass. Columbine. Pomegranate. Holly. Mouse-ear scorpion- grass. Tiger flower. Lilac. Willow. Osier. Damask Rose. Acacia Rose. London Pride. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 43 Meanings. Flowers. Frivolous Amuse- ments Bladder Senna. Frugality Endive. Gaiety Butterfly Orchis. Generosity Orange tree Genius Plane tree, Genteel Rose. Glorious Beauty Glory Flower. Glory Laurel. Good education Cherries. Good nature White Mullein. Goodness Bonus Henricus. Gooc Henry. Gossip Cobcena. Grace Hundred-leaved rose. Gracefulness Birch. Grandeur Ash. Beech tree. Gratitude Small white bell flower, Hardiness Cranberry. Hatred Basil. Heart ignorant of love Bud of a white rose. Health Iceland moss. Heedlessness Almond. Honesty Honesty. 44 LANGUAGE OP FLOWERS. Meanings. Flowers. \s Hope Bird cherry. Haw- thorn. Hopeless not heartless Love lies^ bleeding. Horror Creeping Cereus. Hospitality Oak. Humanity Marshmallow. I am your captive Peach blossom. I attach myself to you Scarlet Ipomcea. I burn Common Cactus. I change but in dying Bay-leaf. I declare against you Belvidere. I die if I'm neglected Laurustinus. Idleness Mesembryanthemum. Fig Marigold. I have seen a lovely girl Tuberose. Immortality Amaranth. Impatience Balsam. Impatience of absence Corchorus. Imperfection Importunity Inconstancy Inconstancy in love Henbane. Fuller's Teasel. Great flowered evening primrose. Wild honeysuckles, LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 45 V Meanings. Incorruptible Independence Indifference Indiscretion Industry I shall ne'er look upon his like again Infidelity Ingenious simplicity Ingratitude Injustice Innocence Flowers. Cedar of Lebanon. Plum tree. White oak. Ever-flowering candy tuft. Split Reed. Bee Orchis. Rhododendron. Yellow rose. Mouse-ear chickweed. Yellow gentian. Hop. Wild daisy. Innocence and beauty Daisy. Inspiration Instability Instruction Intellect Intellectual excellence Intoxicated with plea- sure Inutility I partake your senti nients Angelica. Dahlia. Bayberry. Walnut. Venetian Sumach. Peruvian Heliotrope. Diosma. Double daisy. 46 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings. Flowers. Irony Single Blessedness I wish I was rich Jealousy Jest or bantering Justice Knight-errantry Lamentation Lasting Beauty Lasting pleasure Levity Liberty Life Light-heartedness Lively and pure love Love - — - at first sight « forsaken match, A ■ returned sweet and secret Love's memory Lustre Luxuriance Sardony. Bachelor's button. King cup. French Marigold. Southern wood. Rudbeckia. Monk's hood. Aspen tree. Gillyflower. Everlasting pea, Larkspur. Live oak. Lucerne. Shamrock. Red Pink. Myrtle. . Coriopsis. Creeping Willow. London Pride. Ambrosia. Honey-flower. Red bay. Aconite leaved crowfoot Horse Chesnut. t LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings. Flowers. 47 Majesty and power Maternal care love tenderness Matrimony- May you be blessed though I be miser- able Medicine Melancholy Melancholy lover Memory Mental Beauty Message Mirth Misanthropy Modesty Crown imperial. Coltsfoot. Mossy Saxifrage. Wood sorrel. American Linden. Volkamenica japonica, Swallow-wort. Daik geranium. Weeping willow. Mock orange. Syringa. Kennedia. Iris. Saffron crocus. Teasel. Sweet violet. Momentary happiness Virgin spider- wort. Music Bundle of reeds with their panicles. Thrift. Colchicum. Meadow saffron. My heart bleeds for you Camelia Japonica. Mutual Sensibility My best days are past 48 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. \ Meanings. My regret will follow you to the grave Neatness Neglected beauty Never-ceasing remem brance Night Oblivion Obstacle Obstinacy Old age Oracle Ornament Flowers, Asphodel. Genista. Throatwort. Everlasting. Convolvulus Minor. Poppy. Ox eye. Small bindweed. Tree of life. Dandelion. Hornbean tree. <$* Obstacles to be o vercomeMistletoe. Painting Parental affection Participation Paternal error Patience Patriotism Peace Pensive beauty Pensiveness Auricula. Wild Sorrel. Double daisy. Cardamine. Patience dock. American elm. turtium. Olive. Laburnum. American cowslip LANGUAGE OF FL0WEB8. 49 Meanings. Flowers. Jl Perfect goodness Perfidy Perplexity Persecution Perseverance Persuasion Pity Play, or Games Pleasures of memory Plenty Poetry Poor but happy Popular favour Poverty Precaution Precocity Preference Presumption Pretension Pride Profit Prolific Promptitude 121 Strawberry. Common laurel flower. Love in a mist. Chequered Eritillary. Canary grass. Althaea frutex. Pine. Hyacinth. Periwinkle. Maize. Eglantine, sweetbriar. Vernal grass. Cistus or rock rose. Evergreen Clematis. Golden rod. May rose. Scarlet Geranium. Snap Dragon. Lythrum. Willow herb Amaryllis. Cabbage. Fig-tree. Ten weeks' stock. 50 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings. Prosperity Protection Provident Prudence Purification or Grace Purity and modesty Purity of sentiment Quick-sightedness Rarity Reason Recall Recluse Reconciliation Refusal Religious enthusiasm Religious superstition Remembrance Remorse Render me justice Resemblance Reserve Resignation Resistance Flowers. Bryony. Bearded Crepis. Purple clover. Mountain Ash. Rue. White Lily. White violet. Hawkweed. Mandrake. Goat's rue. Silverheaded geranium. Moss. Filbert. Striped pink. Lychnis. Passion Flower. Pheasant's eye or floss Adonis. Bramble. Chestnut tree. Spiked Speedwell Maple. Indian cress. Tansy. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 61 Meanings. Flowers. & Restoration Return of happiness Revenge Reward of virtue Reward of merit Riches Rigour Rivalry Rudeness Royalty Rupture Rural Happiness Rustic Beauty Safety Satire Sculpture Self-esteem Sensibility Sensitiveness Sensuality Separation Persicaria. Lilly of the valley. Bird's foot Trefoil. Crown of roses. Bay wreath. Wheat. Butter-cup. Various coloredlantana. Rocket. Angrec. Xanthium. Clot bur. Blue flowered Greek valerian. Yellow violet. French honeysuckle. Traveller's Joy. Pepper plant. Prickly pear. Hoya. Narcissus. Verbena. Mimosa. Spanish jasmine. Ash-leaved trumpet flower. 52 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meauinji Flowers. Serenade Dew plant. Severity Branch of thorns. She will be fashionable Queen's rocket. Shyness Vetch bush. Sickness Anemone. Silence Lotus flower. Simplicity Full-blown Eglantine. Sincerity Fern. Singularity Cock's comb, or crested amaranth. Slander Nettle. Sleep of the heart White poppy. Smiles Crocus. Snare Dragon plant. Solace in adversity Evergreen thorn. Solitude Lichen. Heath. Sorrow Yew. Sorrowful remembranceSorrowful geranium. Sourness Barberry. Spiritual beauty Cherry-tree blossom. Splendour Scarlet nasturtium. Su< mach. Spleen Common fumitory. Stoicism Box. c3 4 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 63 Meanings. Flowers. Strength Cedar tree. Success crown your wishes Harebell. Submission Coronilla. Superstition Vervian. Superstitious sanctity St. John's Wort. Surprise Betony. Susceptibility Was plant. Suspicion Mushroom. Sweet disposition Mallow. Sweets to the sweet Daphne Odorata. Sympathy Balm. Talent White Pink. Tardiness Flax-leaved goldy locks. Taste Scarlet fuschia. Tears Helenium. Temperance Azalea. Temptation Apple. The incense of a faith- ful heart Frankincense. The perfection of fe- male loveliness Justicia The witching soul of music Oats. 54 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings Flowers. The light of our path Star of Bethlehem. Thoughts Thoughts of heaven Time Timidity Token, A Tranquillity Transient beauty ■ happiness Heart's ease. Snow bell. White poplar. Fir. Marvel of Peru. Laurestinus. Double ox-eye. Madwort, rock. Night-bloomingCereus. Spider wort. Whortle berry. Forget-me-not. Bit ter sweet nightshade. Phlox. Judas tree. Globe amaranth. Treason True love Truth Unanimity Unbelief Unchangeable Unchanging friendshipArbor vitae. Uneasiness Garden marigold. Unexpected meeting Nutmeg geranium. Unfortunate attachmentScabious. Union Whole straw. u sex^anebc. Spirse hypericum frutex. Meadow sweet. Utility Dried Flax. LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. 55 Meanings. Flowers. to. Variety Vice Vicissitude Victory Virgin pride Virtue Vivacity Volubility Voluptuous love Voluptuousness Voraciousness Vulgar minds War Watchfulness Weakness Welcome to a stranger Widowhood Winter, or Age Wisdom Wit Wit, ill-timed Witchcraft China aster or Chinese star wort. Darnel, or ray grass. Locust. Palm. Gentian. Mint. House leek. Abecedary. Moss Rose. Tuberose. Lupine. African marigold. Achillea mille folia. Common milfoil. Dame violet. Moschatell. American starwort. Sweet scabious. Gueldre Rose. Red Mulberry. Ragged Robin. Sorrel. Enchanter's nightshade. 56 LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS. Meanings. Flowers. Woodland beauty Sycamore. Worth beyond beauty Sweet alyssum Worthy all praise Fennel. You are my divinity American cowslip. You are perfect Pine apple. You are rich in attrac- tions Garden ranunculus. You are the queen of coquettes. Queen's rocket. You are without pre- tensions Rose campion. You freeze me Ice plant. Youoccupy my thoughtHeart's ease or Pansy. You please all Bunch of currants. Your presence softens Milk vetch. Your qualities surpass your charms Mignionette. You shall have justice Sweet-scented tussilago. Youth Fox glove. Youthful love Catch-fly. You will cause my deathHemlock. Zealousness Elder. Zest Lemon. A ♦ PREFACE Attached to the Language of Flora is a selection of Poetry on Flowers, which, it is hoped, will give addi- tional interest to this little volume, and make it an appropriate token of affection. Poetry is so closely connected with flowers that we scarcely ever find a poet who does not call in those sweetest smiles of nature — the beautiful children of the wilds, to decorate his verse. — What a loss would the poet sustain were he to be deprived of the beauti- ful gems that dwell beside his paths, and look up to him from their lowly beds. Where would he fly for images of beauty — of purity — of peace— of truth— of love— were he to be debarred from flowers. As the bouquet of Summer is not composed of one class of plants, but by the blending of colours and combination of the fragrance of many, so has it been thought desirable that the selection of poetry should consist of pieces that most excel in tenderness and pathos, and that are suitable for the perusal of the grave as well as the gay. 59 CONTENTS. l& PAGE Alpine Violet, The 70 A Nosegaie alwaies sweet 242 A Songof the Rose 91 An April Day 155 Autumn Flower, The 78 Autumn Flowers 143 Autumn Flowers 211 Bouquet, The 78 Bring Flowers 236 Broken Flower, The 114 Chrysanthemum, The 186 Consider the Lilies of the Field 182 Cowslip, The 116 Cowslip, The 136 Cowslips 255 Cropped Flower, The 194 Cry of the Spring Flower-Seller 225 Cypress, The 151 Daffodil, The 117 Daisy, The 117 Daisy, The 158 Daisy and the Star, The 189 Death of the Flowers, The 209 Early Snowdrop, The , 241 Elegiac 160 Everlasting Rose, The 125 Fading Rose, The ,.« 131 Field Flowers 83 Field Flowers 110 Flowers ,,., , , 72 61 62 CONTENTS. PAGE Flowers 248 Flowers of God, The 65 Flower, "Forget-me-not," The 133 Flower of the West, The 75 Flower Dial, The 86 Flowers for the Bee 162 Flowers and Life 184 Flower-Spirit, The 228 Forget-me-not, The 191 Folly's Flower— the Columbine 238 Girl and the Blossoms, The 124 Golden Rose, The 197 Gorse 172 Harebell, The 118 Heart's Ease 146 Hyacinth, The 216 Ivy, The 249 Ivy-song, The 134 Last Wish, The 95 Life of Flowers, The 93 Lily o' the Vale, The 84 Lily of the Valley, The 153 Lily, The 147 Lines on Flowers 89 Lines sent with a ' ' Forget-me-not" 139 Look for the Flowers 222 Lover's Wreath, The 127 May Flowers 200 Moss Rose, The 230 Mulberry Tree, The 192 My Home beneath the Sycamore 82 Night-blooming Cerus, The 104 Night-blowing Cereus, The 241 Nightingale Flower, The 193 ^ \ CONTENTS. 63 PAGE O bonny was yon Rosy Brier 147 Oh 1 the Flowery Month of June 140 On a Faded Violet 113 Passion Flower, The 152 Posie, The 108 Primrose-Time 227 Reaper and the Flowers, The 115 Rosebud, The 130 Rosebud, The 204 Rosebud and Emblem, The 170 Rose and the Lily, The 174 Rose and the Lily, The 189 Roses are gone, The 202 Rose, The 107 Rose, The 112 Rose, The 207 Rose, The 233 Rousseau and the Wild Flower 253 Song to Diaphenia 69 Sonnet 254 Spring Flowers 219 Strew odorous Flowers 175 Summer will spread her Roses 71 Sweet Lavender 123 Sympathy for Flowers 178 Sympathy of Childhood with Flowers 87 Three Little Roses, The 221 To a Blighted Blossom 105 To a Crocus, blossoming beneath a Wall -flower ... 168 To a Daisy 153 To a Faded Primrose 131 To a Lover of Flowers 77 To a Moss Rose 237 To a Mountain Daisy 79 64 CONTENTS. Pack To a Primrose in a Churchyard 167 To a Wild Flower 98 To a Wild Rose 161 To a Winter-blooming Wild Flower 196 To Celia 85 To Primroses filled with morning dew 122 To the Bramble Flower 251 To the Daisy 120 Tothe Daisy 230 To the Evening or Tree Primrose 157 To the Lily of the Valley 100 To the Herb Rosemary 232 To the melancholy Gillyflower 218 To the Snowdrop 145 To the Violet 89 Use of Flowers, The 66 Violet's Spring Song, The 176 Violet, The 128 Violet, The 201 Voice of the Flowers, The 164 Wall-Flower, The 148 Wall-flower, The 213 Water Lily, The 180 Wee Flower, The 141 Wild Flowers 67 Wild Flowers 187 Wild Flower, The 138 Winter Nosegay, The 208 Winter Rose, The 163 Withered Flower, The 247 Woodruff, The 217 Ye are not miss'd, fair Flowers 106 Young Maid and the Flower, The 129 fyt pwt^ of flm^ THE FLOWERS OF GOD. The welcome flowers are blossoming, In joyous troops revealed ; And lift their dewy buds and bells. In garden, mead, and field. They lurk in every sunless path, Where forest children tread ; And dot, like stars, the sacred turf Which lies above the dead. They sport with every playful wind Which stirs the blooming trees ; And laugh on every fragrant bush, All full of toiling bees : From the green marge of lake and stream, Fresh vale and mountain sod, They look in gentle glory forth — The pure, sweet flowers of God. 121 E G5 66 POETRY OF FLOWERS. THE USE OF FLOWERS. GOD might have made the earth bring forth Enough for great and small, The oak-tree, and the cedar-tree, Without a flower at all. He might have made enough, enough, For every want of ours, For luxury, medicine, and toil, And yet have made no flowers. The ore within the mountain-mine Requireth none to grow, Nor doth it need the lotus-flower To make the river flow. The clouds might give abundant rain, The nightly dews might fall, And the herb that keepeth life in man, Might yet have drank them all. Then wherefore, wherefore were they made, All dyed with rainbow light, All fashioned with supremest grace, Upspringing day and night. roETRY OF FLOWfclW. r>7 Springing in valleys green and low, And on the mountains high, And in the silent wilderness, Where no man passeth by ? Our outward life requires them not, Then wherefore had they birth f— To minister delight to man, And beautify the earth ; To whisper hope — to comfort man Whene'er his faith is dim ; For whoso careth for the flowers Will care much more for him, \ WILD FLOWERS. Beautiful children of the woods and fields ! That bloom by mountain streamlets 'mid the heather, Or into clusters, 'neath the hazels, gather,— Or where by hoary rocks you make your bields, And sweetly flourish on through summer wea« ther, — I love ye all t 68 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Beautiful flowers ! to me ye fresher seem From the Almighty hand that fashioned all. Than those that flourish by a garden-wall ; And I can image you, as in a dream, Fair modest maidens, nursed in hamlets small, I love ye all ! Beautiful gems ! that on the brow of earth Are fixed, as in a queenly diadem ; Though lowly ye, and most without a name, Young hearts rejoice to see your buds come forth. As light erewhile into the world came, — I love ye all ! Beautiful things ye are, where'er ye grow ! The wild red rose, the speedwell's peeping eyes, Our own bluebell — the daisy, that doth rise Wherever sunbeams fall or winds do blow ; And thousands more of blessed forms and dye"!, I love ye all ! Beautiful nurslings of the early dew ! Fanned, in your loveliness, by every breeze, And shaded o'er by green and arching trees ; I often wish that I were one of you, Dwelling afar upon the grassy leas, — I love ye all 1 Beautiful watchers ! day and night ye wake ! The Evening Star grows dim and fades away, The Morning comes and goes, and then the # POETRY OF FLOWERS. CP Within the arras of Night its rest doth take ; But ye are wakeful wheresoe'er we stray. — I love ye all ! Beautiful objects of the wild bee's love ! The wild-bird joys your opening bloom to see, And in your native woods and wilds to be ; All hearts, to Nature true, ye strangely move ; Ye are so passing fair — so passing free, — I love ye all ! Beautiful children of the glen and dell — The dingle deep — the moorland stretching wide, And of the mossy fountain's sedgy side ! Ye o'er my heart have thrown a lovesome spell ; And, though the Wordling, scorning, may deride, — T love ye all I SONG TO DIAPHENIA. Dtaphen's like the daffy-down-dilly, White as the sun, fair as the lily, Heigh-ho ! how I do love thee ! I do love thee as ray lambs Are beloved of their dams ; ilow blest were I if thou would'st prove ma 1 70 POETRY OF FLOWER8, Diaphenia, like the spreading roses, That in thy sweets all sweets encloses, Fair sweet, how I do love thee ! I do love thee as each flower Loves the sun's life-giving power ; For dead, thy breath to life might move md ! Diaphenia, like to all things blessed When all thy praises are expressed, Dear joy, how I do love thee ! As the birds do love the spring, Or the bees their careful king :^» Then in requite, sweet virgin, love m© ! THE ALPINE VIOLET, The spring is come, the violet's gone, The first-born child of the early sun ; With us she is but a winter flower, The snow on the hills cannot blast her bower. And she lifts up her dewy eye of blue, To the youngest sky of the self -same hue, But when the spring comes with her hoet Of flowers, that flower, beloved the most, Shrinks from the crowd, that may confuse Her heavenly odours and virgin hues, «e TOETRY OF FLOWERS. 71 Pluck the others, but still remember Their herald out of dire December ; The morning star of all the flowers, The pledge of daylight's lengthened hours ; And 'mid the roses ne'er forget The virgin, virgin violet. SUMMER WILL SPREAD HER ROSES. Summer will spread her roses O'er mountain and o'er lea, The wee blithe birdies 'mang the weeds Will sing wi' joyous glee — Will sing wi' joyous glee, For a' shall happy be ; For I will aye be lane at heart, Since Mary lo'es na me. Her cheek is fair and blooming, Her een are bonnie blue, Her lips are like the wild moss ros? When moistened o'er wi' dew. — When moistened o'er wi' dew, They would be sweet to pree, Yet I can never taste sic blisa, For Mary lo'es na me. 72 POETRY OF FLOWERS She aye looks on me kindly, An' meets me wi' a smile, An' by her side, in dreamy joy, Lang hours I aft beguile — Lang hours I aft beguile ; Yet in her dark blue e'e, There's something says her heart is cauld- That Mary lo'es na me. They say she lo'es anither, An' I need hope nae mair, They speak o' some wi' as bright een, An' wi' a brow as fair — An* wi' a brow as fair — But they nae joy can gi'e : My heart will aye be Mary's still, Though she should ne'er lo'e me. FLOWERS, Spake full well, in language quaint and olden, One who dwelleth by the castled Rhine, "When he called the flowers, so blue and golden, Stars that in earth's firmament do shine. Stars they are, wherein we read our history, As astrologers and seers of eld ; i POETRY OF FLOWERS. 73 Yet not wrapped about with awful mystery, Like the burning stars which they beheld. Wondrous truths, and manifold as wondrous, God hath written in those stars above ; But not less, in those bright flowrets under us, Stands the revelation of His love. Bright and glorious is that revelation, Written all over this great world of ours ; Making evident our own creation In these stars of earth, — these golden flower?. And the Poet, faithful and far seeing, Seeks, alike in stars and flowers, a part On the self-same universal Being, Which is throbbing in his brain and heart. Gorgeous flowrets in the sunlight shining, Blossoms flaunting in the eye of day, Tremulous leaves with soft and silver lining, Buds that open only to decay ; Brilliant hopes, all woven in gorgeous tissues, Flaunting gaily in the gorgeous light ; Large desires, with most uncertain issues, Tender wishes blossoming at night ! These in flowers and men are more than seemin; Workings are they of the self-same powers, 74 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Which the Poet, in no idle dreaming, Seeth in himself and in the flowers. Everywhere about us are they glowing, Some, like stars, to tell us Spring is born ! Others, their blue eyes with tears o'erflowing, Stand like Euth amid the golden corn ; Not alone in Spring's armorial bearing, And in Summer's green-emblazoned fiel 1, But in arms of brave old Autumn's wearing, And in the centre of his brazen shield : Not alone in meadows and green alleys, On the mountain top, and by the brink Of sequestered pools in woodland valleys, Where the slaves of Nature stoop to drink j Not alone in her vast dome of glory, Not on graves of bird and beast alone, But on old cathedrals high and hoary, On the tombs of heroes, carved in stone : <$> In the cottage of the rudest peasant, In ancestral homes, whose crumbling towers, Speaking of the Past unto the Present, Tell us of the ancient Games of Flowers ; In all places then, and in all seasons, Flowers expand their light and soul-like wings, POETRY OF FLOWERS. Teaching us, by most persuasive reasons, How akin they are to human things. And with child-like, credulous affection We behold their tender buds expand ; Emblems of our own great resurrection, Emblems of the bright and better land. 75 THE FLOWER OF THE WEST. The dewdrops of morning Each flower were adorning, The sweet early lark soared on high 'bove her nest, As by Kelvin* I strayed, Where its clear waters played, To meet with fair Jeannie, the flower of the west, 0, long have I lo'ed her, With fond thoughts have wooed her — To her breathed my soul in strains she love s best • There's none knows the feeling, That's through my heart stealing, A t the name of sweet Jeannie, the flower of the west. Her hair in soft tresses, Her pale cheek caresses ; Der eyes like twin stars when the sun's gone to rest 5 • A beautiful and romantic stream in Scotland, 76 POETRY OF FLOWERS. I've oft thought that Heaven To none smiles had given, Like those of fair Jeannie, the flower of the west The earth has its pleasures, And rich golden treasures Lie hid in the caves of its dark rocky breast ; But far brighter gems dwell In each rich laden cell Of the mind of sweet Jeannie, the flower of the west. May despair's chilling storm Ne'er assail her fair form ; May her heart by pale anguish ne'er be opprest ; May fair angels bless her, Watch o'er and caress her, And shield from cold winds the flower of the west. Though the sweet bonnie blossom Should ne'er grace my bosom, Or pour forth its perfume on this wounded breast, Yet still will I cherish, And never let perish, M> heart's love fur Jeannie, the flower of the west. > '> POETRY OF FLOWERS. TO A LOVER OF FLOWERS. Still, gentle lady, cherish flowers- True fairy friends are they, On whom, of all thy cloudless hours, Not one is thrown away ; By them, unlike man's ruder race, No care conferr'd is spurned, But all thy fond and fostering grace A thousand-fold return'd. The rose repays thee all thy smiles^* The stainless lily rears, Dew in the chalice of its wiles, As sparkling as thy tears. The glances of thy gladden'd eyes Not thanklessly are pour'd ; In the blue violet's tender dyes Behold them all restored. Yon bright carnation — once thy cheek Bent o'er it in the bud ; And back it gives thy blushes meek In one rejoicing flood ! That balm has treasured all thy sigh*, That snow-drop touch'd thy brow, Thus not a charm of thine shall die, Thy painted people vow. 78 POETRY OF FLOWERS. i THE BOUQUET. One summer's morn, fair Flora's shrine A beauteous maiden sought, A faultless bouquet to combine, Was what she would be taught. 1 Choose, maiden, from the flowery race, Thy favourites with care,' Said Flora, ' and I'll show the place Where each will seem most fair. ' A half blown rose, with sunny smilej Won first the fair maid's heart ; She raised it to her lips the while, The twins were loth to part, 'The work is done,' the goddess cries, ' The bouquet's faultless now, The flower, the lip, the world defies, For sweetness I will trow.' THE AUTUMN FLOWER. I wandered forth at the blush of morn, While the dew on the leaves yet hung And shadows deep of the giant oak Were far o'er the green sward flung. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 79 'Twas an autumn morn, and beside my way A sweet flower bloomed on that autumn day. I watched as it oped to the breath of morn, A blossom alone on the plain : For a few fleet hours in beauty it bloomed, But the sharp frost came again. It withered and dried, and shrunk away, That flower that bloomed on an autumn day. Thus on each tender thing of life, Will Death's cold hand be laid ; And what now blooms in rosy health, Like the lark in the breezy glade, Must sink to the earth and pass away, Like the flower that bloomed on an autumn day. TO A MOUNTAIN DAISY, 05 TURNING ONE DOWN WITH THE PLOUGH. Wee modest crimson-tipped flower, Thou'st met me in an evil hour ; For I maun crush amang the stour Thy slender stem ; To spare thee now is past my power, Thou bonnie gem, 80 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Alas ! it's no thy neebor sweet, The bonnie Lark, companion meet ! Bending thee 'mang the dewy weet ! Wi' speckled breast, When upward springing, blythe to greet The purplin east. Cauld blew the bitter biting north Upon thy early, humble birth ; Yet cheerfully thou glinted forth Amid the storm, Scarce reared above the parent earth Thy tender form. The flaunting flowers our gardens yield, High sheltering woods and wa's maun shield ! But thou, beneath the random bield 0' clod or stane, Adorn'st the histie stibble-field, Unseen, alane. There in the scanty mantle clad, Thy showy bosom sunward spread, Thou lift'st thy unassuming head In humble guise : But now the share uptears thy bed, And low thou lies 1 Such is the fate of artless maid, Sweet flow ryt of the rural shade ! POETRY OF FLOWERS. 81 By love's simplicity betrayed, And guileless trust ; Till she, like thee, all soiled, is laid Low i' the dust. Such is the fate of simple bard, On life's rough ocean luckless starr'd ! Unskilful he to note the card Of prudent lore, Till billows rage, and gales blow hard, And whelm him o'er ! Such fate to suffering worth is given, Who long with wants and woes has striven, By human pride and cunning driven To misery's brink, Till, wrenched of every stay but heaven, He ruined sink ! Even thou who mourn'st the Daisy's fate, That fate is thine— no distant date : Stern ruin's ploughshare drives elate, Full on thy bloom, Till crushed beneath the furrow's weight Shall be thy doom! 121 82 POETRY OF FLOWERS. MY HOME BENEATH THE SYCAMORE. How oft doth memory linger near, A spot which to my heart is dear ; While fancy's vision brightly shows A rippling stream which gently flows Along a deep and flowery vale, Where bloom the lilies pure and pale, Where stands upon its pebbly shore, My home beneath the sycamore. But 0, how dear thy native scenes, Thy running brooks and purling streams ; While now their tinkling eddies run, And dance and twinkle in the sun. Where the wild wood bird's stirring note Amid the scene so soothing float ; While the gay lark above did soar My home beneath the sycamore. When twilight soft its rays has lent To gild the glorious firmament, I've strayed along the mountain side, Where swells beneath the rolling tide, 'Mid brook, and bird, and fragrant trees, With all their wondrous power to please, Oft memory sweetly lingers o'er My home beneath the sycamore. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 83 FIELD FLOWERS. Flowers of the field, how meet ye seem Man's frailty to pourtray : Blooming so fair, 'neath morning's beam, Passing at eve away ; Teach this, and oh ! though brief your reign, Sweet flowers, ye shall not live in vain. Go, form a monitory wreath For youth's unthinking brow ; Go, and to busy manhood breathe What most he fears to know ; Go, strew the path where age doth tread, And tell him of the silent dead. But whilst to thoughtless ones and gay, Ye breathe these truths severe ; To those who droop, 'neath pale decay, Have ye no word of cheer? Yes, yes, ye weave a double spell, And life and death betoken well. Go then where, wrapt in fear and gloom, Fond hearts and true are sighing ; And deck with emblematic bloom The pillow of the dying ; And softly speak, nor speak in vain, Of your long sleep and broken chain. 84 POETRY OF FLOWERS. And say, that He who from the dust Recalls the slumbering flower, Will surely visit those who trust His mercy and his power ; Will mark where sleeps their peaceful clay, And roll ere long the stone away. -'] THE LILYO' THE VALE How oft I've sat beneath this bower, At twilight's calm enchanting hour, An' wooed a sweet wee modest flower — The lily o' the vale. The bricht-birds sang frae 'mangst the trees Soon lost its charm my heart to please, When her rich voice swelled on the breeze- Fair lily o' the vale. My heart has throbbed wi' pleasure sweet, My hours hae fled like moments fleet, When her ripe lips wi' mine did meet- Sweet lily o' the vale. Her brow is o' the snawdrap's hue, An' dark her een o' shining blue, Her lips twin roses gemmed wi' dew- Fair lily o' the vale. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 85 Her dark an' ^ wing silken hair, In ringlets ki? a a cheek so fair, That aft I've \ shed sic bliss to share- Sweet lily o' the vale. Wi* beauty's form, an' grace refined, She bears within a wealthy mind, Whaur a' that's pure an' bricht's combined- Dear lily o' the vale. Flowers mair gay may deck the plain ; Sae chaste an' lovely, there are nane, To me at least, compared wi' Jane — The lily o' the vale. TO CELIA. \ Drink to me only with thine eye, And I will pledge with mine ! Or leave a kisse within the cup, . And I'le not looke for wine. The thirst that from the soule doth rise Doth aske a drink divine ; But might I of Jove's nectar sip, I would not change for thine. I sent thee, late, a rosy wreath, Not so much honouring thee, 86 POETRY OF FLOWERS. As giving it a hope that there It could not withered be, But thou thereon didst only breathe, And sent'st it back to mee, Since when it growes, and smells, I sweare, Not of itself but thee. THE FLOWER DIAL. 'Twas a lovely thought to mark the hours, As they floated in light away, By the opening and the folding flowers, That laugh to the summer's day. Thus had each moment its own rich hue, And its graceful cup and bell, In whose coloured vase might sleep the dew, Like a pearl in an ocean shell. To such sweet signs might the time have flowed, In a golden current on, Ere from the garden, man's first abode, The glorious guests were gone. So might the days have been brightly told — Those days of song and dreams, — When shepherds gathered their flocks of old, By the blue Arcadian streams. 4 POETRY OF FLOWERS. So in those isles of delight, that rest Far off on a breezeless main, Which many a bark, with a weary guest, Has sought, but still in vain. Yet is not life, in its real flight, Marked thus— even thus — on earth By the closing of one hope's delight, And another's gentle birth ? Oh ! let us live so that flower by tlower, Shutting in turn, may leave A lingering still for the sunset hour, A charm for the shaded eve. S7 SYMPATHY OF CHILDHOOD WITH FLOWERS. Not one, mamma ! not only one : I could not bear to sever That bond of gentle union So rudely thus for ever. The primrose could not live alone Its graceful head would pine, Its starry blossoms, one by one, Forsake their dewy shrine. 88 POETRY OF FLOWERS. How would it languish for the buds It left in thousands there, Fringing the margin of the woods, Like gems in beauty's hair ! That sweet, pale rose ! cull it not Without its kindred flowers, Nor doom it to an exile's lot, Far from its native bowers. <# But let me bring a handful more, Yellow, and white, and red, Their mingled fragrancy to pour— Their blended light to shed. And see those daisy-twins, mamma ; How lovingly they smile ! Yearning for day's resplendent star, Yet bright'ning earth the while. I could not bear to bid them part, And leave one lonely here ; 'Twould seem like tearing from my heart Some friendship fond and dear. TOETRY OF FLOWERS. 89 LINES ON FLOWERS. Flowers are the brightest things which earth On her broad bosom loves to cherish ; Gay they appear as children's mirth, Like fading dreams of hope they perish. In every clime, in every age, Mankind have felt their pleasing sway ; And lays to them have deck'd the page Of moralist — and minstrel gay. By them the lover tells his tale, They can his hopes, his fears express ; The maid, when words or looks would fail, Can thus a kind return confess. They wreath the harp at banquets tried, With them we crown the crested brave : They deck the maid — adorn the bride— Or form the chaplets for her grave. TO THE VIOLET. Sweet lowly plant ! once more I bend To hail thy presence here, 90 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Like a beloved returning friend From absence doubly dear. Wert thou for ever in my sight, Might we not love thee less ? But now thou bringest new delight, -— Thou still has power to bless. Still doth thine April presence bring Of April joys a dream ; When life was in its sunny Spring— A fair unrippled stream. And still thine exquisite perfume Is precious as of old ; And still thy modest tender bloom, It joys me to behold. It joys and cheers whene'er I see Pain on Earth's meek ones press, To think the storm that rends the tree Scathes not thy lowliness. And thus may human weakness find, E'en on thy lowly flower, An image cheering to the mind In many a trying hour. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 91 A SONG OF THE ROSE. Rose ! what dost thou here ? Bridal, royal rose ? How, 'midst grief and fear, Canst thou thus disclose That fervid hue of love, which to thy heart-leaf glows ? Rose ! too much arraye 1 For triumphal hours, Look'st thou through the shade Of these mortal bowers, Not to disturb my soul, thou crown'd one of all flowers ! As an eagle soaring Through a sunny sky, As a clarion pouring Notes of victory, So dost thou kindle thoughts, for early life too high- Thoughts of rapture, flushing Youthful poet's cheek, Thoughts of glory rushing Forth in song to break. But finding the spring-tide of rapid song too weak. I 92 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Yet, oh ! festal rose, -^ I have seen thee lying ^{ In thy bright repose Pillowed with the dying, Thy crimson by the life's quick blood was flying. Summer, hope, and love, O'er that bed of pain, Met in thee, yet wove Too, too frail a chain In its embracing links the lovely to detain. Smil'st thou, gorgeous flower? — Oh ! within the spells Of thy beauty's power Something dimly dwells, At variance with a world of sorrows and fare- wells. All the soul forth-flowing In that rich perfume, All the proud life glowing In that radiant bloom, Have they no place but here, beneath the o'er- shadowing tomb ? ^ Crown'st thou but the daughters Of our tearful race ? — Heaven's own purest waters, Well might bear the trace Of thy consummate form, melting to softer grace. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 93 Will that clime enfold thee W T ith immortal air ? Shall we not behold thee Bright and deathless there? Iu spirit-lustre clothed, transcendently moro fair ? Yes ! my fancy sees thee In that light disclose, And its dream thus frees thee From the mist of woes, Darkening thine earthly bowers, bridal, royal rose ! THE LIFE OF FLOWERS. I would, dear love ! that I thy convert were To that strange lore. — The fair flowers dream and feel, Are glad and woful, fond and scornful are ; And mutely conscious how the unresting wheel Of Time revolveth, and doth hourly steal Their beauty, and the heart-companionship Of their nectarious kindred, and reveal Their souls to sunlight, and with fragrant lip Drink the abundant dewd that from God's eye- li Is drip. 94 POETRY OF FLOWERS. But then, I never dare another cull, To crush its being, and for ever end Its commune with its fellows beautiful ; Ah ! no, presence and absence never blend A consciousness about them ; or to rend Lover from lover, in their early wooing, When even the rainbow their dew'd eyes tran- scend ; For our adornment merely — oh ! 'twere doing Sweet creatures bitter wrong, with our worst woes indulging. At least, for conscience-sake, I'll not believe That they are sensible to hearted feeling : For in no creature's being would I weave Those griefs which even now I am revealing In te;*rs and sighs, from lips and eyelids steal- ing- Sad rain and wind of my heart's laden cloud ! — By which, if they do feel, with wounds unheal- ing Their parted spirits must be cleft and bow'd Till they grew pale and sear, and wore death's common shroud. Then, to the lover's and the poet's warning Attend, as to a Delphic oracle ; When flowers into the grey eyes of the morning Peer in awaken'd beauty from Night's cell ; On the warm heart of Noontide when they dwell ; TOETRY OF FLOWERS. S5 Or close in loveliness at Twilight's feet They gave their thoughts and dreams; and thou dost quell A gentle spirit in each blossom sweet (Which its love-conscious mates for ever pme to greet — And pine in vain !) which thy small hand doth sunder From its green birth-place ! — Art thou of those that sleep In common thought, to whom there is no wonder In all the universe sublime and deep — Invisible and visible ! There weep Dews of a Morning round us, which must break — And unveil all things o'er which darkly sweep The night-shades of our ignorance. Awake ! And in this creed believe— for love's, if not truth's sake. THE LAST WISH, Go to the forest shade — Seek thou the well-known glade, Where, heavy with sweet dew, the violets lie, Gleaming through moss-tufts deep, Like dark eyes filled with sleep, And bathed in hues of summer's midnight sky, 96 POETKY OF FLOWERS. Bring me their buds, to shed Around my dying bed A breath of May, and of the wood's repose ; For I in sooth depart With a reluctant heart, That fain would linger where the bright sun glows. Fain would I stay with thee — Alas ! this may not be ; Yet bring me still the gifts of happier hours ; Go where the fountain's breast Catches, in glassy rest, The dim green light that pours through laurel bowers. I know how softly bright, Steeped in that tender light, The water-lilies tremble there, e'en now ; Go to the pure stream's edge, And from its whispering sedge Bring me those flowers to cool my fevered brow ! Then, as in hope's young days, Track you the antique maze Of the rich garden, to its grassy mound ; There is a lone white rose, Shedding, in sudden snows, Its faint leaves o'er the emerald turf around ; Well know'st thou that fair tree — A murmur of the bee * %e POETRY OF FLOWETI*. 97 Dwells ever in the honey'd lime above ; Bring me one pearly flower Of all its clustering shower — For on that spot we first revealed our love, Gather one woodbine bough, Then from the lattice low Of the bowered cottage which I bade thee mark, When by the hamlet last, Through dim wood-lanes we pass'd, While dews were glancing to the glow*worm'a spark : Haste ! to my pillow bear Those fragrant things and fair, Thy hand no more may bind them up at eve — Yet shall their odours soft One bright dream round me waft Of life, youth, summer— all that I must leave; And oh ! if thou wouldst ask Wherefore thy steps I task, The grove, the stream, the hamlet vale to trace— 'Tis that some thought of me, When I am gone, may be The spirit bound to. each familiar place, I bid mine image dwell (Oh ! break not thou the spell !) In the deep wood and by the fountain side ; 121 Q 98 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Thou must not, my beloved ! Rove where we two have roved, Forgetting her that in her spring-time died ! TO A WILD FLOWER. In what delightful land, Sweet scented flower, didst thou attain thy birth ? Thou art no offspring of the common earth, By common breezes fann'd. Full oft my gladden'd eye, In pleasant glade or river's marge has traced, (As if there planted by the hand of taste), Sweet flowers of every dye. But never did I see, In mead, or mountain, or domestic bower, 'Along many a lovely and delicious flower, One half so fair as thee. Thy beauty makes rejoice My inmost heart. I know not how 'tis so — Quick coming fancies thou dost make me know, For fragrance is thy voice. TOETRY OF FLOWERS. 99 And still it comes to me, In quiet night, and turmoil of the day, Like memory of friends gone far away, Or, haply, ceased to be. Together we'll commune, As lovers do, when, standing all apart, No one o'erhears the whispers of their heart, Save the all-silent moon. Thy thoughts I can divine, Although not uttered in vernacular words ; Thou me remind 'st of songs of forest birds ; Of venerable wine ; Of Earth's fresh shrubs and roots ; Of Summer days, when men their thirsting slake In the cool fountain, or the cooler lake, While eating wood-grown fruits. Thy leaves my memory tell Of sights, and scents, and sounds, that come again, Like ocean's murmurs, when the balmy strain Is echoed in its shell. The meadows in their green Smooth running waters in the far-off ways, The deep-voiced forest, where the hermit prays, In thy fair face are seen. 109 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Thy home is in the wild, 'Mong sylvan shades, near music-haunted springs, Where peace dwells all apart from earthly things, Like some secluded child. The beauty of the sky, The music of the woods, the love that stirs Wherever nature charms her worshippers, Are all by thee brought nigh, I shall not soon forget What thou hast taught me in my solitude ; My feelings have acquired a taste of good, Sweet flower ! since first we met. Thou bring'st unto the soul A. blessing and a peace, inspiring thought ; And dost the goodness and the power denote Of Him who formed the whole. TO THE LILY OF THE VALLEY. Fair flow'r, that lapt in lowly glade Dost hide beneath the greenwood shade, Than whom the vernal gale None fairer wakes on bank or spray, Our England's lily of the May, Our lily of the vale. rOETUY OF FLOWERS. 101 Art thou that " Lily of the field," Which, when the Saviour sought to shield The heart from blank despair, He showed to our mistrustful kind, An emblem to the thoughtful mind Of God's paternal care ? Not thus I trow : for brighter shine To the warm skies of Palestine Those children of the east. — There, when mild autumn's early rain Descends on parch'd Esdrela's plain, And Tabor's oak-girt crest — More frequent than the host of night, Those earth-born stars, as sages write, Their brilliant disks unfold ; Fit symbol of imperial state Their sceptre-seeming forms elate, And crowns of burnish'd gold. But not the less sweet spring- tide's flower, Dost thou display the Maker's power, His skill and handy work, Our western valley's humbler child ; Where in green nook of woodland wild Thy modest blossoms lurk. \7hat though nor care nor art be thine, The loom to ply, the thread to twine ! 102 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Yet, born to bloom and fade, Thee, too, a lovelier robe arrays Then e'er in Israel's brightest da) s Her wealthiest king array'd. Of thy twin leaves th' embower'd screen Which wraps thee in thy shroud of green ; Thy Eden-breathing smell ; Thy arch'd and purple-vested stem, Whence pendant many a pearly gem, Displays a milk-white bell ; Instinct with life thy fibrous root, Which sends from earth the ascending shoot As rising from the dead, And fills thy veins with verdant juice, Charg'd thy fair blossoms to produce. And berries scarlet red. The triple cell, the two-fold seed, A ceaseless treasure-house decreed, Whence aye thy race may grow, As from creation they have grown. While spring shall weave her flowery crown, Or vernal breezes blow : — Who forms thee thus with unseen hind ; Who at creation gave command, And will'd thee thus to be, POETRY OF FLOWERS. 103 And keeps thee still in being thro' Age after age revolving, who But the Great God is He ? Omnipotent to work his will ; Wise, who contrives each part to fill The post to each assign'd ; Still provident, with sleepless care To keep : to make the sweet and fair For man's enjoyment, kind ! 11 There is no God," the senseless say ; — M God, why cast'st thou us away ?" Of feeble faith and frail, The mourner breathes his anxious thought— By thee a better lesson taught, Sweet lily of the vale. Yes ! He who made and fosters thee, In reason's eye perforce must be Of majesty divine ; Nor deems she that his guardian care Will He in man's support forbear, Who thus provides for thine. 104 POETRY OF FLOWERS. THE NIGHT-BLOOMING CERUS. How coyly thou the golden hours dost number ! Not all their splendour can thy love beguile ; Vainly the morning zephyrs fan thy slumber, And noon's rich glory wooes thee for a smile. For thou dost blossom when cool shadows hover, And dews are falling through the dusky air ; When with new fervor dreams the happy lover, And winds grow solemn with the voice of prayer. With all around thee earth's bright things are sleeping, Gay lilies fade and droops the crimson rose, Fresh is the vigil thou alone art keeping, And sweet the charms thy virgin leaves disclose. Thus, in the soul is deep love ever hidden, Thus noble minds will ever shun the throng, And at their chosen time start forth unbidden. With peerless valor or undying song. Thus the true heart its mystic leaves concealing. Folds them serenely from the world's broad glare, Its treasured bliss and inmost grief revealing To the calm starlight and the dewy air. Blest is thy lesson, vestal of the flowers — Not in the sunshine is our whole delight ; Borne joys bloom only in love's pensive hours, And pour their fragrance on the breeze of night. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 105 TO A BLIGHTED BLOSSOM. Ah, blossomed blighted, luckless, lone, Thy fragrance fled, thy beauty gone, No eye regards thee now. Like wild weeds on a nameless grave, Thy melancholy petals wave Upon thy parent bough. But late in all thy rich array, Thou gem'dst the coronal of May, As Iris gems the skies. Thy rival sisters shrunk abased, Whilst bards beside thee paused and gazed With wonder-stricken eyes. Why did'st thou droop, thou tender thing, Ere yet the birds have ceased to sing Their joyous summer song ! Why did'st thou die, fair flower, while yet The pearly dew was lingering wet That should have nursed thee lon^ ? Was it with thee, as oft in life, Where envy vows eternal strife With merit's modest claim ? 106 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Did malice, with her demon scowl, Dark lowering, pour her venom foul Forth on thy morn of fame ? If sooth imaginations guess, Thou art not all companioning In thy dejected state. Like thee hath many a genius proud Found Refuge in an early shroud, Beyond the reach of fate. Farewell ! no prescient power is mine But should my lot resemble thine, Should fortune's biting blast Rave round my dark devoted head, If conscience here her halo shed, I'll brave it to the last. YE ARE NOT MISS'D, FAIR FLOWERS. Ye are not missM, fair flowers, that late were spreading The summer's glow by fount and breezy grot ; There falls the dew, its fairy favours shedding, The leaves dance on, the young birds miss you not. I rOETRY OF FLOWERS. 107 Still plays the sparkle o'er the rippling water, lily ! whence thy cup of pearl is gone ; The bright wave mourns not for its loveliest daughter, There is no sorrow in the wind's low tone. And thou, meek hyacinth ! afar is roving The bee that oft thy trembling bells hath kissM, Cradled ye were, fair flowers ! midst all things loving, A joy to all — yet, yet, ye are not miss'd Ye, that were born to lend the sunbeam glad- ness And the winds fragrance, wandering where they list! — Oh ! it were breathing words too deep in sad- ness, To say — earth's human flowers not more are miss'd. THE ROSE. Go, lovely rose ! Tell her that wastes her time and me, That now she knows, When 1 resemble her to thee, How sweet and fair she seems to ba 108 POETRY OF FLOWEItS. Tell her that's young, And shuns to have her graces spied, That, hadst thou sprung In deserts where no men abide, Thou must have uncommen led died. Small is the worth Of beauty from the light retired ; Bid her come forth, Suffer herself to be desired, And not blush so to be admired. Then, die ; that she The common fate of all things rare May read in thee ; How small a part of time they share, That are so wondrous sweet and fair. THE POSIE. 0, LUVE will venture in, where it daurna wed be seen ; 0, Luve will venture in, where Wisdom ance has been ; But I will down yon river rove, amang the woods sae green, And a' to pu* a posie to my ain dear May, POETRY OF FLOWERS. 109 The primrose I will pu', the firstling o' the year, And I will pu' the pink, the emblem o' my dear ; For she's the pink o' womankind, and blooms without a peer ; And a' to be a posie to my ain dear May. I'll pu' the budding rose, when Phoebus peeps in view, For it's like a balmy kiss o' her sweet bonnie mou; The hyacinth's for constancy, wi' its unchanging blue; And a' to be a posie to my ain dear May. J The lily it is pure, and the lily it is fair, And in her lovely bosom I'll place the lily there ; The daisy's for simplicity and unaffected air ; And a' to be a posie to my ain dear May. The hawthorn I will pu', wi' its locks o' siller grey, Where, like an aged man, it stands at break o* day ; But the songster's nest within the bush I winna tak away ; And a' to be a posie to my ain dear May. The woodbine I will pu', when the e'ening star is near, And the diamond drops o' dew shall be her een aae clear : HO POETRY OF FLOWERS. The violet's for modesty, which weel she fa's to wear ; And a' to be a posie to my ain dear May. I'll tie the posie round wi' the silken band o' hive, And I'll place it in her breast, and I'll swear by a' above, That to ray latest draught o' life the band shall ne'er remuve ; And this shall be a posie to my ain dear May. FIELD FLOWERS. Ye field flowers ! the gardens eclipse you, 'tia true, Yet, wildings of Nature, I doat upon you, For ye waft me to summers of old, When the earth teemed around me with fairy de- light, And when daisies and buttercups gladdened my sight, Like treasures of silver and gold. I love you for lulling me back into dreams Of the blue Highland mountains and echoing streams, •OF/TRY OF FLOWERS. Ill And of broken glades breathing their balm ; While the deer was seen glancing in sunshine re- mote, And the deep mellow crush of the wood pigeon's note Made music th.^t sweetened the calm. Not a pastoral song has a pleasanter tune Than ye speak to my heart, little wildings <>f June : Of old ruinous castles ye tell, Where I thought it delightful your beauties to find, When the magic of nature first breathed on my mind, And your blossoms were part of her spell. Ev'n now what affections the violet awakes : What lov'd little islands, twice seen in their lakes, Can the wild water-lily restore ; What landscapes 1 read in the primrose's looks, And what pictures of pebbled and minnowy brooks In the vetches that tangled their shore. Earth's cultureless buds, to my heart ye were dear, Ere the fever of passion, or ague of fear, Had scathed my existence's bloom. 112 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Once I welcome you more, in life's passionless stage, With the visions of youth to revisit my ag©, And I wish you to grow on my tomb. THE ROSE. As late each flower that sweetest blows I pluck'd, the garden's pride ! Within the petals of a rose A sleeping Love I spied. Around his brows a beamy wreath Of many a lucent hue ; All purple glowed his cheek, beneath, Inebriate with dew. I softly seized the unguarded Power, Nor scared his balmy rest ; And placed him, caged within the flower, On spotless Sara's breast. But when, unweeting of the guile, Awoke the prisoner sweet, He struggled to escape awhi!e 3 And stamp'd bis fairy feet, POETRY OF FLOWERS. 113 A h ! soon the soul-entrancing sight Subdued the impatient boy ; He gazed, he thrilled with deep delight, Then clapp'd his wings for joy. And, " !" he cried, " of magic kind, What charms this throne endear! Some other love let Venus find — I'll fix my empire here." ON A FADED VIOLET. The odour from the flower is gone ; Which, like thy kisses, breathed on me ! The colour from the flower is flown, Which glow'd of thee, and only thee ! A shrivell'd lifeless, vacant form, It lies on my abandoned breast, And mocks the heart which yet is warm, With cold and silent rest. I weep — my tears revive it not ! I sigh — it breathes no more on me; Its mute and uncomplaining lot Ts such as mine should be. 121 H 114 FOETRY OF FLQWEKS, THE BROKEN FLOWER. Oh ! wear it on thy heart, my love ! Still, still a little while ! Sweetness is lingering in its leaves, Though faded be their smile, Yet for the sake of what hath been, Oh ! cast it not away ! Twas born to grace a summer scene, A long, bright, golden day, My love I A long, bright, golden day ! A little while around thee, love ! Its fragrance yet shall cling, Telling that on thy heart hath lain, A fair, though faded thing. But not even that warm heart hath power To win it back from fate : — Oh 1 I am like thy broken flower, Cherished too late, too late, My love ! Cherished, alas ! too late ! *g POETRY OF FLOWERS. 1!5 THE REAPER AND THE FLOWERS. There is a Reaper, whose name is Death, And, with his sickle keen, He reaps the bearded grain at a breath, And the flowers that grow between. " Shall 1 have nought that is fair !" saith he ; " Have nought but the bearded grain ! Though the breath of these flowers is sweet to mo, I will give them all back again." lie gazed at the flowers with tearful eyes, He kissed their drooping leaves ; It was for the Lord of Paradise He bound them in his sheaves. 11 My Lord hath need of these flowrets gay, J The Reaper said and smiled ; " Dear tokens of the earth are they, Where he was once a child. u They shall all bloom in fields of light, Transplanted by my care, And saints upon their garments white, These sacred blossoms wear." 116 POETRY OF FLOWERS. And the mother gave in tears and pain, The flowers she most did love ; She knew she should find them all again in the fiekls of light above. 0, not in cruelty, not in wrath, The Reaper came that day ; Twas an angel visited the green earth, And took the flowers away. THE COWSLIP. Bowing adorers of the gale, Ye cowslips delicately pale, Upraise your loaded stems : Unfold your cups of splendour, speak ! Who deck'd you with that ruddy streak, And gilt your golden gems ? Ye lovely flowers of lowly birth, Embroiderers of the carpet earth, That stud the velvet sod ; Open to Spring's refreshing air, In sweetest smiling bloom declare Your Maker and your God. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 117 THE DAISY. Not worlds on worlds in phalanx deep, Need we to prove a God is here, The daisy, fresh from winter's sleep, Tells of his hand in lines as clear. For who but he who arched the skies, And pours the day spring's living flood, Wondrous alike in all he tries, Could rear the daisy's purple bud 1 Mould its green cup, its wiry stem, Its fringed border nicely spin, And cup the gold-embossed gem That's set in silver gleams within ? And fling it unrestrained and free, O'er hill and dale and desert sod, That man, where'er he walks, may see, In every step, the stamp of God ? THE DAFFODIL. Fair Daffodils, to see You haste away so soon ; 118 POETRY OF FLOWERS. As yet the early rising sun Has not attained his noon : Stay, stay, Until the hastening day Has run But to the even-song ; And, having prayed together, wa Will go with you along. We have short time to stay as you ; We have as short a spring, As quick a growth to meet decay, As you, or anything : We die, As your hours do ; and dry Away Like to the summer's rain, Or as the pearls of morning dew, Ne'er to be found again. THE HAREBELL. With drooping bells of clearest blue, Thou didst attract my childish view, Almost resembling The azure butterflies that flew, Where on the heath thy blossoms grew So lightly trembling. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 119 Where feathery fern, and golden bloom, Increase the sand-rock cavern's gloom, I've seen thee tangled, 'Mid tufts of purple heather bloom, By vain Arachne's treacherous loom, With dew-drops spangled. 'Mid ruins tumbling to decay, Thy flowers their heavenly hues display, Still freshly springing Where pride and pomp have pass'd away, On mossy tomb and turret grey, Like friendship clinging. When glow-worm lamps illume the scene, And silvery daisies dot the green, Thy flowers revealing ; Perchance to soothe the fairy-queen, With faint sweet tones, on night serene, Thy soft bells pealing. But most I love thine azure braid, When softer flowers are all decayed, And thou appearest Stealing beneath the hedgerow sha« -e, Like joys that linger as they fade, Whose last are dearest. Thou art the flower of memory ; The pensive soul recalls in thee 120 POETRY OF FLOWERS. The year's past pleasures ; And led by kindred thought will flee, Till back to careless infancy The path she measures. Beneath autumnal breezes bleak, So faintly fair, so sadly meek, I've seen thee bending ; Pale as the pale veins that streak Consumption's thin transparent cheek, With death hues blending. Thou shalt be sorrow's love and mine. The violet and the eglantine With spring are banished ; In summer's beam the roses shine ; But I of thee my wreath will twine, When these are vanished. TO THE DAISY. Little flower with starry brow, Slumbering in thy bed of snow ; Or with lightly tinged ray, Winter gone and storms away, Peeping from thy couch of green With modest head and simple mien ; FOETRY OF FLOWERS. 12.1 How I love to see thee lie, In thy low serenity, Basking in the gladsome beam ; Or, beside some murmuring stream Gently bowing from thy nest Greet the water's silver breast. Or mid fissure of the rock, Hidden from the tempest's shock, Vie with snowy lily's bell — Queen and fairy of the dell. Thee nor wind nor storm can tear From thy lonely mountain lair : Nor the sleety, sweeping rain, Root thee from thy native plain. Winter's cold, nor Summer's heat, Blights thee in thy snug retreat ; Chill'd by snow or scorch'd by flame, Thou for ever art the same. Type of truth, and emblem fair Of virtue struggling through despair, Close may sorrows hem it round, Troubles bend it to the ground ; Yet the soul within is calm, Dreads no anguish, fears no harm ; Conscious that the Hand which tries All its latent energies, Can, with more than equal power, Bear it through temptation's hour Still the conflict, soothe its sighs, And plant it 'neath congenial skies. 122 POETRY OF FLOWERS. TO PRIMROSES, FILLED WITH MORNING DEW. > Why do ye weep, sweet babes? can tears Speak grief in you, Who were but born Just as the modest morn Teem'd her refreshing dew ? Alas ! you have not known that shower That mars a flower ; Nor felt the unkind Breath of a blasting wind ; Nor are ye worn with years ; Or warp'd, as we Who think it strange to see Such pretty flowers, like to orphans young, Speaking by tears before ye have a tongue. Speak, whimpering younglings, and make known. The reason why Ye droop, and weep ; Is it for want of sleep, Or childish lullaby ? Or that ye have not seen as yet The violet ? Or brought a kiss From that sweetheart to this? No, no ; this sorrow shewn POETRY OF FLOWERS. 123 By your tears shed, Would have this lecture read :— "That things of greatest, so of meanest worth, Conceived with grief are, and with tears brought forth." SWEET LAVENDER. Sweet lavender ! I love thy flower Of meek and modest blue, Which meets the morn and evening hour, The storm, the sunshine, and the shower, And changeth not its hue. In cottage-maid's parterre thou'rt seen, In simple touching grace ; And in the garden of the queen, 'Midst costly plants and blossoms sheen, Thou also hast a place. The rose, with bright, and peerless bloom, Attracted many eyes ; But while her glories and perfume Expire before brief summer's doom, Thy fragrance never dies. Thou art not like the fickle train, Our adverse fates estrange ; 124 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Who, in the day of grief and pain, Are found deceitful, light and vain, For thou dost never change. But thou art emblem of the friend, Who, whatsoe'er our lot, The balm of faithful love will lend, And true, and constant to the end, May die, but alters not. # THE GIRL AND THE BLOSSOMS. When apple-trees in spring were gay, With many a rosy blossom, A damsel plucked them every day To deck her hair and bosom. She wove her wreaths in sport alone, Or vain profusion rather, Till all the gifts of May were gone, And there was none to gather. But Time, who sleeps not though he's mute, At length brought on the season When blossoms are exchanged for fruit Which all expect with reason, &•' POETRY OF FLOWERS. But when the careless maiden thought To share the autumn treasure, The trees produced not what she sought, Which filled her with displeasure. The gardener marked her vain pursuit Among the orchard bowers, And cried, " if you expected fruit, Why did you pluck the flowers ?" 125 THE EVERLASTING ROSE. Hail to thy hues, thou lovely flower ! Still shed around thy soft perfume ; Still smile amid the wint'ry hour ; And boast e'en now a spring-tide bloom. Thine is, methinks, a pleasant dream, Long lingering in the icy vale, Of smiles that hail'd the morning beam, And sighs more sweet for evening's gale ! Still are thy green leaves whispering Low sounds to Fancy's ear that tell Of mornings, when the wild bee's wing Shook dew-drops from thy sparkling cell. 126 POETRY OF FLOWERS. In April's bower thy sweets are breathe \, And June beholds thy blossoms fair ; In Autumn's chaplets thou art wreathed, And round December's forehead bare. With thee the graceful lily vied, As summer breezes waved her head ; And now the snowdrop at thy side Meekly contrasts thy cheerful red. Tis thine to hear each varying voice, That marks the seasons sad or gay ; The summer thrush bids thee rejoice, And wintry robin's dearer lay. Sweet flower ! how happy dost thou seem, 'Mid parching heat, 'mid nipping frost : While gathering beauty from each beam, No hue, no grace of thine is lost ! Thus Hope, 'mid life's severest days, Still smiles, still triumphs o'er despair ; Alike she lives in Pleasure's rays, And cold Affection's wintry air. ^ Charmer, alike in lordly bower, And in the hermit's cells she glows ; The Poet's and the Lover's flower, The bosom's Everlasting Rose- ! J'OETRY OF FLOWERS. 12; THE LOVER'S WREATH, With tender vine-leaves wreathe thy brow, And I shall fancy that I see In the bright eye that shines below, The dark grape on its parent tree; Tis but a whim, but oh ! entwine My leafy crown round thy brow divine. Weave of the clover-leaves a wreath, Fresh sparkling with an April shower, And I shall think my fair one's breath Is but the fragrance of the flower ; 'Tis but a whim, but oh ! do thou Entwine my wreath round thy blushing brow Oh ! let sweet-leaved Geranium be Entwined amidst thy clustering hair, Whilst thy red lips shall paint to me How bright its scarlet blossoms are ; 'Tis but a whim, but oh ! do thou Crown with my wreath thy lovely brow. Oh ! twine green rose-leaves round thy head, And 1 shall dream the flowers are there, The moss-rose on thy rich cheek spread, The white upon thy forehead fair : 'Tis but a whim, but oh ! entwine My wreath round that dear brow of thine. 123 POETRY OF FLOWERS. THE VIOLET. A VIOLET blossomed on the green, With lowly stem, and bloom unseen ; It was a sweet, wee flower. A shepherd maiden came that way With lightsome step, and aspect gay, Came near, came near, Came o'er the green with song. Ah ! thought the violet, might I be The fairest flower on all the lea, Ah 1 but for one brief hour ; And might be ptuck'd by that dear maid, And gently on her bosom laid, Ah but, ah but, A few dear moments long. Alas ! the maiden, as she passM, No eye upon the violet cast ; She crush'd the poor, wee flower ; It sank, and dying, heaved no sigh, And if I die, at least I die By her, by her, Beneath her feet I die. mm POETRY OF FLOWERS. 129 THE YOUNG MAID AND THE FLOWER. The coffin descends ! and the garland of roses, By a father's hand dropped, on its lid reposes, To the bridegroom death a dower I Earth ! open thy arms, and take to thy bosem These twinlings of beauty, cut off in their blos- som, The fair young maid, and the flower ! Ah ! give them not back to this impure dwelling Where sorrow and pain have power of quelling The bliss of man in an hour ! No storm shall blast them, when laid in thy keep- ing, Heat shall not scorch them, noise break not their sleeping — The fair young maid and the flower ! How brief was thy span of enjoyment, poor mai- den ! But yet the dark future, with care and grief laden For others, thy peace cannot sour ! Oh, night ! shed thy dews from their grave-turf's adorning, Their life was a short and a sweet summer's morn- ing— The fair young maid and the flower I 121 I 130 POETRY OF FLOWERS. THE ROSE-BUD. I wish the bud would never blow, 'Tis prettier and purer so ; * It blushes through its bower of green, And peeps above the mossy screen So timidly, I cannot bear To have it open to the air. I kissed it o'er and o'er again, As if my kisses were a chain. To close the quivering leaflets fast, And make for once— a rosebud last I But kisses are but feeble links For changeful things, like flowers, methinks ; The wayward rose-leaves one by one, Uncurl'd and look'd up to the sun, With their sweet flushes fainter growing, I could not keep my bud from blowing ! Ah ! there upon my hand it lay, And faded, faded fast away ; You might have thought you heard it sighing, It looked so mournfully in dying. I wish it were a rose-bud now, I wish 'twere only hiding yet, With timid grace its blushing brow, Behind the green that sheltered it ; I had not written were it so, Why would the silly rose-bud blow ? l'OETRY OF FLOWE11S 133 THE FLOWER " FORGET-ME-NOT-" Dearest of all the flowers that gaily gleam, In garden, field, or on the green hill's breast, For link'd with thee does fond remembrance seem. With gentle memories round thy stem to rest ! Some absent friend, in fancy hovers near, Some form, o'er dale and hill divided far, " Forget-me-not !" in distant tones we hear, Oh vain such prayers and parting wishes are ! Yet still, forget-me-not S when moonlight sleeps, On garden walks where we together stray'd, When twilight dews, each gentle flowret weeps, And stars are gleaming o'er the shadowy glade, Forget-me-not ! when midnight gales are high, When voices seem to whisper faint and low, When clouds career along the autumn sky, And winds are tossing wide the poplar bough. Forget-me-not ! when morning breaks serene, When modest spring her dewy garland wears, Forget-me-not ! — when deck'd in summer sheen, With flowers all gay, thy peaceful home ap< pears ! 134 POETRY OF FLOWERS. And think on me ! in the calm holy hour, Devotion's own, when thou in prayer art bend- ing, On thee may heaven its every blessing shower, Still let our prayers, tho' absent, thus be blend- ing 1 THE IVY-SONG- Oh ! how could fancy crown with thee In ancient days the god of wine, And bid thee at the banquet be Companion of the vine ! Ivy 1 thy home is where each sound Of revelry hath long been o'er, Where song and beaker once went round, But now are known no more. Where long-fallen gods recline, There the place is thine. The Roman, on his battle plains Where kings before his eagles bent, With thee, amidst exulting strains, Shadow'd the victor's tent ; Though shining there in deathless £reen ; Triumphally thy boughs might wave, Better thou lovest the silent scene Around the victor's grave. POETRY OF FLOWEPwS. 135 Urn and sculpture half-divine, Yield their place to thine. The cold halls of the regal dead, Where lone the Italian sunbeams dwell, Where hollow sounds the lightest tread — Ivy they know thee well ! And far above the festal vine, Thou wavest where once proud banners hung, Where mouldering turrets crest the Rhine, The Rhine, still fresh and young ! Tower and rampart o'er the Rhine, I vj , all are thine ! High from the fields of air look down Those eyries of a vanished race, Where harp, and battle, and renown, Have passed and left no trace. But thou art there serenely bright, Meeting the mountain storms with bloom, Thou that wilt climb the loftiest height, Or crown the lowliest tomb ! Iv^, Ivy ! all are thine, Palace, hearth, and shrine. Tis all the same ; our pilgrim tread O'er classic plains, through deserts free, On the mute path of ages fled, Still meets decay and thee. And still let man his fabrics rear. 136 POETRY OF FLO WE IIS. August in beauty, stern in power. Days past — thou Ivy never sere ! And thou shalt have thy dower. All are thine, or must be thino 1 Temple, pillar, shrine ! THE COWSLIP- Now, in my walk, with sweet surprise I see the first spring cowslip rise, The plant whose pensile flowers Bend to the earth their beauteous eyes In sunshine as in showers. Low on a mossy bank it grew, Where lichens purple, red and blue, Among the verdure crept ; Its yellow ringlets dropping dew, The breezes lightly swept. A bee had nestled on its bloom, Ho shook abroad their rich perfume, Then fled in airy rings ; His place a butterfly assumes, Glancing his glorious wings. %£ POETRY OF FLOWERS. Oh ! welcome ! as a friend ! I cried, A friend through many a season tried, And never sought in vain, When May, with Flora at her side, Is dancing on the plain. Sheltered by Nature's graceful hand In briery glens, o'er pasture land The fairy tribes we meet, Gay, in the milk-maid's path they stand, They kiss her tripping feet. 137 From winter's farm-yard bondage freed, The cattle bounding o'er the mead, Where green the herbage grows, Among thy fragrant blossoms feed, Upon thy tufts repose. Tossing his forelock o'er his mane, The foal, at rest upon the plain, Sports with thy flexile stalk; Yet stoops his little neck in vain To crop it in his walk. Where thick thy primrose blossoms play, Lovely and innocent as they, O'er coppice, lawns and dells, In bands the village children stray To pluck thy honied bells ; 138 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Whose simple sweets with curious skill The frugal cottage dames distil, Nor envy France the vine ; While many a festal cup they fill Of Britain's homely wine. Perhaps from nature's earliest May, Imperishable 'midst decay, Thy self-renewing race Have breathed their balmy lives away, In this neglected place. And oh ! till nature's final doom Here unmolested may they bloom, From scythe and plough secure ; This bank their cradle and their tomb, While earth and skies endure ! THE WILD FLOWER. Sweet wilding tufts that 'mid the waste, Your lowly buds expand : Though by no sheltering walls embraced, Nor trained by beauty's hand ; The primal flowers which grace your stems Bright as the dahlia's shine, Found thus Jike unexpected gems, To lonely hearts like mine. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 139 "lis a quaint thought, and yet, perchance, Sweet blossoms ye are sprung From flowers that over Eden once Their pristine fragrance flung ;— They drank the dews of Paradise, Beneath the starlight clear ; Or caught from Eve's dejected eyes Her first repentant tear. LINES SENT WITH A NOT." FORGET-ME- ■J Emblem of my Fanny's eye, Dyed with empyrean hue, Bright as heaven's sunshine sky, Divinely, beautifully blue. Emblem of my Fanny's mind, Resplendent, modest, rich and pure, Like that brilliant gem we find All radiant, though at first obscure. Emblem of my Fanny's heart, But what to that can I compare ? All that heaven could impart Of woman'is worth s is perfect there, 140 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Go, lovely flower! to Fanny go ! And tell her absence ne'er can blot From mem'ry her loved image — no ! And, flower, bid her " forge t-me-nofc !" OH! THE FLOWERY MONTH OF JUNE. Oh ! the flowery month of June again I hail as summer's queen ; The hills and valleys sing in joy, and all the woods are green ; The streamlets flow in gladsome song, the birds are all in tune, And nature smiles in summer pride, in the flowery month of June ! There's music in the laughing sky, and balm upon the air ; The earth is stamped with loveliness, and all around is fair ; There's glory on the mountain top, and gladness on the plain ; The flowers wake from their wintry bed, and blush in bloom again ! Oh ! the flowery month of June ! my heart is bounding wild and free, As with a fond and longing look I gaze once more on thee ! *£ POETRY OF FLOWERS. 141 With all thy thousand spangling gems— a bright and blessed boon — That come to cheer and welcome in the flowery month of June ! The lark hath sought an upward home, far in tho dewy air ; While lowly by the rose's cheek, the blackbird's singing there ; Or in its leafy bowers unseen, the thrush bursts forth in song — A low and pleasing melody the woods and dells among ! Oh ! the flowery month of June ; ah ! me, where are the fond ones fled ? No spring comes for the parted friends, nor sum- mer to the dead ; I miss them at the calm of eve, or sunny hour of noon ; Nor morning songs awake the dead in the flowery month of June ! THE WEE FLOWER. A BONNIE wee flower grew green in the wud§, Like a twinkling wee star amang tho eluds ; 142 POETRY OF FLOWERS. And the langer it leevit, the greener it grew, For 'twas lulled by the winds, and fed by the dew ; Oh, fresh was the air where it reared its head, Wi' the radiance and odours its young leaves shed. When the morning rose frae his eastern ha' This bonnie wee flower was the earliest of a' To open its cups sealed up in the dew, And spread out its leaves o' the yellow and blue. When the winds were still, and the sun rode high, And the clear mountain stream ran wimplhV by, When the wee birds sang, and the wilderness bee Was floating awa' like a clud over the sea ; This bonnie wee flower was blooming unseen — The sweet child of summer — in its rokely green. And when the clud grew dark on the plain, When the stars were out and the moon in the wane, When the bird and the bee had gane to rest, And the dews of the night the green earth press'd : This bonnie wee flower lay smiling asleep, Like a beautiful pearl in the dark green deep. And when Autumn came, and the summer had pass'd, And the wan leaves were strewn on the swirling blast, POETRY OF FLOWERS. 143 This bonnie wee flower grew naked and bare, And its wee leaves shrank in the frozen air ; Wild darnel and nettle sprang rank from tho ground, But the rose and whitelilies were dropping around ; And this bonnie blue flower hung down its wee head, And the bripht morning sun flung his beams on its bed, And the pale stars look'd forth— but the wee flower was dead. AUTUMN FLOWERS. V Those few pale Autumn flowers ! How beautiful they are ! Than all that went before, Than all the summer store, How lovelier far ! And why ? — They are the last — The last !— the last !— the last ! 0, by that little word, How many thoughts are stirred ! That sister of the past ! Pale flowers ! — Pale perishing flowers ! Ye're types of precious things ; 144 POETRV OF FLOWERS. Types of those bitter moments, That flit like life's enjoyments. On rapid, rapid wings. Last hours with parting dear ones (That time the fastest spends), Last tears in silence shed, Last words, half uttered, Last looks of dying friends ! Who but would fain compress A life into a day : The last day spent with one, Who, ere the morrow's sun, Must leave us, and for aye ? 0, precious, precious moments ! Pale flowers ! ye're types of those- Tho saddest ! sweetest ! dearest ! Because, like those, the nearest Is an eternal close. Pale flowers ! — Pale perishing flowers ! I woo your gentle breath ; I leave the summer rose — For younger, blither brows, Tell me of change and death ! POETRY OF FLOWERS. 145 TO THE SNOWDROP. Beneath the changeful skies of early spring Emblem of human life, and frail as fair, Pale visitant of earth, I mark thy modest bloom. Herald of brighter scenes and calmer joys, When the sweet lark, enamoured of the dawn. Above the cottage roof Shall pour his melting lay ; Though surly Winter passing from the plain Reluctant with his storms (while, rude and wild, Stern desolation marks His long and lonely track), Oft wraps thy beauty in a wreath of snow, And gems with icicles that faintly shine Below with imaged beam Thy cold but lovely brow ; J see thee smile like innocence at fate, Beneath his idle rage and parting storms, Secure of happier hours And skies without a cloud. 121 K 146 POETRY OF FLOWERS. So Piety, upheld by faith and hope, Endures serene the passing storms of life, With eye intent on Heaven, And thought already there. 4 HEART'S EASE. I used to love thee, simple flower, To love thee dearly, when a boy : For thou didst seem, in childhood's hour, The smiling type of childhood's joy, But now thou only mock'st my grief, By waking thoughts of pleasure fled ; Give me — give me the withered leaf, That falls on Autumn's bosom dead. For that ne'er tells of what has been, But warns me what I soon shall be ; It looks not back on pleasure's scene, But points unto futurity. I love thee not, thou simple flower, For thou art gay and I am lone : Thy beauty died with childhood's hour— The Heart's-ease from my path is gone. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 147 THE LILY. Tub stream with languid murmur creeps In Lumin's flowery vale : Beneath the dew the lily weeps, Slow waving to the gale. " Cease, restless gale !" it seems to say, " Nor wake me with thy sighing ! The honours of my vernal day On rapid wings are flying. u To-morrow shall the traveller come, Who late beheld me blooming ; His searching eye shall vainly roam The dreary vale of Lumin." 0, BONNIE WAS YON ROSY BRIER. O, BONNIE was yon rosy brier That blooms so far frae haunt o' man ; And bonnie she, and ah, how dear I It shaded frae the e'enin' sun. Yon rosebuds in the morning dew, How pure amang the leaves sae green ; 148 POETRY OF FLOWERS. But purer far the lover's vow They witnessed in their shade, yestreen. All in its rude and prickly bower, The crimson rose, how sweet and fair ! But love is a far sweeter flower, Amid life's thorny path o* care. The pathless wild, and whimpling burn, WT Chloris in my arms be mine ; And I, the world nor wish, nor scorn, Its joys and griefs alike resign. P gl THE WALL-FLOWER. The wall-flower — the wall-flower, flow beautiful it blooms ! It gleams above the ruined tower, Like sunlight over tombs ; It sheds a halo of repose Around the wrecks of Time ; To beauty give the flaunting rose, The wall-flower is sublime. Flower of the solitary place ! Grey Ruin's golden crown ! That lendest melancholy grace To haunts of old renown : ^ POETRY OF FLOWERS. 149 Thou mantlest o'er the battlement By strife or storm decayed ; And fillest up each envious rent Time's canker-tooth hath made. Thy roots outspread the ramparts o'er, Where, in war's stormy day, The Douglasses stood forth of yore, In battle's grim array : The clangour of the field is fled, The beacon on the hill, No more through midnight blazes red — But thou art blooming still ! Whither hath fled the choral band That filled the Abbey's nave ? Yon dark sepulchral yew-trees stand O'er many a level grave ; In the belfry's crevices the dove Her young brood nurseth well, Whilst thou, lone flower, dost shed above A sweet decaying smell. In the season of the tulip cup, When blossoms clothe the trees, How sweet to throw the lattice up, And scent thee on the breeze ! The butterfly is then abroad, The bee is on the wing, And on the hawthorn by the road The linnets sit and sing. 150 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Sweet wall-flower, sweet wall-flower ! Thou conjurest up to me Full many a soft and sunny hour Of boyhood's thoughtless glee, When joy from out the daisies grew, In woodland pastures green, And summer skies were far more blue, Than since they e'er have been. 4> Now autumn's pensive voice is heard Amid the yellow bowers, The robin is the regal bird, And thou the Queen of Flowers ! He sings on the laburnum trees, Amid the twilight dim, And Araby ne'er gave the breeze Such scents as thou to him. Rich is the pink, the lily gay, The rose is summer's guest ; Bland are thy charms when these decay, Of flowers, first, last, and best ! There may be gaudier on the bower, And statelier on the tree, But wall-flower, loved wall-flower, Thou art the flower for me ! POETRY OF FLOWERS. 151 THE CYPRESS. Thou graceful tree, With thy green branches drooping, As to yon blue heaven stooping In meek humility ; Like one who patient grieves, When winds are o'er thee sweeping, Thou answerest but by weeping ; While tear-like fall thy leaves, When summer flowers have birth, And the sun is o'er thee shining ; Yet with thy slight bows declining, Still thou seekest the earth. Thy leaves are ever green : When other trees are changing, With the seasons o'er them ranging ; Thou art still as thou hast been. It is not just to thee, For painter or bard to borrow Thy emblem as that of Sorrow ; Thou art more like Piety. 152 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Thou wert made to wave, Patient when Winter winds rave o'er thee, Lowly when Summer suns restore thee, Upon thy martyr's grave. Like that martyr thou hast given A lesson of faith and meekness, Of patient strength in weakness, And trust in Heaven ! THE PASSION FLOWER. All beauteous flower ! whose centre glows With studs of gold ; thence streaming flow3 Ray-like effulgence ; next is seen A rich expanse of varying hue, Enfring'd with an empurpl'd blue, And streak'd with young Pomona's green. High o'er the pointal deck'd with gold, (Emblem mysterious to behold !) A radiant cross its form expands ; Its opening arms appear t' embrace The whole collective human race, Refuge of all men, in all lands. ^8 POETRY OF FLOWERS. 153 THE LILY OF THE VALLEY. White bud ! that in meek beauty so dost lean, The cloistered cheek as pale as moonlight snow, Thou seemest beneath thy huge, high leaf of green, An Eremite beneath his mountain's brow. White bud ! thou'rt emblem of a livelier thing,— The broken spirit that its anguish bears To silent shades, and there sits offering To Heaven, the holy fragrance of its tears. TO A DAISY. There is a flower, a little flower, With silver crest and golden eye That welcomes every changing hour, And weathers every sky. The prouder beauties of the field In gay but quick succession shine, Race after race their honours yield, They flourish and decline. But this small flower, to nature dear, While moon and stars their courses run, ■ 154 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Wreathes the whole circle of the year, Companion of the sun. It smiles upon the lap of May, To sultry August spreads its charms, Lights pale October on its way, . And twines December's arms. The purple heath, and golden broom, On moory mountains catch the gale, O'er lawns the lily sheds perfume, The violet in the vale. But this bold flowret climbs the hill, Hides in the forest, haunts the glen, Plays on the margin of the rill, Peeps round the fox's den. Within the garden's cultured round 3 It shares the sweet carnation's bed : And blooms on consecrated ground In honour of the dead. The lambkin crops its crimson gem, The wild bee murmurs on its breast, The blue-fly bends his purple stem, Light o'er the sky-lark's nest. Tis Flora's page. — In every place, In every season, fresh and fair, «e POETRY OF FLOWERS. 155 It opens with perennial grace, And blossoms everywhere. On waste and woodland, rock and plain, Its humble buds unheeded rise ; The Rose has but a summer's reign, The Daisy never dies. AN APRIL DAY. When the warm sun, that brings Seed-time and harvest, has returned again . Tis sweet to visit the still wood, where springs The first flower of the plain. I love the season well, When forest glades are teeming with bright forms, Now dark and many-folded clouds foretell The coming-on of storms. From the earth's loosened mould The sapling draws its sustenance and thrives ; Though stricken to the heart with winter's cold, The drooping tree revives. The softly warbled song Comes from the pleasant woods, and coloured wings 156 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Glance quick in the bright sun, that moves along The forest openings. When the bright sunset fills The silver wood with light, the green slope throws Its shadow in the hollow of the hills, And wide the upland glows. And, when the eve is born, In the blue lake the sky, o'er-reaching far, Is hollowed out, and the moon dips her horn, And twinkles many a star. Inverted in the tide, Stand the gray rocks, and trembling shadows throw, And the fair trees look over, side by side, And see themselves below. Sweet April ! many a thought Is wedded unto thee, as hearts are wed ; Nor shall they fail, till, to its autumn brought, Life's golden fruit is shed. .&JL FOETRY OF FLOWERS. 157 TO THE EVENING OR TREE PRIM ROSE. Fair flower, that shun'st the glare of day Yet lov'st to open, meekly bold, To evening's hues of sober gray, Thy cup of palely gold ; Be thine the offering, owing long To thee, and to this pensive hour, Of one brief tributary song, Though transient as thy flower. I love to watch at silent eve, Thy scattered blossoms' lonely light, And have my inmost heart receive The influence of that sight. I love at such an hour to mark Their beauty greet the night breeze chill And shine 'mid shadows gathering dark, The garden's glory still. For such 'tis sweet to think the while, When cares and griefs the breast invade, Is friendship's animating smile, In sorrow's dark'ning shade. 158 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Thus it bursts forth like thy pale cup, Glist'ning amid its dewy tears, And bears the sinking spirits up, Amid its chilling fears. But still more animating far, If meek religion's eye may trace, Even in thy glimm'ring earth-born star. The holier hope of grace. The hope that as thy beauteous bloom, Expands to glad the close of day ; So through the shadows of the tomb, May break forth Mercy's ray. ■CSS* #1 THE DAISY. Meek and modest little flower, Simplest offering of the hour, Blooming in obscurist shade, Or the sun-lit verdant glade ; On the rock, or in the dell, Forest walk, or woodland fell ; Ever easy in thy lot, And content to be forgot. 'Mid thy sisters' fairer bloom, Or their rich and rare perfume, POETRY OF FLOWERS. 159 Happy still with heavenward gaze To display thy star-like rays. Storms may gather in the skies, Tempests roar and whirlwinds rise, Showers descend in fearful train, Hail and sleet sweep o'er the plain, Sunbeams parch thy gentle head, Or the snow around thee spread, Still contented thou art found, Patient 'neath the conflict round ; By thy meekness freed from harm, Waiting for the coming calm. » V Type and emblem thou mayst bo Of that rare simplicity, Which in every Christian's mind Should its place of resting find, Mingling with its scorn of state, Meekness to the rich and great, Patience 'midst severest woes, Kindness e'en to sternest foes, Faith to rest on in the way, Hope to lend its cheering ray, And Charity, that gentle guest, Whose temple is the good man's breast, Such the sermon— meanest things Preach to subjects or to king 5 ? ; Such the lesson thou may'st meet In the daisy at thy feet. 160 POETRY OF FLOWERS. ELEGIAC. The flowers I strew upon thy grave, Are wet with many a sorrowing tear, Alas ! they had not power to save Thy head from resting here ! Their fragrance here they sweetly shed, And seem their gentle heads to bow, And weep upon the narrow bed Where low thou liest now. I can but weep to see them bloom At morning still so freshly fair, At evening withering on thy tomb ; Whilst T who placed them there Can read thy emblem in their doom,— So pure— so loved — so early lost- Departing in life's brightest bloom Ere grief thy heart had crost ! I turn away with many a sigh, For here there breathes some holy spell Too prized to live — too loved to die— How can I say farewell ! rOETKY OF FLOWERS. 161 TO A WILD ROSE. Oh, floweret wild ! Drooping with many a glittering tear, The Summer's most beloved child, Thou'rt welcome here ! I speak not of thy shadowy bloom Which gleaming mid the leaves we see, Nor of thy soft and rich perfume, Sweet though it be : — Thou hast a spell, A charm far dearer to my heart, The power of days long past to tell,— - Of hopes that would depart 1 Yes ! gazing on thee now, Those scenes beloved can memory draw, When simple childhood's hat of straw Shaded my careless brow : And round it clustered many a wreath Of blossoms wild and sweet as thou, And lighter was the heart beneath Than it is now, — But pass we that, — no thought of grief Thy flowers unto my bosom bring, But hallowed is each fragrant leaf With dreams of hope and spring, 121 L 162 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Thou bring* st me back the time When I would pause from morn till even To hear the sweet bell's distant chime, Like melody from Heaven. I gaze, — thou art no more a flower, But some bright scene of early youth, The wild wood-side — a summer bower- All clear and pure as truth ! FLOWERS FOR THE BEE. Come, honey-bee, with thy busy hum, To the fragrant tufts of the wild thyme come, And sip the sweet dew from the cowslip's head, From the lily's bell and the violet's bed. Come, honey-bee, There is spread for thee A rich repast in wood and field, And a thousand flowers Within our bowers To thee their nectar'd essence yield. Come, honey-bee, to our woodlands come, There's a lesson for us in thy busy hum ; Thou hast treasures in store in the hawthorn's wreath, In the golden broom and the purple heath ; <^- / ? POETRY OF FLOWERS. And flowers less fair, That scent the air, Like pleasant friends drop balm for thee, And thou winnest spoil, By thy daily toil, Thou patient, thrifty, and diligent bee. 1G3 We may learn from the bee the wise man's lore, " The hand of the diligent gathereth store." He plies in his calling from morn till night Nor tires of his labour nor flags in his flight ; From numberless blossoms of every hue, He gathers the nectar and sips the dew. lhen homeward he speeds O'er the fragrant meads, And he hums as he goes his thankful lay— - Let our thanks too arise For our daily suppiles, As homeward and heavenward wo haste on our way. THE WINTER ROSE, TlIE soft blooms of Summer are faint to the eye Where brightly the gay silver Medway glides by ; And rich are the colours which Autumn adorn, Its gold chequer'd leaves, and its billows of corn. 164 'OETRY OF FLOWERS. But dearest to me is the pale lonely Rose, Whose blossoms in Winter's dark season unclose Which smile in the rigour of Winter's stern blast, And smooth the rough present by sighs of the past And thus, when around us affliction's dark power Eclipses the sunshine of life's flowing hour, While drooping, deserted, in sorrow we bend, ! sweet is the presence of one faithful friend. The crowds that smiled on us when gladness was ours, Are Summer's bright blossom which Autumn do- vours ; But the friend on whose breast we in sorrow re- pose, That friend is the Winter's lone, beautiful rose. * THE VOICE OF THE FLOWERS. Blossoms that lowly bend, Shutting your leaves from evening's chilly dew, While your rich odours heavily ascend, The flitting winds to woo. 1 walk at silent eve, When scarce a breath is in the garden bowers, And many a vision and wild fancy weave, Midst you, ye lovely flowers : £ 'h a POETRY OF FLOW E US. 1C5 t Beneath the cool green boughs, And perfumed bells of the fresh blossomed lime, That stoop and gently touch my feverish brow, Fresh in their summer prime ; Or in the mos^y dell, Where the pale primrose trembles at a breath Or where the lily by the silent well, Beholds her form beneath ; - Or where the rich queen-rose Sits throned and blushing, 'midst her leaves an i moss ; Or where the wind-flower, pale and fragile, blows, Or violets' banks emboss. Here do I love to bj,— Mine eye alone in passionate love to dwell Upon the loveliness and purity Of every bud and bell, Oh blessedness, to lie By the clear brook, where the long-bennet dips ! To press the rose-bud in its purity Unto the burning lips ! To lay the weary head Upon the bank, with daisies all beset, Or with bare feet, at early dawn to tread O'er mosses cool and wet ! 166 TOETRY OF FLOWm-*. And then to sit at noon, When bees are humming low, and birds are still, And drowsy is the faint uncertain tone Of the swift woodland rill. And dreams can then reveal That, wordless though ye be, ye have a tone, A language, and a power, that I may feel, Thrilling my spirit lone. Ye speak of hope and love, Bright as your hues, and vague as your perfume ; Of changeful, fragile thoughts, that brightly move Men's hearts amid their gloom. Ye speak of human life, Its mystery, — the beautiful and brief ; Its sudden fading, 'midst the tempest strife, Even as a delicate leaf. And, more than all, ye speak Of might and power, of mercy, of the One Eternal, who hath strewed you fair and meek, To glisten in the sun ; To gladden all the earth With bright and beauteous emblems of his grace, That showers its gift of uncomputed worth In every clime and place, '[> POETRY OF FLOWERS. lt>7 TO A PRIMROSE IN A CHURCHYARD, Sweet exile of the hills ! What dost thou here ? Far from thy native rills, And fountains clear! Why is thy young perfume — Thy star-like bell Beside the silent tomb Condemned to dwell? Oh ! surely thou dost love The tall tree's shade, — The thickly foliaged grove, — The dewy glade : — The bank whereon the bee At noon reposes, Amid the luxury Of Summer R<»j.^'. And, here no sheltering bower A curtain weaves To blend in beauty o'er Thy tender leaves ; No drooping Violet Expands in glee Its purple coronet To welcome thee 1 168 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Yet thou dost brightly bloom* When all around Breathes of sepulchral gloom 4 And grief profound ; — Like to some sunny gleam In life's dark sky, Or a remembered dream Of bliss gone by ! TO A CROCUS. BLOSSOMTNG BENEATH A WALL-FLOWLR. Welcome, wild harbinger of spring ! To this small nook of earth ; Feeling and fancy fondly cling Round thoughts which owe their birth To thee, and to the humble spot Where chance has fixed thy lowly lot. To thee, — for thy rich golden bloom, Like heaven's fair bow on high, Portends, amid surrounding gloom, That brighter hours draw nigh, When blossoms of more varied dyes, Shall ope their tints to warmer skies, *e £--" :< ■-Aitii *£&rBE&' « POETRY OF FLOWERS. Yet not the lily, nor the rose, Though fairer far they be, Can more delightful thoughts disclose Than I derive from thee : The eye their beauty may prefer ; The heart is thy interpreter ! Methinks in thy fair flower is seen, By those whose fancies roam, An emblem of that leaf of green The faithful dove brought home, When o'er the world of waters dark, Were driven the inmates of the ark. That leaf betokened freedom nigh To mournful captives there ; Thy flower foretells a sunnier sky, And chides the dark despair, By winter's chilling influence flung O'er spirits sunk, and nerves unstrung. And sweetly has kind Nature's hand Assigned thy dwelling-place Beneath a flower whose blooms expand, With fond congenial grace, On many a desolated pile, Brightening decay with beauty's smile. 169 Thine is the flower of Hope, whose hn© Is bright with coming joy ; L70 FuETRY OF FLOWERS. The wall-flower's that of Faith, too true 'For ruin to destroy ; — And where, Oh ! where should Hope up-spring But under Faith's protecting wing ? THE ROSE-BUD AND EMBLEM. 1 saw a rose with colours bright Blooming on its mossy stem, It seem'd to me in blushing pride Earth's fairest gem. Its fragrance till'd the balmy air, Its beauty pleased the passing eye ; Ah ! who could think so fair a thing Must fade and die ? 4> It had been nursed with gentle care, The sun had lent its glad'ning power, its leaves unfolded to receive The ambrosial shower. But soon as angry storm arose, The sun withdrew its genial ray ; [ look'd and saw the once fair flower Had pass'd away ! POETRY OF FLOWERS. 171 And is it thus ? I said, and sigh'd ; Must things so lovely meet decay ? Ah, yes ! and are not human flowers As frail as they ! See yon fair child with laughing eye, Unmark'd by care that cherub face j But ere the morrow he may lie In death's embrace. And that brave youth, whose manly form Would seem the tyrant to defy, The stamp of death is on his brow; He too must die. Tis even so, the brave, the fair, The opening bud, the full blown flower, Alike may wither, fade, and die In one short hour. Our hope is like this beautious bud, Which seem'd to be the garden's pride, And lov'd ones, like the fragile thing, Have drooped and died. But as the wither'd rose-leaves yield Sweet perfume when their beauty's fled, So let our virtues ever live, When we are dead, 172 POETRY OF FLOWERS. GORSE. Emblem — A nger* Marmion btdding adieu to Douglas. The train from out the castle drew; But Marmion stopped to bid adieu : — " Though something I might plain," he said, " Of cold respect to stranger guest, Sent hither at your king's behest, While in Tantallon's towers I staid ; Part we in friendship from your land, And, noble Earl, receive my hand." But Douglas round him drew his cloak, Folded his arms, and thus he spoke : — " My manors, halls, and bowers, shall still Be open, at my sovereign's will, To each one whom he lists, howe'er Unmeet to be the owner's peer. My castles are my king's alone, From turret to foundation stone, — The hand of Douglas is his own ; And never shall in friendly grasp The hand of such as Marmion clasp." POETRY OF FLOWERS. 173 Burn'd Marmion's swarthy cheek with fire, And shook his very frame for ire, And—" This to me !"— he said, ** An 'twere not for thy hoary head, Such hand as Marmion's had not spared To cleave the Douglas' head ! And first, I tell thee, haughty peer, He who does England's message here, Although the meanest in her state, May well, proud Angus, be thy mate ; And Douglas, more, I tell thee here, Even in thy pitch of pride, Here in thy hold, thy vassals near ; (Nay, never look upon your lord, And lay your hands upon your sword,) I tell thee— thou'rt defied ! And, if thou said'st I am not peer To any lord in Scotland here, Lowland or Highland, far or near, Lord Angus, thou has lied !" On the Earl's cheek the flush of rage O'ercame the ashen hue of age : Fierce he broke forth : — " And dar'st thou then To beard the lion in his den, The Douglas in his hall ? And hop'st thou hence unscathed to go '( — No, by St. Bryde of Bothwell, no !— Up drawbridge, grooms— what, warder, ho ! Let the portcullis fall." 174 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Lord Marmion turn'd, — well was his need, And dash'd the rowels in his steed, Like arrow through the archway sprung, The ponderous gate behind him rung, To pass there was such scanty room, The bars descending, razed his plume. THE ROSE AND THE LILY. Emblem— Beauty and Purity. The nymph must lose her female friend, If more admired than she ; But where will fierce contention end, If flowers can disagree? Within the garden's peaceful scene Appeared two lovely foes, Aspiring to the rank of queen — The Lity and the Rose. The rose soon reddened into rage, And swelling with disdain, Appeal'd to many a poet's page To prove her right to reign. The Lily's height bespoke command, A fair imperial flower ; POETRY OF FLOWERS. She seem'd designed for Flora's hand, The sceptre of her power. This civil bickering and debate The goddess chanced to hear, And flew to save, ere yet too late, The pride of the parterre. Yours is, she said, the nobler hue, And yours the statelier mien, And, till a third surpasses you, Let each be deemed a queen. Thus sooth'd and reconcil'd, each seeks The fairest British fair ; The seat of empire is her cheeks— They reign united there. 175 STREW ODOROUS FLOWERS. Strew odorous flowers upon the bed of death, Cull ye the fairest from the greenest fields ; The primrose, with its perfume-yielding breath, The loveliest fragrancies that Nature yields ; 11 Sweet to the sweets" be given, nor forget— For such was she,— the shrinking violet. 176 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Place one white rose upon that whiter brow, — The rosemary, within that stone-cold hand j And on that breast, so chill and moveless now, Scatter some wild flowers of her native land ; Yea, by affection be the lovelist given, To her now blooming in her native Heaven. Silence in that death-chamber !— the deep hush Of sentient minds above what once was Life. Crushed are all earthly hopes, which used to rush With dark despair, in eager, anxious strife. Life's dream is over, the belov'd is clay ; Godward the unchained soul hath pass'd away. Gone is the lov'd, the lovely ! Sad the grief For her who ne'er before gave cause for tears ; Her earthly pilgrimage hath been but brief — God claimed his own in her youth's gentle years Wafting her spirit to yon starry skies, Ere Care could vex, or Sorrow dim her eyes. THE VIOLET'S SPRING SONG. Under the hedge all safe and warm, Sheltered from boisterous wind and storm, We violets lie ; With each small eye Closely shut while the cold goes by. we i'OETKY OF FLOWERS. 177 You look at the bank, 'mid the biting frost, And you sigh and say that were dead and lost ; But, lady, stay, For a sunny day, And you'll find us again alive and gay. On mossy banks, under forest trees, You'll find us crowding, in days like these ; Purple and blue, And white ones too, Peep at the sun, and wait for you. By maids and matrons, by old and young, By rich and poor our praise is sung ; And the blind man sighs When his sightless eyes He turns to the spot where our perfumes rise. There is not a garden country through, Where they plant not violets white and blue ; By princely hall, And cottage small — For we're sought, and cherished, and cull'd by all. Yet grand parterres, and stiff-trimmed beds, But ill become our modest heads ! We'd rather run, In shadow and sun, O'er the banks where our merry lives first begun 121 M 178 POETRY OF FLOWER8. There, where the birken bough's silvery shine Gleams over the hawthorn and frail woodbine, Moss, deep and green, Lies thick, between The plots where we violet-flowers are seen. And the small gay Celandine's stars of gold Rise sparkling beside our purple's fold : Such a regal show Is rare, I trow, Save on the banks where violets grow. SYMPATHY FOR FLOWERS. Oh ! spare the flowers, the fair young flowers. The free glad gift the summer brings ; Bright children of the sun and showers, Here do they rise, earth's offerings. Rich be the dew upon you shed, Green be the bough that o'er you waves, Weariless watchers by the dead, Unblenching dwellers 'midst the graves Oh 1 spare the flowers ! their sweet perfume, Upon the wandering zephyr cast, And lingering o'er the lowly tomb, Is like the memory of the past. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 179 They flourishly freshly, though beneath Lie the dark dust and creeping worm, They speak of Hope, they speak of Faith : They smile, like rainbows thro' the storm. Pluck not the flowers— the sacred flowers ! Go where the garden's treasures spread, Where strange bright blossoms deck the bowers, And spicy trees their odours shed. There pluck, if thou delightest, indeed, To shorten life so brief as theirs, But here the admonition heed — A blessing on the hand that spares 1 Pluck not the flowers ! in days gone by A beautiful belief was felt, That fairy spirits of the sky Amidst the trembling blossoms dwelt. Perhaps the dead have many a guest Holier than any that are ours, Perhaps their guardian angels rest Enshrined amidst the flowers. Hast thou no loved one lying low, No broken reed of earthly trust ? Hast thou not felt the bitter woe With which we render dust to dust ? Thou hast 1 and in one cherished spot, Unseen, unknown to earthly eyes, Within their heart, the unforgot Entombed in silent beauty lies. 180 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Memory and Faith, and Love so deep, No earthly storm can reach it more — Affection that hath ceased to weep, These flourish in thy bosom's core. Spare then the flowers ! With gentle tread Draw near, remembering what thou art. For blossoms sacred to the dead, Are ever springing in thy heart. THE WATER-LILY. BrjRTHE^ED with a cureless sorrow, Come I to the river deep ; Weary, hopeless of the morrow, Seeking but a place to weep ; Sparkling onwards, full of gladness, Each sun-crested wavelet flew, Mocking my deep-hearted sadness, Till I sickened at the view. Then I left the sunshine golden For the gloomy willow-shade, Desolate and unbeholden, There my fainting limbs I laid. And I saw a water-lily Resting in its trembling bed, On the drifting waters chilly, With its petals white outspread. POETRY OF FLOWERS. LSI Pillowed there, it lays securely, Moving with the moving wave, Up to heaven gazing purely, From the river's gloomy grave. As I look'd a burst of glory, Fell upon the snowy flower, And the lessoned allegory Learned I in that blessed hour : — Thus does Faith, divine, indwelling, Bear the soul o'er life's cold stream, Though the gloomy billows swelling, Evermore still darker seem. Yet the treasure never sinketh, Though the waves around it roll, And the moisture that it drinketh, Nurtures, purines the soul. Thus aye looking up to Heaven Should the white and calm soul bo. Gladden in the sunshine given, Nor from clouds shrink fearfully. So I turned, my weak heart strengthened, Patiently to bear my wo ; Praying, as the sorrow lengthened, My endurance too might grow. And my earnest heart's beseeching Charmed away the sense of pain ; So the lily's silent teaching Was not given to me in vain. 182 POETRY OF FLOWERS. CONSIDER THE LILIES OF THE FIELD. Sweet nurslings of the vernal skies, Bathed in soft airs and fed with dew, What more than magic in you lies To fill the heart's fond view ? In childhood's sports, companions gay ; In sorrow, on life's downward way, How soothing ! — in our last decay, Memorials prompt and true. Relics ye are of Eden's bowers ; As pure, as fragrant, and as fair As when he crowned the sunshine hours Of happy wanderers there. Fall'n all beside — the world of life, How is it stained with fear and strife, In Reason's world what storms are rife, What passions range and glare ! But cheerful and unchanged the while, Your first and perfect form ye show ! The same that won Eve's matron smile In the world's opening glow. The stars of heaven a course are taught Too high above our human thought ; Ye may be found, if ye are sought, An as we gaze we know. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 183 Ye dwell beside our paths and homes, Our paths of sin, our homes of sorrow ; « And guilty man, where'er he roams, Your innocent mirth may borrow. The birds of air before us fleet, They cannot brook our shame to meet ; But we may taste your solace sweet, And come again to-morrow. Ye fearless in your nests abide ; Nor may we scorn, too proudly wise, Your silent lessons, undescried By all but lowly eyes. For ye could draw the admiring gaze Of Him who worlds and hearts surveys ; Your order wild, your fragrant maze, He taught us how to prize. Ye felt your maker's praise that hour, As when he paused and owned you good ; His blessing on earth's primal hour, Ye felt it all renewed. What care ye now if winter's storm Sweep ruthless o'er each silken form ? Christ's blessing at your heart is warm ; Ye fear no vexing mood. Alas ! of thousand bosoms kind That daily court you and caress, How few the happy secret find Of your calm loveliness 1 184 POETRY OF FLOWERS. c Live for to-day ! to-morrow's light # To-morrow's cares will bring to sight ; Go, sleep like closing flowers at night, And Heaven thy morn will bless. FLOWERS AND LIFE. Loveliest of God's creations Are the flowers that gem the earth ; In life's various relations, 'Mid its scenes of wo and mirth, They are ever valued by us, e'en as things of price- less worth. Mark the child amid them roving Full of innocent delight ; Mark the youth and maiden loving, Giving to each other's sight Those many-hued interpreters which tell thoir hidden thoughts aright. When the marriage vows are spoken, And the merry bells outring, What so well fond hopes betoken, What so fit can friendship bring, To strew the path wherein the pair are newly entering ? *g POETRY OF FLOWERS. 185 And when lost in blissful trances, 'Neath the honeymoon they rove, While soft looks and tender glances Tell of confidence and love, Flowers seem blessings scattered round them by angelic hands above. Like Flowers all beauty and all sweetness ! Out, alas ! that they must fade ; Earthly joys have no completeness ; There's no sunshine without shade ; a blighted rose the loved one stricken is, and lowly laid ! When the funeral bell is tolling, And the landscape looketh drear, And adown the deck is rolling Sorrow's agonizing tear, Faded blossoms, hope's frail emblems, deck the coSin and the bier. And when time had gently chidden Grief to something like repose, By the voice of memory bidden, To the tomb the mourner goes, Pleased he sees it wreath'd and covered with violet and rose. And amid his weeping, lowly Bending to the verdant sod, the 186 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Thoughts came o'er him calm and holy, And he blesseth, praiseth God For the flowers of life that ever twine around his chastening rod. THE CHRYSANTHEMUM. <$> Welcome in our leafless bower Where November's breath has come ; Welcome golden-anthered flower, Ever fair chrysanthemum ! Like an old friend's pleasant face — Though the earth is void of grace, And the very birds are dumb, Cheerful, gay chrysanthemum ! Thus may I have round me when Age's frost my heart shall numb, Friends as warm and constant then As thou art, chrysanthemum ! May I find, though youth be past, Hearts that loved me to the last, Eyes that smile, though winter come, Bright as thou, chrysanthemum POETRY OF FLOWERS. 187 WILD FLOWERS. Tis fair to see our cultured buds their shining tints unfold, In leaves that wear the sapphire's hue, or mock the sunset's gold ; The lily's grace, the rose's blush, have drawn the admiring gaze, And won from many a minstrel harp the meed of song and praise ; Oh ! they are meet for festal hall, or beauty's courtly bowers, Far those I love the wreath shall be, of wild and woodland flowers! Bright clustering in the forest shades, or spring- ing from the sod, As flung from Eden, forth they come, fresh from the hand of God ! No human care hath nurtured them ; the wild wind passed by ; They flourish in the sunshine gleam and tempest- clouded sky ; And oh ! like every gift that He, the bountiful hath given, Their treasures fall, alike to all, type of his pro- mised heaven 1 188 POETRY OF FLOWERS. They bear to us sweet memories of childhood's happy years, Ere grief had wrung the heart with pain, or dim- med the eye with tears ; They have been twined with playfulness round many a snowy brow, Where costly pearls and Indian gems are proudly flashing now ! But hiding many a line of care beneath their gor- geous blaze, That lurk'd not 'neath the wild flower wreath of youth's untroubled days ! Oh ! chide not at the simple theme that wakes the minstrel's lay, Earth were less bright without the flowers that blossom by the way ; He at whose word the universe her ancient might did yield, Hath taught proud man a lesson from the lilies of the field. I thank thee, God 1 for every boon thy hand in mercy showers, And oh, not least among thy gifts, the beautiful wild-flowers ! POETRY OF FLOWERS. 1S9 tj THE DAISY AND THE STAR. The modest daisy on the hill, That drinks of morning dew its fill, And spreads its leaflets to the light, And then in quite meek repose Its crimson coronet doth close Beneath the shade of night, Lives calmly out its little day. Then fades unseen away. And yonder shining star, That dwells in Heaven afar, Whose trembling ray no more is seen, Lost in the myriads orbs of light That spangle o'er the veil of night. Than is the daisy on the green, Will but live out a longer day, Then pass unseen away. THE ROSE AND THE LILY, A lovely Rose and Lily growing In a garden, side by side, The Rose with love's own radiance glowing, Turned and said, in beauty's pride : 190 POETRY OF FLOWERS. ' Wherefore raise thy head so high, Since not half so fair as I ? Sure all the magic charms that hover O'er the lips of maiden fair, In my bosom's depths the lover, Fondly seeketh, findeth there : On her dewy lips repose All the glories of the Rose !' The Lily turned to speak, soft smiling With a proud, yet gentle grace, For well she knew the charm beguiling Of her pure and virgin face ; 'The whiteness of the maiden's brenst, Of beauty is the surest test.' That moment, through the garden bounding, Comes the treasure of my life ; As light they hear her footfall sounding, Ceased each angry word of strife. The lovely flowers she stands before, And they are sisters evermore ! Her fair young cheek, where lilies, roses, In fast friendship ever bloom, To the rival flowers discloses, In beauty's garden both have room ; Each declares, from envy free, None so beautiful as she ! c$> rOETRY OF FLOWERS. 191 THE FORGET-ME-NOT. Silent o'er the fountain gleaming, In the silvery moonlight hour, Bright and beauteous in its seeming, Waves a friendly fragile flower. Never let it be mistaken ; Blue — as heaven's own blessed eye, By no envious clouds o'ertaken When it laughs through all the sky. Flower of heaven's divinest hue ! Symbol of affection true ! Whisper to the poor heart-broken Consolation— heaven-spoken ! Loved one ! — like the star of morning Are thine eyes— so mild and fair — Innocence with light adorning The pure radiance everywhere ! Maiden mine ! attend my lay ; Be this flow'ret ne'er forgot— Whispering through the far-away, 1 Oh, forget— forget me not !' Duty stern may bid us sever, Tears bedew our parted lot : Yet these flowers shall murmur ever, * Ah, forget— forget me not !' 192 POETRY OF FLOWERS. List, beloved ! what it sayeth ; List each blossom's whispered sound ! And its lowly head it layeth On the dew-sprinkled ground. Bethink ! each dew-drop is a tear, That brims its dark blue eyes ; Remember — when you wander near — * Forget me not !' it sighs ! THE MULBERRY TREE. THE Mulberry tree, the Mulberry tree ! No child of the woods so wise as she ; For the spring may come, and thespringmay go And her hastier mates in beauty glow, Yet still she waits her fitting time, Till summer hath reached her sunny prime. Prudent, patient Mulberry-tree ! What child of the woods so wise as she ! But when chill spring hath passed away, She quickly buddeth without delay, Soon decketh herself in her summer charms> And flingeth her dress o'er her naked arms ; And her ample leaf unfold at last, And her purple fruit doth ripen fast. Active, ardent Mulberry tree ! No child of the woods so wise as she, <# f m POETRY OF FLOWERS. Fain would I make such wisdom mine, Prudence and vigour thus combine; Not blindly rash when dangers lour, Nor slow in duty's sunny hour ; Still wait with patience, plan with care, Yet prompt to act, and bold to dare. Thus I'd be like the Mulberry tree : Happy, thrice happy, if wise as she. 103 THE NIGHTINGALE FLOWER. Fair flower of silent night ! Unto thy bard an emblem thou shouldst be ; His fount of song, in hours of garish light, Is closed like thee. But, with the vesper hour, Silence and solitude its depths unseal : Its hidden springs, like thy unfolding flower, There life reveal. Were it not sweeter still To give imagination holier scope, And deem that thus the future maj fulfil A loftier hope. That, as thy lovely bloom Sheds round its perfume at the close of day, 121 N 194 POETRY OF FLOWERS. With beauty sweeter from surrounding gloom, A star-like ray. So in life's last decline, When the grave shadows are around me cast, My spirit's hope may like thy blossom shine Bright at the last : <^ And, as the grateful scent Of thy meek flower, the memory of thy name, Oh ! who could wish for prouder monument, Or purer fame ? The darkness of the grave Would wear no gloom appalling to the sight, Might Hopes fair blossom, like thy flowret, brave Death's wintry night. Knowing the dawn drew nigh Of an eternal though a sunless day, Whose glorious flowers must bloom immortally, Nor fear decay I THE CROPPED FLOWER. Go, lovely flower ! Tell her, who fills my every thought, That from the hour FOETFwY OF FLOWERS. 195 When first across my path was brought That gentle form, My soul no other idol sought From night till morn. Go quickly, go, And let thy modest blushes speak ,; Though now you blow, Too soon thou'rt doomed by winter bleak To fade and perish ; Thus vanisheth all hope would make Me love and cherish. \ And tell her too, As morning's beam doth kiss away The tears of dew Which thou has wept since yesterday, When thy god set- So doth her smile send forth a ray To cheer me yet. But go, fair flower ! No longer by the winding lea, In mossy bower, At early dawn thy god thou'lt see •, He's set for ever, As is my deity to me, To rise, oh never 1 196 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Then droop and fade ; Thy god still shines as warm and bright O'er lawn and mead ; And other flowers shall woo his light In sunny hour, But none so true from morn till night As thou, poor flower ! TO A WINTER BLOOMING WILD FLOWER. Lone dweller in the bleak and barren spot That finds no shelter from a leafless tree, Though very desolate may be thy lot, Almost 1 wish that I resembled thee. Not in thy beauty, flowret azure-hued! Nor in thy faint, wind-wasted f ragrancy — Nor in the stillness of thy solitude — My heart, companionless, would broken be. *? But I, like thee, upspringing from the sod, Would lift, through storms, a cheerful eye to Heaven, Trusting the bounteous hand of Nature's God, Sunshine and storm for equal good hath given #m>*.^^j£$ mm FOETKY OF FLOWERS. 197 And though thy wintry doom may seem severe, Uncheered by song of birds, or kindred flower. I do believe thou dost not blossom here, But by the will of that Almighty Power, Who makes thy fragile blooms an instrument To teach a proud and murmuring heart content THE GOLDEN ROSE.* 4 Sister, wake ! His surely morning : listen, I can hear the bees Slumming underneath the window, in the fragrant lilac-trees. There it comes ! the wandering sunbeam I have watched so many a time, Creeping in the same dark corner at the early morning chime. 'Oh the night is very weary unto those who lie and moan, And who only know the day-time by the slow hours stealing on — By the small blue rift of heaven gleaming through the curtained pane, By the warbling birds that waken to their daily life again. * In ancient Germany it was the custom for a bride- groom to send or bring to his betrothed a golden rose, as a token that he was about .to claim her. 198 POETRY OF FLOWERS. 1 Sister, rise ! and let me watch you twisting up your tresses bright ; Stand there, just where I can see you, in the ear- ly morning light. I will look, and you shall listen, while I tell a won- drous dream Which I dreamt, when these tired eyelids closed at daybreak'g cold gray beam. ' Often have I, sighing, told you, how to me there came no more Those sweet dreams that used to haunt me in the first sad time of yore, When this long and wasting sickness, stealing all my youth and bloom, Turned my eyes from bridal altar to the dark and ghastly tomb. ' It is long since even in slumber I have seen my Wilhelm's face, But last night he looked upon me from his blessed dwelling place ; Not as when I last beheld him — still, and cold, and marble-white — But all radiant as an angel, with his gold hair gleaming bright. ( And he kissed my lips and forehead, as in those dear olden days, And his eyes once more bent on me their clear loving, earnest gaze ; POETRY OF FLOWERS. 199 Not a word did Wilhelm utter : and my lips in si- lence bound By that holy kiss he gave me, could not frame a single sound. 1 Then he placed within my bosom, with a smile the rose of gold, And my heart leaped up within me as I felt his dear arms fold Round me ; and a wondrous lightness shot through all this drooping frame, While above my shoulders budded two bright wings of amber flame. ' In the air we rose together, I and Wilhelm, hand in hand ; Like two wandering doves we floated over sea and over land ; Higher — till the air grew clearer, and the earth beneath grew dim, And afar we heard the a»gels chant our glorious nuptial hymn. c In each other's arms we floated all the blessed stars among, Till I wakened with the music of the skylark's matin song. Sister! tell me now what meaneth this most happy dream of mine V Weeping, turning away her sister, for too well she knew the sign. JP 200 POETRY OF FLOWERS. On the wall the sunbeam stealeth ; gaily hum the laden bees ; And the light wind stirs the blossoms in the fra- grant lilac-trees ; Loudly sings the lark, but breaks not that im- moveable repose, For the bride has met the bridegroom — Death has brought the golden rose. MAY FLOWERS. Sweet flowers every one ! Ye put it in my mind to offer up A thankful prayer to Him who fills my cup, And sendeth beauty with the summer's sun, Thought wanders joyful while your sunny bloora And odours sweet enrich the passing hours ; Thought which forbids an anchoritish gloom, And glows with beauty not unlike the flowers. A welcome waits you through this land of ours I In southern vales or Scotia's wilder glen : Where'er your glories fall in golden showers, A welcome waits ye in the hearts of men ! For ' souls are ripened,' even while ye fly The howling storm beneath * our northern sky.* POETRY OF FLO WE US. 201 ^ Twere well to learn of you The skill to waken hope and pleasant thought ! And pour into the bosom nigh distraught, The freshness of the heart, like morning dew. To lift the head, and suffer truth to play Upon the brow, like sunshine ever bright ; To cherish in the heart, though but a ray Of potent love, to warm the mental light. To rise from sloth, as ye from winter's night, Rejoicing garden-land and forest dell ; With all the soul, with all the heart and might, Abiding the brotherhood in which we dwell. To learn of sweetest May, and kindly give Blessings with open hand to all that live ! THE VIOLET. \ \ A Sweet flower ! Spring's earliest loveliest gem ! While other flowers are idly sleeping, Thou rearest thy purple diadem ; iiieukly from thy seclusion peeping. Thou, from thy little -ecret mound, Where diamond dew-drops shine above thee, Scatterest thy modest fragrance round ; And well may Nature's Poet love thee ! 202 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Thine is a short swift reign I know — But here thy spirit still pervading, New Violet tufts again shall blow, Then fade away as thou art fading. And be renewed ; the hope how blest, may that hope desert me never ! Like thee to sleep on Nature's breast, And wake again, and bloom for ever. <# THE ROSES ARE GONE. The Roses are gone, their empire is o'er, And many who saw them, may see them no more ; Yet little it recks that we mourn they decay, For we are as fragile, as fleeting as they. What came with the Roses ? Sweet hopes spring- ing forth 'Mid the sunbeams of heaven, the blossoms of earth, And the songs of the birds, and the breath of the flowers, Awakening a dream of life's sunniest hours. What came with the Roses ? Dear thought of de- light, That feared not extinction, that dreamt not of blight ; POETRY OF FLOWERS. 203 And the trust that had withered, the joy that was lost, Forth springing again, but again to be crost. What came with the Roses ? The promise of truth, And the love that haunts ever the spirit of youth, Ere the heart learns to school its wild throbs of delight, Ere the storms of the world pour their withering blight. What went with the Roses ? Hope chill'd to de- spair, And all our bright visions like fabrics in air. We felt they were lovely 1 we knew they must go, Yet that doth not waken one pulse of our woe. What went with the Rosea ? The love of long years V That kindled in sunshine, has withered in tears ; • And the joy that we deemed in a moment to clasp, Had fled like a shade and eluded our grasp. What went with the Roses ? The bark o'er the sea, With its treasures of loved ones— the leaf from the tree, The earliest reft— in our pathway is shed, And the birds of the spring-time are silent or fled, 204 POETRY OF FLOWERS. The breeze took the Roses, nor took them alone, There are fair ones, and loved ones as suddenly gone, And the last of your leaves have been shed o'er the bier, Where their scent cannot charm, their beauty not cheer. Alas ! it is thus, nought i3 permanent here : Each joy brings its price, the fast following tear ; And the smile that is lighting our features to-day, Ere to-morrow may pass into darkness away. Yet Roses may wither, and pleasures may fly, But somewhat there is that can fade not, nor die: And like a sweet perfume, that doth not depart, Are the feelings that change not, within the deep heart. THE ROSE BUD. When Nature tries her finest touch, Weaving her vernal wreath, Mark ye, how close she veils her round, Not to be traced by sight or sound, Nor soiled by ruder breath ! c, V r * POETRY OF FI.OWBHS. Who ever saw the earliest rose First open her sweet breast? Or, when the summer sun goes down, The first soft star in evening's crown Light up her gleaming crest ? 205 Fondly we seek the dawning bloom On features wan and fair, — The gazing eye no change can trace, But look away a little space, Then turn, and lo ! 'tis there. But there's a sweeter flower than e'er Blushed on the rosy spray — A brighter star, a richer bloom Then e'er did western heaven illume At close of summer day. Tis love, the last best gift of heaven ; Love— gentle, holy, pure ; But tenderer than a dove's soft eye, The searching sun, the open sky, She never could endure. Even human love will shrink from sight Here in the coarse rude earth ; How then should rash intruding glance Break in upon her sacred trance, Who boasts a heavenly birth ? 206 POETRY OF FLOWER3. So still and secret is her growth, Ever the truest heart, Where deepest strikes her kindly root For hope or joy, for flower or fruit, Least known its happy part. God only, and good angels, look Behind the blissful screen — As when, triumphant o'er his woes, The Son of God, by moonlight rose 3 By all but Heaven unseen : As when the holy maid beheld Her risen Son and Lord : Thought has not colours half so fair That she to paint that hour may dare, In silence best adored. The gracious Dove, that brought from heaven The earnest of our bliss, Of many a chosen witness telling, On many a happy vision dwelling, Sings not a note of this. So, truest image of the Christ, Old Irsael's long lost Son, What time, with sweet forgiving cheer, He called his conscious brethren near, Would weep with them alone, *e POETRY OF FLOWERS. He could not trust his melting soul But in his Maker's sight — Then why should gentle hearts and true Bare to the rude world's withering view Their treasures of delight ? No — let the dainty rose awhile Her bashful fragrance hide — Rend not her silken veil too soon, But leave in her own soft noon, To flourish and abide. 207 THE ROSE. \ \ The rose had been wash'd, just washed in a show- er, Which Mary to Anna convey'd, The plentiful moisture encumber'd the flower, And weigh'd down its beautiful head. The cup was all fill'd, and the leaves were all wet, And it seem'd to a fanciful view, To weep for the buds it had left with regret On the flourishing bush where it grew. I hastily seized it, unfit as it was For a nosegay so dripping and drown'd ; And swinging it rudely, too rudely, alas 1 I snapp'd it— it fell to the ground. 208 TOETEY OF FLOWERS. And such, I exclaim'd, is the pitiless part Some act by the delicate mind, Regardless of wringing and breaking a heart Already to sorrow resign'd ! This elegant rose, had I shaken it less, Might have bloomed with its owner awhile ; And the tear that is wiped with a little address May be followed perhaps by a smile. % c$* THE WINTER NOSEGAY. What Nature, alas ! has denied To delicate growth of our isle, Art has in a measure supplied, And Winter is deck'd with a smile. See, Mary, what beauties I bring From the shelter of that sunny shed, Where the flowers have the charms of the spring, Though abroad they are frozen and dead. 'Tis a bower of Arcadian sweets, Where Flora is still in her prime, A fortress to which she retreats From the cruel assaults of the clime. While earth wears a mantle of snow, These pinks are as fresh and as gay As the fairest and sweetest that blow On the beautiful bosom of May. ^ rOETRY OF FLOWERS. See how they have safely survived The frowns of a sky so severe ; Such Mary's true love, that has lived Through many a turbulent year. The charms of the late blowing rose Seem graced with a livelier hue, And the winter of sorrow best shews The truth of a friend such as you. 209 THE DEATH OF THE FLOWERS. How happily, how happily the flowers die away ! Oh, could we but return to earth as easily as they J ust live a life of sunshine, of innocenceand bloom, Then drop without decrepitude, or pain, into the tomb !' The gay and glorious creatures ! they neither " toil nor spin !" Yet, lo ! what goodly raiment they're all apparel- led in ; No tears are on their beauty, but dewy gems more bright Than ever brow of eastern queen endiademed with light. 121 o 210 POETRY OF FLOWERS. The young rejoicing creatures ! their pleasures never pall : Nor lose in sweet contentment, because so free to all!— The dew, the showers, the sunshine, the balmy, blessed air, Spend nothing of their freshness, though all may freely share. The happy careless creatures ! of time they take no heed ; Nor weary of his creeping, nor tremble at his speed, Nor sigh with sick impatience, and wish the light away ; Nor when 'tis gone, cry dolefully, "would God that it were day !" And when their lives are over, they drop away to rest, Unconscious of the penal doom, on holy Nature's breast ; No pain have they in dying— no shrinking from decay — Oh ! could we but return to earth as- easily as they ! POETRY OF FLOWERS. 211 AUTUMN FLOWERS. Flowers of the closing year I Ye bloom amidst decay ; And come like friends sincere, When wintry storms appear, And all have pass'd away That clothed gay spring's luxuriant bowers, With garlands meet for sunny hours. When rose and lily fade, And later amaranths fail, And leaves in grove and glade Assume a russet shade, And shiver in the gale, Or withering strew the chilly plain With blighted hopes of summer's reign. 'Tis then when sternly lours, O'er nature's changing face, Dark clouds and drifting showers, Ye come, ye come, sweet flowers ! With meek and touching grace ; And o'er the parting season's wing, A wreath of lingering beauty fling. The hare-bell, bright and blue, That loves the dingle wild, 212 POETRY OF FLOWERS. In whose cerulean hue, Heaven's own blest tint we view, On days serene and mild ; How beauteous like an azure gem, She droopeth from her graceful stem ! The foxglove's purple bell, On bank and upland plain; The scarlet pimpernel, And daisy in the dell, That kindly blooms again, When all her sisters of the spring On earth's cold lap are withering ; The bind-weed pure and pale, That sues to all for aid, And when rude storms assail Her snowy virgin veil, Doth like some timid maid, In conscious weakness most secure, Unscathed its sternest shocks endure. How fair her pendent wreath O'er bush and brake is twining I While meekly there beneath, 'Mid fern and blossomed heath, Her lowlier sister's shining ; Tinged with the blended hues that streak A slumbering infant's tender cheek. POETRY OF FLOWERS. And there Vimiria waves Her light and feathery bowers, 'Mid russet-shaded leaves, Where robin sits and grieves Your hasting death, sweet flowers ! He sings your requiem all the day, And mourns because ye pass away. 213 THE WALL-FLOWER. 1 Why loves my flower, the sweetest flower, That swells the golden breast of May, Thrown rudely o'er the ruin'd tower, To waste the solitary day ? * Why, when the mead, the spicy vale, The grove and genial garden call, Will she her fragrant scents exhale, Unheeded on the lonely wall ! For never sure was beauty born, To live in death's deserted shade ! Comelovely flower, my banks adorn, My banks for life and beauty made. ' Thus pity wak'd the tender thought ; And by her sweet persuasion led, To seize the hermit flower I sought, And bear her from her stony bed. 214 POETRY OF FLOWERS. I sought— but sudden on my ear A voice in hollow murmurs broke, And smote my ear with holy fear — The Genius of the ruin spoke. ' From thee be far th' ungentle deed, The honours of the dead to spoil, Or take the sole remaining meed, The flower that crowns the former toil ! 1 Nor deem that flower the garden's foe, Or fond to grace this barren shade : 'Tis nature tells her to bestow Her honours on the lonely dead. 1 For this, obedient zeph) rs bear Her light seeds round yon turret's mould, And undispers'd by tempests there, They rise in vegetable gold. 1 Nor shall thy wonder wake to see Such desert scenes distinction crave ; Oft have they been, and oft shall bo Truth's, honour's, valour's, beauty's grave. ' Where longs to fall that rifted spire, As weary of th' insulting air ; The poet's thought, the warrior's fire, The lover's sighs are sleeping there. 42S&1 POETRY \OF FLOWERS. 215 1 When that, too, shades the trembling ground, Borne down by some tempestuous sky, And many a slumbering- cottage round Startles— how still their hearts will lie ! * Of them who, wrappM in earth so cold, No more the smiling day shall view, Should many a tender tale be told ; For many a tender thought is due. ' ITast thou not seen the lover pale, When evening brought the pensive hour, Step slowly o'er the shadowy vale, And stop to pluck the frequent flower ? 'Those flowers he surely meant to strew On lost affection's lowly cell, Tho' there, as fond remembrance grew, — Forgotten from his hand they fell. 1 Has not for thee the fragrant thorn Been taught her first rose to resign ? With vain but pious fondness borne, To deck thy Nancy's honoured shrine ' 'Tis nature pleading in the breast, Fair memory of her works to find ; And when to fate she yields the rest, She claims the monumental mind. 216 POETRY OF FLOWERS. 1 Why, else, the o'ergrown paths of time Would thus the letter'd sage explore, With pain these crumbling ruins climb, And on the doubtful sculpture pore \ 'Why seeks he with unwearied toil Through death's dim walk to urge his way, Reclaim his long asserted spoil, And lead Oblivion into day?' THE HYACINTH. Child of the Spring, thou charming flower, No longer in confinement lie, Arise to light, thy form discover, Rival the azure of the sky. The rains are gone, the storms are o'er, Winter retires to make thee way : Come, then, thou sweetly blooming flower, Come, lovely stranger, come away. The sun is dressed in beaming smiles, To give thy beauty to the day : Young zephyrs wait with gentlest gales, To fan thy beauty as they play. rOETHY OF FLOWERS. 217 THE WOODRUFF. Amid a thousand brighter flowers, We scarcely note thy tender bloom When Summer's heat and Spring-time's showers Have called thee from thy winter tomb. But should we find thee withered, reft Even of the humble charms thou hast, We feel a fragrant sweetness left — A sweetness that no ill can blast. Thus modest worth remains unknown, While fairer beauty's flatter'd name, On every zephyr's breath has blown, A candidate for human fame. Let sorrow come — mere beauty now Has lost its adventitious power ; W 7 hile chili'd, or bruised, or broken thou, Art fragrant in that trying hour. 218 POETRY OF FLOWERS. TO THE MELANCHOLY GILLY- FLOWER. Oh why, thou lone and lovely flower, Deny the sweetness to the day ; And ever in night's hushest hour, Still sigh thy fragrant life away i The wild-bee murmurs round each spray, And kisses every flower but thine ; No scent allures the vagrant's way, Or tempts him to thy golden mine. The glowing breath of gorgeous noon Is swelled by every other sweet ; Why dost thou only the pale moon And chilly night- winds love to greet ? When young Endymion earliest dream'd On that wild hill's enchanted ground, The faltering radiance fearful gleam'd, And cast a quivering light around. Still, in his dreams, did charmed sighs Float trembling o'er his favoured head, Ancl strange mysterious music rise, And hover round his mountain he L .<*$&* •<£2 POETRY OF FLO WEILS. 219 This was the conscious flower that threw Its lovely fragrance on the night : Thou only oped thy pallid hue Beneath the silent flood of light. Thy sisters veil their foreheads fair, And fold their bells on heath and dale Nor on the misty evening air Their breath of sweetness dare exhale. But thou dost long for holy eve, To shroud thee from day's piercing eye ; Night's chilly hours alone receive Thy secret tear and perfumed sigh. SPRING FLOWERS. The flowers ! the lovely flowers ! They are springing forth again; Are opening their gentle eyes In forest and in plain ! They cluster round the ancient stems, And ivied roots of trees, Like children playing gracefully About a father's knees. The flowers ! the lovely flowers ! Their pure and radiant eyes 220 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Greet us where'er we turn our steps, Like angels from the skies ! They say that nought exists on earth, However poor or small, Unseen by God ; the meanest things, He careth for them all 1 <£> The flowers ! the lovely flowers ! The fairest type are they Of the soul springing from its night To sunshine and to day ; For though they lie all dead and cold, With winter's snow above, The glorious spring doth call them forth To happiness and love ! Ye flowers ! ye lovely flowers ! We greet ye well and long ! With light, and warmth, and sunny smile, And harmony, and song ! All dull and sad would be our earth, Were your bright beauties not ; And thus, without Life's Flowers of Love, Oh, what would be our lot ! TOETRY OF FLOWERS. 221 P THE THREE LITTLE ROSES. I went to the forest-well : —Drank not a drop there ; I went to meet my heart's dearest love, And saw her nowhere. So T looked all around me On every hand, And I saw my heart's dearest love With another man stand ! She standing with another man Was sorry to see ! Now, Heav'n keep thee, heart's dearest love, Thou' It ne'er belong to me. 1 went and bought paper, Ink bought I and pen, And wrote to my heart's dearest love That I'd ne'er see her again. Then heart-sick I lay down On the green moss and hay, And three little roses Fell just where I lay ; 222 POETRY OF FLOWERS. And these three little roses Were all bright and red, — Thus know I not if my love Be living or be dead ! LOOK FOR THE FLOWERS. Here, we earth wanderers Timid and brave, Hasten with onward step Nearer the grave ! And in our pilgrimage Should we not see, All that is beautiful, Lovesome and free ? Should we with mourning heart Sit all forlorn ? Should we with sullen hand Gather the thorn ! Should we in rambling Over the meads, Look but for pestilent, Poisonous weeds ? Should we not, joyously, Hand lock'd in hand, A hopeful— a jubilant, Brotherly band, Look for the Flowers '/ %€ rOETRY OF FLOWERS. 223 In the far nooks of life — In the deep shade — Where amidst evil things Good well might fade ; God sends the sunny beam, God sends the shower, Nursing humanity's Ever-bright Flower ! Sin may be rife enough, But "the good part," Lieth low hidden, in Every heart. God sent the stream at first, From his own fount — Christ, in diffusing it Died on the Mount ; And amongst stony ways Ripples are heard, Like the half-utter'd notes Of a lone bird ! Dark tho' the fate of us, That matters not — In the glad soul of us Lies the bright spot — Look for the Flowers ! Were there not sainted ones, Graciously given, Who in their gentle hands, Lead us to heaven ? 224 POETRY OF FLOWERS. When they return to us In the dim night, Are they not angel-like, Holy and bright — Sanctified —purified Unto us now, With a heaven-garland, Encircling each brow ? Turn to the living ones There as they stand, Touch the live hearts of them With thy love-wand— Seek not the weeds in them. And to thy sight They will be angel- like, Holy, and bright, Look for the Flowers ! <$> Look for the flowery way, Life has its clouds ; Treasured ones, suddenly Wrapp'd in their shrouds, - Hopes often dash'd aside — Hearts rudely torn, And o'er wreck'd promises Oft do we mourn ; — Hints, too, are given us; That our swift day, Rapidly— rapidly, Fleeteth away. a, %& p POETRY OF FLOWERS. Up, then ! and cheerfully. Trust me, there lies. Much that is beautiful — 'Neath the broad skies Go on life's pilgrimage, Hand lock'd in hand, A hopeful— a jubilant, Brotherly band, Looking for flowers I 225 & CRY OF THE SPRING FLOWER SELLER. Violets, violets— here, see, I bring; Primroses, wet from the woods of the spring ; Lilies, the whitest that silver our vallies ; Come out from your courts, flrom the gloom of your alleys- Buy my flowers ! Here's pleasures a selling! my blossoms come buy — Cheap enough for the low, choice enough for the high— Buy my flowers J 121 226 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Come, make your close rooms and your dark win* dows gay, With thoughts of their dwellings on banks far away ; And the hours of work, long so sluggish for many a day, Through the thoughts that they bring, shall trip lightly away— Buy my flowers ! Redder lips ! eyes, brighter far! Pulses warmer, fonder beat, Fairer shines the evening star, Lighter trip the maiden's feet ; Every thing is sweet and young, Every thing is in its prime, Music voices every tongue In Primrose Time, in Primrose Time ! 228 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Patriots with the sunbeams shine ; Poets bud verse with the flowers '. Love of country grows divine ; Poems chime in with the hours ; Every thing is sweet and young, Every thing is in its prime, Music voices every tongue In Primrose Time, in Primrose Time ! THE FLOWER SPIRIT. When earth was in its golden prime, Ere grief or gloom had marred its hue, And Paradise, unknown to crime, Beneath the love of angels grew, Each flower was then a spirit's home, Each tree a living shrine of song ; And oh ! that ever hearts could roam, — Could quit for sin that seraph throng ! But there the spirit lingers yet, Though dimness o'er our visions fall ! And flowers that seem with dew-drops wet, Weep angel's tears for human thrall ; And sentiments and feelings move The soul, like oracles divine; And hearts that ever bow'd to love, First found it by the flowers' sweet shrine. --• m Aj POETRY OF F LOWE US. A voiceless eloquence and power, Language that hath in life no sound, Still haunts, like Truth, the Spirit-flower, And hallows even Sorrow's ground. The wanderer gives it Memory's tear, Whilst home seems pictured on its leaf ; And hopes, and hearts, and voices dear, Come o'er him— beautiful as brief. Tis not the bloom, though wild or rare, It is the Spirit power within, Which melts and moves our souls, to share The Paradise we here might win. For heaven itself around us lies, Not far, not yet our reach beyond, And we are watched by angel's eyes With hope and faith still fond ! I well believe a spirit dwells, Within the flower ! least changed of all That of the passed Immortal tells— The glorious meeds before man's fall ; Yet, still, though I should never ^eo The mystic grace within it shine — Its essence is sublimity, Its feelings all divine. 229 230 POETRY OF FLOWERS. THE MOSS ROSE. The Angel of the flowers one day. Beneath a rose-tree sleeping lay ; That spirit to whom charge is given To bathe young buds in dews of Heaven ; Awaking from his light repose, The angel whispered to the rose ; — " Oh, fondest object of my care, Still fairest found where all is fair ; For the sweet shade thou giv'st to me, Ask what thou wilt, 'tis granted thee !" "Then," said the rose, with deepen'd glow, " On me another grace bestow." The spirit paused in silent thought : — What grace was there the flower had not?— Twas but a moment— o'er the rose A veil of moss the angel throws ; And robed in Nature's simplest weed, Could there a flower that rose exceed ? TO THE DAISY. Sweet simple flower, though lost to fame, And scorn' d by every thoughtless wight ; How proud the orb which gave thy name — That splendid orb which yields us light ! POETRY OF FLOWERS. 231 Surely thou'rt nature's favoured flower I She form'd thy peerless virgin ray, Then bade thee grace young spring's new power, And, with him, hail the God of day. The glowing god beheld thee fair As brightly glancing from the sky, And pleased at Nature's friendly care, He said, " Henceforth be call'd mine eye.' Now each returning season brings Thy little silvery form to light, When Nature s fairy finger flings Her gifts, all teeming with delight ! Why valued less, because not rare Thy beauty meets the common eye ? The day's blest orb on each his share Of warmth bestows, on low or high I Thy modest mien, thy lowly sphere, Shall to my footsteps sacred be : And as I view that orb so dear, Sweet flower ! I'll still remember thee, 232 POETEY OF FLQWEKS, TO THE HERB ROSEMARY.* Sweet scented flower ! who art wont to bloom On January's front severe, And o'er the wintry desert drear To waft thy waste perfume ! Come, thou shalt form my nosegay now, And I will bind thee round my brow ; And as I twine the mournful wreath, I'll weave a melancholy song ; And sweet the strain shall be and long, The melody of death. Come, funeral flower ! who lov'st to dwell With the pale corse in lonely tomb, And throw across the desert gloom, A sweet decaying smell. Come, press my lips, and lie with me Beneath the lowly alder tree, And we will sleep a pleasant sleep, And not a care shall dare intrude, To break the marble solitude So peaceful and so deep. ^ * The Rosemary buds in January. It is the flower commonly put into the coffins of the dead. POETRY OF FLOWERS. 233 And hark ! the wind-god, as he flies, Moans hollow in the forest trees, And sailing on the gusty breeze, Mysterious music dies. Sweet flower ! that requiem wild is mine, It warns me to the lonely shrine, The cold turf altar of the dead ; My grave shall be in yon lone spot, Whereas I lie, by all forgot, A dying fragrance thou wilt o'er my ashes shed. THE ROSE. In his tower sat the poet Gazing on the roaring sea, " Take this rose," he sighed, "and throw it Where there's none that loveth me. On the rock the billow bursteth And sinks back into the seas, But in vain my spirit thirsteth So to burst and be at ease. Take, 0, sea ! the tender blossom That hath lain against my breast ; On thy black and angry bosom It will find a surer rest. Life is vain, and love is hollow, Ugly death stands there behind, Hate and scorn and hunger follow Him that toileth for his kind," 234 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Forth into the night he hurled it, And with bitter smile did mark How the surly tempest whirled it Swift into the hungry dark. Foam and spray drive back to leeward, And the gale with dreary moan, Drifts the helpless blossom seaward, Through the breakers all alone. Stands a maiden on the morrow, Musing by the wave-beat strand, Half in hope and half in sorrow, Tracing words upon the sand ; " Shall I ever then behold him Who hath been my life so long, — Ever to this sick heart fold him, — Be the spirit of his song ? Touch not, sea, the blessed letters I have traced upon thy shore, Spare his name whose spirit fetters Mine with love for evermore 1" Swells the tide and overflows it, But with omen pure and meet, Brings a little rose, and throws it Humbly at the maiden's feet. Full of bliss she takes the token, And, upon her snowy breast, Soothes the ruffled petals, broken With the ocean's fierce unrest. u Love is thine, heart ! and surely Peace shall always be thine own. qP*» *g fa rm± POETRY OF FLOWERS. 235 For the heart that trusteth purely Never long can pine alone." In his tower sits the poet, Blisses new and strange to him Fill his heart and overflow it With a wonder sweet and dim, Up the beach the ocean slideth "With a whisper of delight, And the moon in silence glideth Through the peaceful blue of night. Rippling o'er the poet's shoulder Flows a maiden's golden hair, Maiden lips, with love grown bolder, Kiss his moon-lit forehead bare. 11 Life is joy, and love is power, Death all fetters doth unbind, Strength and wisdom only flower When we toil for all our kind. Hope is truth, — the future giveth More than present takes away, And the soul for ever liveth Near God from day to day." Not a word the maiden uttered, Fullest hearts are slow to speak, But a withered rose-leaf fluttered Down upon the poet's cheek, 236 POETRY OF FLOWERS. BRING FLOWERS. Bring flowers, young flowers, for the festal board, To wreath the cup ere the wine is poured ; Bring flowers ! they are springing in wood and vale, Their breath floats out in a sudden gale, And the touch of the sunbeam hath waked the rose, To deck the hall where the bright wine flows. Bring flowers, to strew in the conqueror's path — He that hath shaken thrones with his stormy wrath! He comes with the spoil of nations back, The vines lie crushed in his chariot's track. The turf looks red where he won the day — Bring flowers, to die in the conqueror's way ! Bring flowers, to the captive's lonely cell, They have tales of the joyous woods to tell ; Of the free blue streams and the glowing sky, And the bright world shut from his languid eye They will bear him a thought of the sunny hours, And a dream of his youth, — bring him flowers, wild flowers ! %fc Bring flowers, fresh flowers, for the bride to wear ! They were born to blush in her shining hair, POETRY OF FLOWERS. 237 Fho is leaving the home of her childhood's mirth, She hath bid farewell to her father's hearth ; Her place is now by another's side — Bring flowers for the locks of the fair young bride ! Bring flowers, pale flowers, on the bier to shed, A crown for the brow of the early dead ; For this, through its leaves, hath the white rose burst ; For this, in the woods, was the violet nursed ; Though they smile in vain for what once was ours, They are love's last gift— bring ye flowers, pale flowers ! Bring flowers to the shrine where we kneel in prayer, They are nature's offering, their place is there I They speak of hope to the fainting heart, With a voice of promise they come and part, They sleep in dust through the winter hours, The break forth in glory — bring flowers, bright flowers ! 2o8 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Whilst within thy mossy cell The sylph or fairy loves to dwell ; Whilst young zephyr sweetly sings And in thy odours dips his wings ; Remember, beauty quickly dies, And with it adulation flies. ^ Emblem of Mary's lovely face ! Of Mary's beauty, Mary's grace ! Go, teach her now this serious truth— That beauty fades, as fades our youth ; Howe'er her lovely features bloom, They only blossom o'er her tomb ; Bid her remember flattery dies — Bid her, whilst young, be good and wise. FOLLY'S FLOWER, THE COLUMBINE. Bring lilies for a maiden's grave, Roses to deck the bride, Tulips for all who love through life In brave attire to ride : Bring each for each, in bower and hall, But cull the columbine for all. $ POETRY OF FLOWERS. •■ The Columbine ? full many a dower Hath hues more clear and bright, Although she doth in purple go, In crimson, pink, and white. Why, when so many fairer shine, Why choose the homely columbine ?" 239 Examine well each flowret's form, — Read ye not something more Than curl of petal— depth of tint? Saw ye ne'er aught before That claims a fancied semblance there, Amid those modelled leaves so fair ? \ Know ye the cap which Folly wears In ancient masques and plays ? Does not the columbine recall That toy of olden days ? And is not Folly reigning now O'er many a wisdom-written brow ? Tis Folly's flower, that lonely one ; That universal guest Makes every garden but a type Of every human breast ; For, though ye tend both mind and bower, There's still a nook for Fblly's flower. Then gather roses for the bride, 1 Twine them in her bright hair, 240 POETRY OF FLOWERS. But, ere the wreath be done— oh ! The columbine be there, For rest ye sure that follies dwell In many a heart that loveth well. let Gather ye laurels for the brow Of every prince of song ! For all to whom philosophy And wisdom do belong ; But ne'er forget to intertwine A flower or two of columbine. Forget it not ; for even they, The oracles of earth, 'Mid ail their wealth of golden thought^ Their wisdom and their worth, Sometimes play pranks beneath the sky, Would scarce become e'en such as I ! Weave ye an armful of that plant. Choosing the darkest flowers, With that red, blood-dipped wreath ye bring The devastating powers Of warrior, conqueror, or chief ; Oh twine that full of Folly's leaf ! And do ye ask me why this flower Is fit for every brow ? Tell me but one where Folly ne'er Hath dwelt, nor dwelleth now. POETRY OF FLOWERS. And I will then the laurel twine, Unmingled with the columbine, fc*J THE EARLY SNOWDROP. Emerging from its wintry tomb, See the spotless snowdrop peep,— Burst the ice-bound earth and bloom, While more tender flowrets sleep. Pledge of the genial coming year, Amid the gloom of winter gay, Smiling through the morning tear.— The tribute tear of early day. Death awaits thy faultless form, — Less beauteous ilowers safe may blossom ; Thus I snatch thee from the storm, To grace my lovely Anna's bosom. THE NIGHT-BLOWING CEREUS. Fair flower, whose coy and diffident revealings Bloom to the gaze of pensive night alone ; Thou seem'st a record of my wayward feelings,— For when life's glittering sunbeams round me shone, 121 Q 242 POETRY OF FLOWERS Closed was my heart, nor gave one bud of love To glorify its bounteous Lord above. But sorrow came, and summer friends departed, Then at the throne of grace I learned to kneel, And now, aroused from sloth, and fervent-hearted The holy glow of gratitude I feel, And those sweet leaves in darkness have unfurl'd That shunned the gaudy splendour of the world. A NOSEGAIE ALWAIES SWEET FOR LOVERS TO SEND FOR TOKENS OF LOVE, AT NEW TERES TIDE, OR FOR FAIRINGS AS THEY IN THEIR MINDS SHALL BE DISPOSED TO WRITE. ^1584. A nosegaie lacking flowers fresh, To you now I do send, Desiring you to look thereon, When that you may intend : For flowers fresh begin to fade, And Boreas in the field, Even with his hard congealed frost, No better flowers doth yield. But if that winter could have sprung A sweeter flower than this, I would have sent it presently To you withouten misse. POETRY OF FLOWERS. Accept this, then, as time doth serve ; Be thankful for the same ; Despise it not, but keep it well, And marke with flowers his name. Lavander is for lovers true, Which evermore be faine ; Desiring always for to have Some pleasure for their paine ; And when that they obtained have The love that they require, Then have they all their perfect joie, And quenched is the fire. Rosemarie is for remembrance Between us day and night, Wishing that I might always have You present in my sight ; And when I cannot have, (As I have said before,) Then Cupid, with his deadly dart, Doth wound my heart full sore. Sage is for sustenance, That should man's life sustaine ; For I do still lie languishing Continually in paine ; And shall do still, until I die, Except thou favour show ; My paine, and all my grievious smart, Full well you do it know. 243 244 POETRY OF FLOWERS. Fennel is for flatterers, An evil thing 'tis sure : But I have alwaies meant truly, With constant heart most pure ; And will continue in the same, As long as life doth last ; Still hoping for a joyful day When all our paines be past, . Violet is for faithfulnesse, Which in me shall abide ; Hoping, likewise, that from your heart You will not let it slide : And will continue in the same, As you have now begunne ; And there for ever to abide, When you my heart have wonne. Time is to try me, As each be tried must ; Trusting, you know, while life doth last, I will not be unjust ; And if I should, 1 would to God To hell my soule should beare, And eke, also, that Belzebub With teeth he should me teare, <$* «g Roses is to rule me, With reason, as you will, For to be still obedient Your mind for to fulfil ; l'OETRY OF FLOWERS. 245 And thereto will not disagree In nothing that you say ; But will content your mind truly In all things that I may. Jeliflowers is for gentleness, Which in me shall remain*, Hoping that no sedition shall Depart our hearts in twaine. As soone the sunne shall lose his course, The moone, against her kinde, Shall have no light, if that I do Once put you from my minde. Carnations is for gra^ 254 TOETRY OF FLOWERS. For mercy guides the fiercest gale, And halcyon skies again prevail." Happy are those alone who aim In duty's quiet path to shine, And, careless of the meed of fame, Unseen their fairest garlands twine ; Whilst He, whose eye in secret sees, To them the Amaranth crown decrees. SONNET. FROM "THOUGHTS DURING SICKNESS." Welcome, pure and lovely forms, again Unto the shadowy stillness of my room ! For not alone ye bring a joyous train Of Summer- thoughts attendant on your bloom — Visions of freshness, of rich bowery gloom, Of the low murmurs filling mossy dells, Of stars that looked down on your folded bells ; Through dewy leaves, of many a wild perfume Greeting the wanderer of the hill and grove Like sudden music ; more than this ye bring — Far more ; ye whisper of all-fostering love, Which thus hath clothed you, and whose dove- like wing Broods o'er the sufferer drawing fevered breath, Whether the couch be that of life or death. For again, again, on dewy plain, I trust to see you rise, When spring renews the wild wood strain, And bluer gleam the skies. Again, again, when many springs Uponjmy grave shall shine, Here shall you speak of vanished things, To living hearts of mine. MILNER & CO., LIMITED, PRINTERS, HALIFAX, Si THE L7 "Y UNIVERSITY : "FORMA •w y-N. r>t 3 1158 00873 5648 o F6L3 UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. I ttwovojyjjkec'D' m »*Y0 4i 4WKJUN 01 199). w 4moeci5lP ilV, REC'D LD-URL NOV m 9 1997