LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS

Evening Star, Issue 19745, 21 December 1927, Page 9

LANGUAGE OF FLOWERS

OLD CUSTOMS RECALLED In every brightly flowering garden the air nowadays is full of talk._ Each bud that bursts into bloom brings a message to swell the chorus of its kind. The garden sings inandibly of the whims and foibles of mankind. Forget-me-nots and pansies speak for constancy and thoughtfulness. The Hly commands and the violet shrinks. The daisy, plucked petal by petal, tells whe-ther-'“he” loves or not; the buttercup held under the chin divines a fondness for butter; the fluffy puff of the dandelion blown in the direction of a lover carries one’s thoughts ami tells in turn of his thoughts—if but one little feather is left on the stalk. This much of the flower language the average man knows, but mostly people pay little attention to what the flowers say. Savants could tell them that they make a great mistake, for they are suffering a delicately sentimental language to dio. They are also spurning the services of messengers that might say what they mean to say much more gracefully and tactfully than they could themselves. Thus, tho meadow saffron sighs: “ My best days are past.” Tho mignonette suggests; “ Your qualities surpass your charms.” Of “false riches” the sunflower warns. Nasturtiums proclaim patriotism, and the peony anger. The hollyhock speaks of ambition, and the hyacinth of constancy. The lady-slip-per marks beauty stamped -with caprice; the larkspur whispers of fancy winging its flight. The wallflower tells of fidelity in adversity, the narcissus bespeaks self-love, and the -white water lily purity. In olden times tho receipt of a bouquet brought great flutterings to the feminine breast. The maiden buried her nose in tho posy, not just for the fragrance, but also to discover the secret of her lover’s heart. Every bud and spray bad some hidden meaning. If, having read her bouquet, the maiden wished to reply, she might do so by a blossom in her frock or tucked in her hair. If a lady received a bouquet of roses, lilies, laurel, and forget-me-not, she should interpret it in this wise, writes a garden sage of the past: “ The flower of innocence, when kissed by the rose, blushes as thou wouldst blush at the approach of love. The proud laurel denotes thy beauty’s proud triumph. The tender forget-me-not is tho emblem of constancy.” In the answer much depended on tho way in which the flower was worn. In its natural position it indicated an affirmative fctate of mind—negative, if reversed. “ Forinstance,” continues the writer, “a rosebud with its leaves and thorns indicates fear and hope; but if reversed it must be construed as saying: ‘You may neither fear nor hope.’ Again, divest the same rosebud of its thorns, and it permits the most sanguine hope; deprive it of its petals and retain tho thorns, and the worst fears may be entertained.”

The marigold, the sign of grief and pain, told of the hitter sweets and pleasant pains of love. If placed, on the head, it signified a troubled mind; on the heart, the pangs of love. If presented with other flowers, it delivered a little moral lecture on the mingled good and evil of life; combined with poppies, the symbol of consolation, it might be read: “I will allay your pain.” And here is another refinement; “The pronoun ‘ I ’ is expressed by inclining the symbol to the right; thou to the left. In medieval France, where much was made of the significance of colors and every emotion was thus illustrated, red became the color of love, and the rod rose became love’s messenger. Could anything be more fitting? For. accoiding to ancient tradition, was it not Venn’s blood that stained the white rose, her foot being pricked onco when she hastened to the aid of Adonis?