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 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES
 
 <dnorum ^arra. 
 
 IN SIMPLE YERSE. 
 
 BY THE 
 
 REY. GEOEGE HUNT SMTTTAN, B.A., 
 
 RECTOR OF HAWKSWOETH, NOTTS, AUTHOR OF 
 " FAITH AND PRACTICE," &C. 
 
 " Wondrous truths, and manifold as wondrous, 
 
 God hath written in those stars above ! 
 
 But not less in the bright flowerets under us 
 
 Stands the revelation of His love." 
 
 Longfellow. 
 
 J. n. PARKER, LONDON and OXFORD : 
 
 MACMILLANS, CAMBRIDGE : RIDGE and Co., NEWARK-ON-TRENT ; 
 
 J. SULLEY, AND T. FORMAN, NOTTINGHAM : 
 
 R. GRANT and Son, EDINBURGH. 
 
 M DCCC LIV.
 
 This little work is published in aid of the funds for building 
 a School-house in the Parish of Hawksworth. 
 
 PEINTED BY MESSRS. PAEKER, CORN-MARKET, OXFORD.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 PAGB 
 
 Tokens of the Deity 1 
 
 The Song of the Flowers . . . . . 3 
 
 Spring Flowers 6 
 
 Snow-drop 8 
 
 Primrose 10 
 
 Sweet Violets 11 
 
 Hawthorn 13 
 
 Grass 15 
 
 Forget-me-not 18 
 
 Honey-suckle 21 
 
 Eyebright 22 
 
 Lily of the Valley 24 
 
 Heart's-ease 26 
 
 Mignonette 27 
 
 Germander Speedwell 29 
 
 Pimpernel . 31 
 
 Rose 33 
 
 Fuchsia 35 
 
 Lilies 37 
 
 Passion-flower 39 
 
 Herb Pakis, ob, True Love . . . . . 41 
 
 fSQ^:j_J, s3
 
 4- 
 
 m_ I ijBtc^^a 
 
 g^M^aas 
 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 Sun-dew 
 
 Woody Nightshade, or Bitter-sweet 
 
 Dahlia .... 
 
 The Poor Man's Flowers 
 
 Bridal Flowers 
 
 Funeral Flowers . 
 
 Flowers of " God's Acre" 
 
 Autumnal Crocus . 
 
 Rose in Winter 
 
 The Retrospect 
 
 F4GG 
 
 42 
 44 
 45 
 47 
 49 
 5i 
 53 
 56 
 58 
 61
 
 ' ' Sweet nurslings of the vernal skies, 
 Bath'd 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 time. 
 
 " 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. 
 
 I 
 
 " Ye fearless in your nests abide — 
 
 Nor may we sconi, too proudly wise, 
 Your silent lessons, undescried 
 
 By all but lowly eyes : 
 For ye could draw th' admiring gaze 
 Of Him who worlds and hearts surveys ; 
 Your order wild, your fiagi'ant maze. 
 He taught us how to prize." 
 
 Keblc.
 
 ERRATA. 
 
 Page 12, Stanza 4, line 2, for theirs read their's. 
 Page 14, Stanza 2, line 2, for ^/a(/e read grade. 
 
 I
 
 TOKENS OF THE DEITY. 
 
 f 
 
 " Lord, how manifold are Thy works ! in wisdom hast Thou made them 
 all : the earth is full of Thy riches." 
 
 Psalm, civ. 24. 
 
 God of nature, Gob of grace, 
 Everywhere Thy hand I trace, — 
 From the frailest insect form 
 To the hills, that brave the storm ; 
 
 In the simplest, shyest flower 
 Scarce out-peeping from its bower. 
 As in gay and gorgeous bloom 
 Fresh from nature's richest loom ; 
 
 In the bright life-giving Sun, 
 
 In the soft and silver Moon, 
 
 In the quiet rural scene. 
 
 And the landscape clothed in sheen. 
 
 B
 
 I 
 
 TOKENS OF THE DEITY. 
 
 Fire and water, earth and air, 
 One and all Thy power declare ; 
 "WTiile Thy wisdom, mercy, lore, 
 And benevolence they prove. 
 
 Sing I then, though weak my lyre, 
 Praises to th' Eternal Sire ; 
 Praise my grateful heart shall pour 
 Now, henceforth, and evermore ^. 
 
 " Psalm civ. 33. 

 
 THE SONG OF THE FLOWERS. 
 
 " All Thy works praise Thee, O Lord." 
 
 Psalm cxlv. 10. 
 
 We come, we come, a joyous train, 
 To deck the vale and robe the plain ; 
 Of every form and every hue 
 From glittering gold to azure blue. 
 
 We come, we come, with gladsome Spring 
 Our meed of praise anew to bring. 
 And silently to breathe around 
 A hymn of odours from the ground. 
 
 We come, we come, in garden gay 
 Or shelter' d nook to live our day, 
 To revel on the mountain- side 
 Or in the misty glen to hide. 
 
 We come, we come, like angels bright, 
 To charm the sense and bless the sight, 
 Rejoicing those who long to hail 
 Our perfume wafted on the gale ;
 
 1!^* 
 
 
 THE SONG OF THE FLOTVEES. 
 
 Refreshing most the fever' d bed 
 
 Through weaiy hoiirs whence hope hath fled ; 
 
 But dear alike to sorrowing mood, 
 
 As friends who soothe but ne'er intrude. 
 
 And sometimes o'er the grassy grave 
 Our tendrils creep and blossoms wave ; 
 Sometimes along the fretted aisle 
 On Easter's holy mom we smile**. 
 
 Xor let them blame the pious care 
 
 "VNTiose reverent taste may place us there, 
 
 Nor count it wrong to intertwine 
 
 God's works with man's in God's own Shrine : 
 
 I 
 
 •> It is still the custom in some country parishes to adom the church 
 with flowers at Easter. "A writer in the Gentleman's Magazine, vol. liii. for 
 July 1783, page 578, conjectures that the flowers, with which many churches 
 are ornamented on Easter Day, are most probably intended as emblems of the 
 Resurrection, having just risen again from the earth, in which during the se- 
 verity of winter, they seem to have been buried." — Brand's Popular Ardiijv.i- 
 ties, vol i. page 93. 
 
 George Herbert seems to allude to this old custom in a stanza of his Easter 
 hymn : 
 
 " I got me flowers to strew Thy way, 
 I got me boughs off many a tree ; 
 But Thou wast up by break of day 
 And brought'st Thy sweets along with Thee."
 
 THE SOXG OF THE ELOWEllS. 
 
 For His unboiuided love wc shew, 
 Who moulds our form and bids us grow 
 In varied scene and varied clime, 
 And all to blossom in their time. — 
 
 Yet once again, we come to teach 
 With the fast-fading bloom of each 
 The solemn truth of life's decay, — 
 That man, as we, must pass away. 
 
 > 
 
 Then listen, listen to the tale 
 Of every jewell'd hill and dale, 
 And learn to fear, and leam to love. 
 And leam to bless the God above. 
 
 I
 
 STRING FLOWERS 
 
 " For, lo, the winter is past; the flowers appear on the earth ; the time of the 
 singing of birds is come." 
 
 Solomon's Song ii. 11, 12. 
 
 The flowerets of the early Spiing, 
 
 The firstlings of the year, 
 "WTiat gladness to the soul they bring 
 
 As blithely they appear ; 
 
 The Celandine, the Aconite, 
 
 Primrose, and Crocus gay. 
 The bending Snow-drop milky white '^, 
 
 Pale CoAVslip and sweet May. 
 
 "What cliildlike glee is o'er us shed 
 
 When first the eye hath seen 
 The Yiolet raising up her head — 
 
 Our little Paiiy-queen. 
 
 « " Galanthus," the botanical name of snow-drop, means " milk-flower." 
 6
 
 SPlinSTG FLOWEKS. 
 
 And lowly shrubs with leafless stems 
 Put forth their fragrant flowers ; 
 
 And day by day fresh simple gems 
 Arise to deck our bowers. 
 
 Though richer, brighter be the hues 
 
 Of radiant Summer's train, 
 A deeper gladness these infuse 
 
 Now scattered o'er the plain ; 
 
 Leading our thoughts beyond the grave 
 
 To earth's eternal Spring, 
 When those whom Jesus died to save 
 
 Shall rise to meet their King.
 
 SNOW-DROP. 
 
 (galanthus nivalis.) 
 
 " And every man that hath this hope in him purifieth himself, even as 
 He is pure." 
 
 1 John iii. 3. 
 
 "While the snow is on the lea 
 Pure and spotless cometh she, 
 Drooping modestly her head 
 Though a herald from the dead : 
 
 As the Temple-courts beheld 
 Marj', with her Babe, of eld, 
 At the Altar bending low, 
 Come to pay a mother's yow'^. 
 
 Oh, were garb as spotless mine 
 As the Snow-drop's robe divine ; 
 "Were my heart as bright and pure, 
 Then my peace would be secure. 
 
 •* Snow-drops generally appear about the same time as the Festival of the 
 " Purification of Saint Mary the Virgin." 
 
 8.
 
 
 
 SNOW-DROP. 
 
 But alas ! though once aiTayed 
 In a garment purer made 
 By the holy cleansing jBLood 
 Of the blessed Saviour's blood « ; 
 
 Now, 'tis soU'd by many a stain, 
 Fruit of lust, and longings vain, 
 Anger, pride, rebellious bent, 
 Fretftd moods, and hours mis-spent. 
 
 Yet, by ceaseless prayer sincere 
 And the penitential tear, 
 May I mercy find and grace 
 Sin's defilement to efi'ace. 
 
 Thus on joyous Easter mom 
 Eisiag from the grave, thiice-bom. 
 Robe more bi'illiant than the snow 
 Shall my gracious Lord bestow. 
 
 e Bishop Latimer, speaking of holy baptism, says, " There we begin ; we are 
 washed with water; and then the words are added, for we are baptized in the 
 name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, whereby the baptism receiveth his 
 strength. Now this sacrament of baptism is a thing of great weight ; for it 
 ascertaineth and assureth us, that like as the water washeth the body and 
 cleanseth it, so the blood of Christ cleanseth and washeth it from all filth and 
 uncleanness of sin." — Remains, p. 126. Parker Society's Edition.
 
 PRIMROSE. 
 (primula vulgakis.) 
 
 ' It is good that a man should both hope and quietly wait for the salvation 
 
 of the Lord." 
 
 LameKtaiions ill. 26. 
 
 "With face upturned to the sky- 
 Appears the Primrose fail- ; 
 
 Yet not with pride, but modestly 
 Her gaze is centred there. 
 
 Of earnest hope the Primrose sings 
 
 And cahn confiding trust, — 
 Of hope in prayer that findeth wings, 
 
 Of faith that saves the just^ 
 
 Oh look not, Christian, on this flower, 
 Nor pluck it from the ground. 
 
 Without a wish that thou each hoiu* 
 Mayst thus be watchful found. 
 
 And while thi'ough many a stirring scene 
 
 Thy pilgrim footsteps move. 
 For ever &x thine eye serene 
 
 On the bright realms above. 
 
 f Habakkuk ii. 4.
 
 SWEET VIOLETS. 
 (viola, odokata.) 
 
 "God is not unrighteous, that He will forget your works, and labour that 
 proceedeth of love ; which love ye have shewed for His Name's sake, who have 
 ministered to the saints, and yet do minister." 
 
 liebreics vi. 10. 
 
 Sweet Violets, sweet Violets, 
 
 Of purple and of white, 
 Most cherisli'd of earth's flowerets e, 
 
 In simple beauty dight : 
 
 All hasten yc to welcome 
 
 With Spi-ing-days bright and mild, 
 
 That make the spirit gleesome 
 Of man and maid and child. 
 
 Your perfume, like soft melody, 
 
 Comes stealing o'er the breeze. 
 While blossom ye so cheerily 
 
 Beneath the lofty trees. 
 
 ' Say, little maids that love the spring, 
 Of all the fragrant gems ye bring 
 
 For bower or bridal wreath. 
 Is aught so fair as violets shy. 
 Betraying where they lowly lie 
 
 By the soft airs they hiea.tbe."—Kebh:
 
 SWEET VIOLETS. 
 
 
 Of gentle souls and guileless 
 The fragrant Yiolets tell, 
 
 Diffusing peace and gladness 
 "WTiere'er on earth they dwell. 
 
 In actions pure and lovely, 
 That shrink from idle gaze, 
 
 These ministers of mercy 
 Delight to pass their days : 
 
 And many a word of blessing 
 From sick and dying beds, 
 
 Where they have borne refreshing 
 Is shower'd upon their heads ; — 
 
 Of blessing twofold precious, 
 For theirs that promise sure 
 
 Of recompense most gracious 
 Which ever shall endure'^. 
 
 •> St. Matt. X. 42. 
 
 12
 
 HAWTHORN. 
 
 (CKAT^GUS OXTACANTHA.) 
 
 " I will that women adora themselves in modest apparel, with shame- 
 
 facedness and sobriety ; not with broidered hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly 
 array ; 
 
 But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works." 
 
 1 Tim. ii. 9, 10. 
 
 'Tis the merry month of Majdng' — 
 
 And the sun is no more coy, 
 Thrush and merle, through woodland straying, 
 
 Carol forth their notes of joy. 
 
 Children weave the garland gaily ', 
 
 Roving over plain and height, — 
 Cowslip, King-cup, pearl-like J Daisy, 
 
 Each is welcom'd with delight. 
 
 Every hedge-row now is gleaming 
 
 "With its silvery array ; 
 Ne'er saw I in land of dreaming 
 
 Aught more lovely than the May ^. 
 
 ' See note at end of vol. 
 
 J The French call the daisy petite marguerite (little pearl), the Italians 
 '/narglteriteffia. 
 
 ^ " Hailed from its fair and sweet array 
 
 The namesake of the lovely May." — Bp. Mant. 
 
 13
 
 HAWTHOEN. 
 
 Come, ye blushing maidens, view it, — 
 Praj*ing ye may be as chaste, — 
 
 For ye are, if ye but knew it. 
 
 Here as Hawthorn blossoms placed ; 
 
 To adorn and to enliven 
 
 Every path and glade of life. 
 
 And, perchance, when virtues ripen. 
 Bear the holy name of wife \ 
 
 1 Gen. ii. 18. 
 
 14
 
 GRASS"". 
 
 " As the flower of the grass so shall he pass away." 
 
 St. James i. 10 
 
 All common things we pass unheeded by 
 With careless glance ; nor tarry to descry 
 Whate'er their coy recesses store 
 Of Beauty, Truth, or holy lore : 
 And yet the pearl in rugged shell, 
 And honey-dew in flow'ret's heU 
 Might teach the wand' ring eye what lessons sweet 
 Unfolding fast its steady search would greet ; 
 What deep analogy and law 
 The mind from simplest things may draw, 
 Tracking fresh veins of golden thought 
 Aye opening on its path unsought ; 
 While fancy's wand to contemplation's fane 
 Guides link'd together all her magic train. 
 
 "> For this piece and another, marked |3, the author is indebted to a dear friend, 
 from whom he has also received much valuable assistance in preparing this 
 little work for the press. 
 
 15 

 
 GRASS. 
 
 Herbs of the field, and flowers whicli fling 
 Sweet incense on the wak'ning Spring ! 
 Did ever sophist's wisdom reach 
 To higher ti'uths than ye may teach, 
 "Whose fragile forms at mom and dewy e'en 
 Shed silent music over all the scene ? 
 
 Telling, though all aroimd him smile", 
 Man dureth but a little while. 
 That ere the day its course hath run 
 His soul may be beyond the sun, 
 And its raz'd mansion low in ruins laid, 
 Left like a fallen leaf to droop and fade. 
 
 Yet sure, if all the flowerets frail" 
 That deck each mountain-side and dale 
 In raiment bloom so bright and fair, 
 Clad by His Hand who placed them there, 
 "^rVhy should one anxious thought ovoc bosom wring 
 Of want or care the morrow's dawn may bring ? 
 Oh, may we not like wither' d grass ^ 
 Our age in barren service pass, 
 
 " Psalm xc. 5, 6. " St. Matt. vi. 30. p Psalm cxxix. 6. 
 
 16
 
 GHASS. 
 
 
 But yield, deep rooted in the soil, 
 Meet pimruce to the labourer's toil, 
 Till, at earth's harvest, angel-reapers come 
 To bear us gently in their bosoms home. 
 
 Meanwhile, amid the desert waste, 
 For lowly souls one spot is plac'd; 
 The lot is fair : and all around 
 Soft verdure springs from holy ground. 
 
 Spreading for aching limbs its calm repose. 
 
 And peace and joy such as the world ne'er knows. 
 Thus, Lord, within Thy Church to rest 
 Be it through life our portion blest, 
 "Where heavenly dew with kindly aid 
 Falls to refresh each tender blade i ; 
 
 Then bursting through the tilth of time may we 
 
 Blossom for ever in Eternity ! 
 
 1 Deut. xxxii. 2. 
 
 I 
 
 n
 
 FORGET ME NOT. 
 
 (myosotis palustris.) 
 
 "Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compas- 
 sion on the son of her womb ? yea, tliey may forget, yet will not I forget thee." 
 
 Isaiah xlix. 15. 
 
 Father, an erring cliild draws nigh, 
 For mercy lifts his suppliant cry, 
 
 Through Jesus sought 
 Vouchsafe, God, a willing ear. 
 Be pleased my humble prayer to hear ; 
 
 Forget me not. 
 
 "VYhcn Satan tempts and pride rebels. 
 Or torturing doubt my bosom swells, 
 
 And demons plot ; 
 Thy gracious aid and strength afford 
 To keep my feet from faUing, Lord ! 
 
 Forget me not. 
 
 >=SF»= 
 
 ■Nf»=^ 
 
 ^4W
 
 FORGET ME JTOT. 
 
 When heart and spiiit faint and fail, 
 Dread judgments cause my soul to quail 
 
 And mourn my lot ; 
 Oh, may I still Thy wisdom see, 
 Submissive wait, and follow Thee"^: 
 
 Forget mc not. 
 
 When hoiu's of sadness round me close, 
 And blast on blast still fiercer blows 
 
 With anguish fraught ; 
 Eefresh me with consoling grace. 
 That I in all Thy Hand may trace : 
 
 Forget me not. 
 
 When trouble and disease invade, 
 Consume the frame Thy power hath made 
 
 And goodness bought. 
 Oh, smooth my pillow with Thy love 
 And send me healing from above ; 
 
 Forget me not. 
 
 When, drawing near the gate of death, 
 I struggle with my latest breath 
 
 And low am brought ; 
 
 r Isaiah xJ. 31.
 
 FOliGET ME NOT. 
 
 Lord, in that hour a peaceful end 
 And ministering spirits send ; 
 
 Forget me not. 
 
 And when before Thy awful Throne 
 I stand, the evil deeds to own 
 
 "Wliich I have wrought ; 
 Then, as in mercy Thou shalt give 
 Pardon to aU that contrite live, 
 
 Forget me not. 
 
 20
 
 I 
 
 HONEYSUCKLE 
 
 (CAPRIFOLIUM PERICLYMENUM.) 
 
 " That they may adorn the doctrine of God our Saviour in all things." 
 
 Titus ii. 10. 
 
 CiiNGiNG to oaken boughs, trailing o'er bow'r, 
 Twining through hedge-rows green, blossoms this flow'r ; 
 Freely its fragrancy casting around 
 While the lark's soaring notes blithely resound. 
 
 Thither the humming bee speedeth at mom 
 Storing her nectary ere she retiuTi ; 
 Grateful the traveller breathes the sweet gale, 
 Eesting his weary limbs down in the vale. 
 
 Thus to a Higher Pow'r fast may I cling. 
 Thus, like the Woodbine, seek humbly to bring 
 Him that sustaineth me glory and praise, 
 By a life holily spent in His ways. 
 
 Be it my blessedness too to impart 
 5 Joy and fresh vigour to many a heart 
 
 Struggling with earnestness Heaven to attain, 
 Careworn, and fainting with sorrow and pain. 
 
 21
 
 4. 
 
 + 
 
 EYEBRIGHT. 
 
 (EUPHRASIA OFPICIXALIS.) 
 
 " For he that is least among you all, the same shall be great." 
 
 St. LvMe ix. 48. 
 
 As star remote in yon blue sky, 
 Scarce e'er discern' d by mortal eye 
 
 'Mid all tbe shining host, 
 The Eyebright hides its tiny head 
 Among the green gi-ass of the mead, 
 
 Conceal' d and well-nigh lost. 
 
 But seek it out — this smallest gem 
 Of earth's resplendent diadem — 
 
 And hear it softly say, 
 " In God's good kingdom blessings pure 
 The least of aU His saints ensure. 
 
 Who watch and work and pray. 
 
 " For they that unobtrusive live. 
 And by good deeds meet praises give 
 To their Eternal Sire, 
 
 22 
 
 g^a^g g-rg saa^r^ s^ — i^^sx^-s
 
 EYEBEIGHT. 
 
 Shall not with faintest lustre shine, 
 Nor lowest sit at feast divine*, 
 
 Nor feeblest stiike their lyre*. 
 
 " Thus He, the Lord of all, hath said,- 
 Who had not where to lay His Head 
 
 For many a weary day, — 
 That, when life's pilgrimage is past. 
 Last shall be first, and fii'st be last" 
 
 In regions far away." 
 
 « St. Luke xiv. 10. 
 
 ' Rev. xiv. 1 — 5. 
 
 ' St. Matt. xix.'30. 
 
 23
 
 LILY OF THE VALLEY. 
 
 (CONVALLAKIA MAJALIS.) 
 
 "Blessed are the pure in heart : for they shall see God." 
 
 St. Man. Y. 8. 
 
 CoMEST thou from Faery land, 
 Where around thee, hand in hand, 
 Dance the merry little sprites, 
 When the moonlit glade invites ? 
 
 Doth Titania from thy cups 
 Sip her nectar as she sups ? 
 Serves thy leaf, when revels close. 
 As a couch for her repose ? 
 
 Nay, methinks from higher scenes 
 Than are rul'd by Faery queens. 
 Thou hast come our earth to hail, 
 Sweetest Lily-of-the-vale. 
 
 24
 
 cgy^aa 
 
 c^i>^ac^gM 
 
 L 
 
 n 
 
 LILY OF THE YALLEY. 
 
 Piirc and bright as cLrivcn snow, 
 Meek, yet graceful, dost thou grow ; 
 Emblem meet of that blest Maid " 
 On whose breast the Christ was laid. 
 
 Thou retirement lov'st as she, — 
 Lone and shelter' d dells for thee ; 
 And when plac'd in garden fair 
 Bearing not the sun's full glare : 
 
 As the Galilean saw 
 Gabriel's dazzling light with awe, 
 And her lowly spirit quailed. 
 When with words of honour hailed. 
 
 Heav'n twin blessings will impart 
 To the meek and pure in heart, — 
 Here, the kingdom of God's grace, 
 There, to see the Father's Face''. 
 
 Strive then, Christian, to endure 
 Like the Yu-gin-mother pure ; 
 Free from stain of earthly dross. 
 Meekly looking to the Cross. 
 
 >■ " Lily of Eden's fragrant shade." — Kehle. 
 > St; Matt. V. 5, 8.
 
 HEART'S-EASE. 
 (viola, tkicolob.) 
 
 "O Lord, I am oppressed ; ease me." 
 
 Isaiah xxxviii. 14. (Margined rendering.) 
 
 Ye, for ease of heart who long, 
 Seek it not earth's gifts among, 
 Nor in pleasure's giddy round, 
 But where only it is found, — 
 
 In the Cross. 
 
 Be your trials what they may ; 
 Though as dark as night your way ; 
 Though each hour the thorns increase ; 
 Doubt not ! — ever floweth Peace 
 
 From the Cross. 
 
 Cast aside all gloomy fear ; 
 "Wipe away desponding tear : 
 For the holy Jesus bare 
 All our sorrow, all our care^, 
 
 On the Cross. 
 
 y Isaiah liii. 4. 
 
 26
 
 MIGNONETTE^ 
 
 (reseda odokata.) 
 
 ' Though the Lord be higli, yet hath He respect unto the lowly." 
 
 Psalm cxxxviii. 6. 
 
 Who does not love thee, Mignonette ? 
 "WHio owes thee not a boundless debt ? 
 Who has not known thee soothe and calm 
 The grie\ing heart, like Gilead's balm ? 
 
 The rich man's garden's graced by thee. 
 The cottage border equally. 
 And pallid forms, in garrets bare. 
 Thee cherish, and thy blessing share. 
 
 By thee enrich' d, the gentle gale 
 Of summer evening we inhale ; 
 Oft, too, thou servest to allay 
 The heat and burden of the day. 
 
 The diminutive of mignon, darling. 
 
 27
 
 MlGIfOIfETTE. 
 
 What though no charms thou hast to sheyr, 
 Plainest amongst the flowers that grow ! 
 
 An odour passing all is thine, 
 
 Ne'er cloying, like to sweets divine. 
 
 As some dear maiden, past all praise, 
 Atti'acting not th' admirer's gaze ; 
 
 But cloth' d with beauty, not of earth, — 
 The graces of a Heavenly birth.
 
 GERMANDER SPEEDWELL. 
 
 (VEKONICA CHAMAEDEYS.) 
 
 "For here we have no continuing city, but we seek one to come." 
 
 Hebrews xiii. 14. 
 
 " What says that flower with eye as blue 
 As is the azure's deepest hue ? 
 How calm, yet earnest is her look 
 On grassy bank, by rippling brook !" 
 
 Tarry, brother, on thy way ; 
 Listen, — this her cheering lay. 
 
 " Speedwell, pilgrim, to thy home, 
 Never from the straight path roam ; 
 There be all thy treasures plac'd 
 Where nor moth nor rust can waste *. 
 
 " What though fi-ail and prone to err ! 
 Trust thy great Deliverer : 
 He wiU grace and strength impart 
 To the earnest stedfast heart. 
 
 ^ St. Matt. vi. 20. 
 
 29
 
 GEEMAIfDEE SPEEDWELL. 
 
 " Speedwell, though the tempests blow 
 Charged with misery and woe, 
 O'er the meek and lowly soid 
 Scathless Heaven's dread thunders roll^. 
 
 " And, amid earth's care and pain, 
 Peace shall in thy bosom reign — 
 Peace from that clear fountain flowing 
 Where the Tree of Life is growing *'. 
 
 " Speedwell thus, for One is nigh — 
 Though unseen by mortal eye — 
 Thee to prosper, thee to bless. 
 As thou to the goal wouldst press ■*. 
 
 "And thy soul, e'en here below, 
 Somewhat of Heaven's joy may know,— 
 Somewhat of that glory share 
 Which the saints triumphant wear." 
 
 ^ Ps. xci. 7 
 
 ^ Rev. xxii. I, 2. 
 
 J Phil. iii. 13, 14. 
 
 30
 
 PIMPERNEL 
 
 (aNAGALLIS* AB.VENS1S.) 
 
 "Truly the light is sweet, and a pleasant thing it is for the eyes to behold 
 the sun : 
 
 " But if a man live many years, and rejoice in them all ; yet let him remember 
 the days of darkness." 
 
 Ecclesiailen xi. 7, 8. 
 
 See the scarlet Pimpernel 
 SmiUng in the sunny mom, 
 
 Where it loveth most to dweR 
 'Mid the golden waving com. 
 
 Haply, pass another hour 
 By the corn-field path again, 
 
 "When dark clouds begin to lower, 
 Pregnant with big drops of rain. 
 
 A\Tiere is now this floweret gay 
 "With its bright and beaming eye ? 
 
 Look you wheresoe'er you may, 
 Ne'er a Pimpernel you spy. 
 
 « See note at end of vol. 
 
 31
 
 PIMPEENEL. 
 
 All are closed : with instinct shrinking 
 rroni the murky humid air, — 
 
 As it were some spirit sinking 
 'Neath the pending load of care. 
 
 Thus e'en childhood's lightsome heart 
 Has a cross upon it laid, — 
 
 Many a sorrow, many a smart. 
 Many a storm to make afraid. 
 
 Tears, perchance, and grief bediroming 
 Lustre of those loving eyes 
 
 Whence his joy is hourly springing, 
 "Wliile on mother's breast he lies : 
 
 Or some cloud of shame and sin 
 Darkening its sunny heaven, 
 
 TiU, by penitence within 
 And confession, 'tis forgiven. 
 
 Rain and sunshine, smiles and tears, — 
 All on earth one portion have j 
 
 Joy and sorrow, hopes and fears. 
 From the cradle to the grave.
 
 ROSE. 
 (rosa cektifolia.) 
 
 " The path of the just is as the shining light, that shinetli more and more 
 unto the perfect day." 
 
 Proverbs iv. 18. 
 
 I LOVE to see the beauteous Rose 
 
 O'er cottage porch entwine, 
 And breathe her odour soft the while, 
 Casting a radiant peaceful smile, 
 
 Like visitant divine. 
 
 She tells of love where'er she blooms — 
 
 Celestial love and sure, — 
 But ne'er, methinks, so sweet her lay 
 As when she yieldeth thus each day 
 
 Her sweets to God's own poor. 
 
 A high and holy embassy 
 
 Such blessing to impart ! — 
 Like Him, the " Rose of Sharon <=" styled, 
 Who left His Throne for earth's di-ear wild 
 
 To raise man's drooping heart. 
 
 ■= Canticles ii. 1. 
 
 33
 
 
 EOSE. 
 
 And yet, alas ! her life is short, 
 
 Her beauty fades and dies. 
 And withers soon that lovely form 
 Endued with every daiaty charm. 
 
 Dissolve those earthly ties. 
 
 But, as the holy, just, and true. 
 
 When numbered with the dead"^, — 
 Around the scenes she once made bright 
 Her joy is still, though lost to sight, 
 A fragrance pure to shed. 
 
 Oh I be my Ufe like thine, sweet Rose, 
 
 All love, all peace, all praise ; 
 That so, whene'er I "fall on sleep," 
 I leave to cheer the friends that weep 
 The perfume of my days. 
 
 "• "The memory of the just is blessed." — Proverbs x. 7. 
 
 -~(r 
 
 ■
 
 FUCHSIA 
 
 (fuchsia coccinea.) 
 
 ' For the Lord taketb pleasure in His people : He will beautify the meek 
 with Salvation." 
 
 Psalm cxlix. 4. 
 
 EiTBLEir of modest grace ! 
 With downcast tearful eye 
 And pendent bloom wherein we trace 
 Thy deep humility : — 
 
 Like maiden meek as fair, 
 Refraining to display 
 Thy highest charms, as jewels rare, 
 To the full glare of day. 
 
 From sunnier scenes, they tell, 
 Thou cam'st, a tender child «, 
 In this our Island home to dwell, 
 
 "Where bleak winds blow and wild. 
 
 ' The Fuchsia is a native of South America. It takes its name from the dis- 
 coverer, Fuchs. 
 
 35
 
 I 
 
 FUCHSIA. 
 
 But now, no more a stranger 
 Beneath our northern skies, 
 To thee nor fears nor sense of danger 
 From frosts and snows arise : 
 
 And ne'er a garden sweet 
 
 Within our favour' d Isle, 
 
 But thou art there the eye to greet 
 
 And shed a radiant smile. 
 
 The modest, thus, and chaste 
 Take root in every soil ; 
 And eveiy lot by them is graced 
 Of pleasure or of toil ; — 
 
 And who a higher rooms 
 In Heaven's high house shall share 
 Or what the flower a brighter bloom 
 In paradise shaU wear ? 
 
 e St. Luke xiv. 10, 11. 
 
 
 ZS
 
 LILIES". 
 (lilia.) 
 
 "But seek ye first the Kingdom of God, and His righteousness ; and all these 
 things shall be added unto you." 
 
 St. Matt. vi. 33. 
 
 Behold the Lilies of the field', 
 
 They spin not and they grow in ease ; 
 l) Yet, Solomon in all his pomp 
 
 "Was not arrayed like one of these. 
 
 <j) If God so clothe the tender grass 
 
 ' I Wliich blooms to-day, to-morrow dies ; 
 
 Shall He not aU thy wants provide, 
 And watch thee with a Father's eyes ? 
 
 Then be thou not of doubtful mind, 
 
 Nor vex thyself with anxious thought, — 
 
 " AVhat shall I eat, what shall I drink. 
 Or where my outward garb be sought?" 
 
 " It appears to be very doubtful as to what species of lily it is to which our 
 Saviour alluded. I have therefore taken the plant generically, leaving the reader 
 to select specifically whichever he may consider the most probable. 
 
 i Cant. ii. 16 ; v. 13. 
 
 sr 
 
 \ 
 I 

 
 But, turning fi'om this fleeting world, 
 Look to thy Sun in heaven above'' : 
 
 Be clothed in His saving robe', 
 Bask in the rays of His pure love. 
 
 Thy prime desire a holy name, 
 
 Thii'st after righteousness and peace ; 
 
 For whilst thou seekest heavenly things 
 All earthly blessings shall increase. 
 
 The morrow's good, the morrow's ill, 
 "When it arrives, shall thee suffice ; 
 
 Confide in God, be full of faith ; — 
 
 Thou hast been bought with matchless price ^. 
 
 What though cold death must freeze thy veins ! 
 
 ^Tiat though thy frame shall droop and die ! 
 Thy root lies buried in the ground ; 
 
 Thou shalt arise ; thy Spring is nigh ". 
 
 Transplanted then to brighter scenes 
 Where Lilies bloom that never fade, 
 
 Thou shalt appear a " son of mom," — 
 Thy raiment tenfold glorious made°. 
 
 k Alalachi iv. 2. ' Isaiah Ixi. 10. " 1 Cor. vi. 19, 20. 
 
 " 1 Cor. XV. 42, 43. ° Uev. iii. 5. 
 
 38
 
 PASSION-FLOWER. 
 
 (PASSIFLORA C/ERUIiEA.) 
 
 " Surely He hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows." 
 
 Isaiah liii. 4. 
 
 With reverence view the Passion-flower ; 
 
 Put forth no hasty hand 
 To pluck it from its trellised bower 
 And cast it on the strand, — 
 As 'twere some ordinary thing of earth, 
 Or consonant with giddy joy and reckless mirth. 
 
 The Passion-flower, mysterious name, 
 
 What awfal scenes recalling p ! — 
 Gethsemane, the cross and shame. 
 The scourge upon Him falling. 
 The crown of thorns upon His sacred brow, 
 The purple robe, the nails, the spear, the streams that flow.
 
 
 PASSIOX-FLOWEE. 
 
 Hath o'er a flower a mission given 
 
 As holy or as high ? 
 Like some Evangelist of heaven, 
 Of Christ to testify, — 
 His boimdless love for Adam's fallen race, 
 "Who suffered thus their sia and sorrow to efface. 
 
 Passion-flower, Passion-flower, 
 
 Go forth from chme to clime. 
 And herald with thy silent power. 
 Throughout the realms of time, 
 The mighty truth which man alone can save, 
 And give him hope beyond the confines of the grave.
 
 "''"""''^""'^I 
 
 HERB-PARIS, OR TRUE-LOVE". 
 
 (PAKIS QUADRIFOLIA.) 
 
 " And this is love, that we walk after His Commandments." 
 
 2nd John 6. 
 
 There's many a fond desire of earth 
 
 Oft dignified by name of Love ; 
 But these alone are nothing worth, 
 
 Howe'er intense within the heart they move. 
 
 True Love that holy sign must hear — 
 
 In every phantasy and mood — 
 Which Christians on their foreheads wear, — 
 
 The Christ-adom'd and consecrated Eood. 
 
 Love and the Cross inseparate dwell, 
 
 As God and man in Christ abide ; 
 With one blest theme heaven's anthems swell — 
 
 " "Worthy to reign the Lamb that lov'd and died"^!" 
 
 q This plant has all its parts in fours ; four leaves, four petals, &:c. ; and 
 " All four-leaved flowers bring to the mind 
 The cross whereon He died." 
 
 Mary Hmcitt. 
 I Rev. V. 12. 
 
 41 
 
 I
 
 + 
 
 Gtn. xxvii. 28. 
 
 SUN-DEW^ 
 (drosera rotundifolia.) 
 
 "God give thee of the dew of Heaven." 
 
 Thou mountain fairy ! 
 I love to see thee glisten 
 
 'Mid moorland wild, 
 So like a star from heaven, 
 
 With radiance mild. 
 
 Sui-passing lovely, — 
 Methinks from some bright sphere, 
 Thy native home, 
 This spot so lone and drear 
 
 To cheer thou'st come. 
 
 • This plant is found 
 
 " on boggy moor, 
 
 Or peat-clad marsh ;" 
 
 Its leaves are radial, and fringed with hairs "of texture delicately fine,"and of 
 the most exquisite ruby colour. Each hair supports a little globule of pellucid, 
 dew-like liquor ; whence its name. 
 
 42
 
 STJN-DEW. 
 
 And yet so lowly ; 
 Hiding thy crimson floss 
 
 And jewell'd head 
 Among the di-ipping moss, 
 
 Thy chosen bed. 
 
 How happy were I, 
 If my baptismal dew 
 
 Still shone as bright 
 As when brought forth anew 
 To life and light*. 
 
 God grant me mercy ! 
 That Faith's eternal crown 
 
 May yet be mine, — 
 When Christ to earth comes down 
 
 With pomp divine. 
 
 t 1 John V. 11, 12. 
 
 =v 
 
 ^te., 
 
 43
 
 WOODY NIGHTSHADE, OR 
 BITTER-SWEET". 
 
 (SOLANUM DULCAMARA.) 
 
 " Blessed ai'e they that mourn ; for they shall be comforted." 
 
 St. Matt. V. 4. 
 
 There is a cup which all must drain 
 Who would the crown of life attain ; 
 For thereby, hath the Saviour said, 
 The carnal mind is heavenly made*. 
 
 Though harsh and bitter seem the draught, — 
 Shi'ink not, for when 'tis freely quaff 'd. 
 The gall to honey sweet shall turn ; 
 And thus thy tutored soul shall learn, 
 
 That sorrow dures but for a night. 
 Blest joy returns with morning light ^ ; 
 T^d those who suffer for Christ's sake 
 Shall reign with Him when they awake '■. 
 
 " The familiar name of this plant originates in tlie flavour of tlie root, which 
 is at first bitter in the mouth, and afterwards swett. 
 
 » Heb. xii. 10. y Psalm xxx. 6. ^ 2 Tim. ii. 12. 
 
 44
 
 DAHLIA. 
 
 (dahlia muSTRANEA.) 
 
 ' Reproofs of instruction are tlie way of life." 
 
 Proverbs vi. 23. 
 
 Hast thou seen in garden old 
 
 What was once the Dahlia call'd ? 
 
 Gay, indeed, with red and gold. 
 But for beauty ne'er extoll'd. 
 
 Now, this self-same flower is seen. 
 Well-nigh noblest of her race. 
 
 Gorgeous as an Eastern queen, — 
 Moulded yet with chasten' d grace. 
 
 Mark it well, ye matrons fair, — 
 Ye, with mother's love who glow, 
 
 See the fruits of tender care 
 In the Dahlia's perfect blow. 
 
 45
 
 I 
 
 DAHLIA. 
 
 Watch o'er every bent and mood 
 Of your offspring's dawning mind ; 
 
 Cultivate each germ of good, 
 Gently curb the iU-inchn'd. 
 
 Christian parents ! know ye not 
 Seeds of grace were sown within '^, 
 
 When your little ones you brought 
 To be wash'd fi'om natal sin ^ ? 
 
 Nurture then, with pious zeal, 
 What a gracious God has given, 
 
 That their growing hearts may feel 
 
 They are vow'd to Christ and Heaven ". 
 
 Thus, by discipline's kind aid*^. 
 
 In all holy beauty dight, 
 Shall each day advance be made 
 
 To perfection's dazzling height®. 
 
 » Eph. iv. 7. *> Acts xxii. 16. = (jal. iii. 27. 
 
 <■ For the very true beginning of her (Wisdom) is the desire of discipline ; and 
 the care of discipline is love." — Wisdom of Solomon vi. 17. 
 
 « Heb. vi. 1.
 
 THE POOR MAN'S FLOWERS. 
 
 ' So the poor hath hope." 
 
 Job V. 16. 
 
 I LOVE to see the Cottar in Hs garden-plot 
 In the balmy summer evening hours, — 
 
 The toil and trouble of the day forgot 
 Among his favourite plants and flowers. 
 
 White Clematis and Eglantine in clusters wind 
 
 Around his bow'r, to teU of joy ; 
 And trusty Wall-flower blossoms to remind 
 
 Of fiiendship that no storms desti'oy. 
 
 The silken Rose its soothing sympathy affords ; 
 
 Meek Mignonette too breathes around 
 Its aromatic fragrance, like kind words ; 
 
 Blue Thrift^ and Marigolds abound. 
 
 f ."^atice Umonium, Sea-lavender ; commonly used as an edging to flower- 
 borders. 
 
 47
 
 
 TEE JOOIl ITAN S FLOWEES. 
 
 Here is the mcthers -mth. her florets^ nestling close — 
 Type of that love which cheers his hearth ; 
 
 WhUe bright-rob'd Lilies teach him to repose 
 His trust on Him who rules the earth. 
 
 And, lurking ia some shelter' d nook, most prized of all, 
 
 Sweet Violets which Iter tender care — 
 His little darling loosed from sorrow's thraU* — 
 
 In early childhood planted there. 
 
 These are the simple charms that soothe the labourer's lot. 
 
 Light' ning his care and calming fears ; 
 Long may he hold this fondly- cherish' d spot'', 
 
 His Eden in this vale of tears. 
 
 R " Hen-and-chicken daisy." 
 
 •■ Floret, a small flower, such as occurs in composite or compound flowers, 
 i " We give Thee hearty thanks, for that it hath pleased Thee to deliver 
 this our sister out of the miseries of this sinful world." — Burial Service. 
 k Prov. xxii. 22.
 
 I 
 
 BRIDAL FLOWERS 
 
 ■ But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts 
 
 1 Pet. iii. 15. 
 
 Haek, the village bells are pealing 
 Froin yon spire a merry lay, 
 
 Far and near to all revealing 
 Joyance of a bridal day. 
 
 Holy Church her benediction 
 
 To the youthful pair hath given "" ; 
 
 Oh, may reverent affection " 
 
 Grace the wedlock sealed in heaven ! 
 
 May their life — like those sweet flowers 
 "Which the rustic maidens cast 
 
 All along their path in showers ° — 
 Be as fragrant to the last. 
 
 1 " Our Bridal Flowers serve for a buried corse." — Shakespeare. 
 
 •" See note at end of vol. " Eph. v. 33. 
 
 » See note at end of vol. 
 
 49 
 
 K
 
 a 
 
 For these gems are emblems beauteous 
 Of fair yirtues fi'om above, 
 
 Faith and hope, obedience duteous. 
 Meekness, temperance, and love. 
 
 These preserving, and subduing 
 All impure desires each day ; 
 
 Angel hands shall aye be strewing 
 Joys unfading in their way?. 
 
 ^ p See note at end of voL 
 
 I 
 I 
 f 
 
 •! 
 
 4= 
 
 50 
 
 j
 
 FUNERAL FLOWERS. 
 
 " Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came 
 unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared. 
 
 St. Luke xxiv. 1. 
 
 SoLEMJT, yet full of hope, ascends to Heaven the strain^, 
 As dust to kindred dust returns again, 
 Casting a gleam of hallow' d joy within the breast 
 By silent life-consuming grief opprest. 
 
 Strew, strew the flow'rs"", ye maidens clad in whiter ; 
 Mingle with tears these emblems pure and bright : 
 That as a virgin for her bridal mom arrayed"", 
 Tour sister in her sacred home be laid. 
 
 Strew, strew the odorous Yiolct and blushing Eose, 
 Sweet Eosemary that fond remembrance shows®, 
 Hyacinth, Forget-me-not, and Speedwell, heavenly blue, 
 Lily and Pansy*, wild Thyme, undjTUg Rue'*. 
 
 I 
 
 1 " Then shall be said or sung, I heard a voice from Heaven, &c."—The Order 
 for the Burial of the Dead. 
 
 ' See notes at end of vol. 
 
 » " There 's Rosemary, that 's for remembrance ;" 
 
 t "And there is Pansies, that 's for thought." 
 
 " " There 's Rue for you ; and here 's some for me ; — we may call it Herb-of- 
 grace o' Sundays." — Hamlet, Act iv. Scene vi. 
 
 51
 
 JL„ 
 
 FTJNEKAL FLO"\yEKS. 
 
 Mcctly, mctMnks, with oiir fond Mother's burial rite 
 
 Such customs primitive we may imite ; — 
 
 Oh, who shall check these proofs the mourner's heart 
 
 would give 
 That souls departed fresh in memory liye^ ? 
 
 ' See note at end of toI. 
 
 
 52
 
 FLOWERS OF GOD'S ACRE^. 
 
 " They were lovely and pleasant in their lives, and in their death -were 
 not divided'." 
 
 2 Sam. i. 23. 
 
 
 Heke are they laid together down, 
 
 And peaceful sleep beneath 
 The nistic arch above them thrown, — • 
 
 Their earthly bond in death. 
 
 Wall-flower and Honey-suckle sweet* 
 
 From either grave uprise, 
 And overhead in fragrance meet, — 
 
 TJieir lot beyond the skies. 
 
 Each to the other seems to tend, 
 
 Each of its own impart ; 
 With love, love even yet to blend. 
 
 Heart still to answer heart. 
 
 y See note at end of vol. 
 « These verses were suggested by seeing the graves of two children in 
 Bonchurch churchyard, united by an arch ; and close by the tomb of the Rev. 
 W. Adams, author of the " Shadow of the Cross," " Old Man's Home," (fee, 
 » See note at end of vol. 
 
 53 

 
 =^^^^p& 
 
 FLOWERS OF GOd's ACKE. 
 
 Aroxxncl their feet Primi'oses pale — 
 
 Fitter than sculp tiu''cl stone — 
 With grateful perfume fill the vale. 
 
 As names of good men gone. 
 
 And by their side that Pastor good 
 
 "Who joy'd to speak of such, 
 Eesting beneath the Cross he "woo'd** — 
 
 Eelov'd and loving much. 
 
 "While far below, the siu-giug waves. 
 
 For ever making moan, 
 Send up their murmur to the graves, — 
 I Ten thousand notes in one. 
 
 Oh ! what a waking there will be 
 
 On earth's great Easter-morn, 
 When on those happy risen three 
 
 The light of Heaven shall dawn. 
 
 Se, with the souls his words have won, 
 Tliey, hand ia hand, shall mount 
 
 To joia the everlasting throng 
 Which Angels cannot count *=. 
 
 •> A simple iron cross is placed on Mr. Adams' tomb so as to cast iis shadow 
 over it, in touching allusion to one of his most beautiful works. 
 
 = Rev. vii. 9. 
 
 54
 
 FLOWERS OF GOD S ACEE. 
 
 A voice, as many waters'^, pours 
 That throng in eucharist mect^ ; 
 
 The blended fragrance of all flowers 
 No incense sheds so sweet. 
 
 ^ 
 
 d H,ev. xiv. 2. * " It is very meet, right, and our boiinden duty, 
 
 that we should give thanks, ka."— Communion Service. 
 
 55
 
 AUTUMNAL CROCUS. 
 
 (COLCHICUM ATJTUMNALE.) 
 
 " The righteous hath hope in his death." 
 
 Proverbs xiv. 32. 
 
 And art thou here, pale Crocus, 
 Arrived to bid farewell ; 
 
 "With thy bare leafless stem 
 Of gloom at hand to tell ? 
 
 Nay ; thou hast come to gladden 
 Whilst yellow Autumn wanes, 
 
 And for a few short hours 
 To deck the naked plains : 
 
 Some ray of hope to bring us 
 For falling leaf and sere. 
 
 Amid the fading brightness 
 Our drooping hearts to cheer. 
 
 Like some soft smile thou playest 
 
 Over the dying scene, 
 Bidding us holy comfort 
 
 Of future joys to glean.
 
 AxmuorAi, CKOCXJS. 
 
 Oh, linger still, pale flower ; 
 
 Oil, linger on awhile, 
 The dreary winter hours 
 
 To lighten and beguile. 
 
 Alas ! thy days are number' d, 
 Thou too must droop and die,- 
 
 Like all fair Eden's treasures, 
 In vain for thee we sigh. 
 
 Yet magnify we ever 
 
 That mercy which hath given 
 So many joys and blessings 
 
 Our cup of woe to leaven : 
 
 "Not weep, but learn the lesson 
 Thy little life doth show, — 
 
 For we, like thee, must perish, 
 Like thee corruption know. 
 
 And may our autumn hours 
 Afford some cheering ray 
 
 To gild the hope and promise 
 Of life's departing day.
 
 4= 
 
 i 
 
 
 A ROSE IN WINTER^ 
 
 " A thousand shall fall Ijeside thee, and ten thousand at thy right hand ; but 
 ^it shall not come nigh thee." 
 
 Psalm, xci. 7. 
 
 How com'st thou here, fair flower, 
 When Christmas-tide is nigh ? 
 
 Around the old church-tower 
 The bleak winds moan and sigh : 
 
 The snow is thickly falling, 
 The frost is on the ground ; — 
 
 Yet, brighter days recalling, 
 In beauty thou art found. 
 
 "Wilt tell to me, fair flower. 
 What secret charm is thine ? 
 
 That I, when life's storms lower, 
 Like thee may bloom and shine. 
 
 « Seen in full bloom against a chancel wall, amid a snow-storm.
 
 A ROSE rX WINTER. 
 
 " Blithe Ckristmas to thee, stranger, - 
 Blithe Chiistmas and thy weal ; 
 How I am kept from danger 
 'Tis easy to reveal. 
 
 "Beneath the shade reposing 
 Of these most sacred walls, 
 Though storms around are closing, 
 No terror me appals : 
 
 " And when the keen wind's whistle 
 Is sounding far and wide, 
 I closer, closer nestle 
 To holy Church's side. 
 
 "Then, fellow-pilgrim, ever 
 To thy fond Mother cling ; 
 Let no rude hand thee sever 
 From Her protecting wing ; 
 
 " For oft I hear sweet voices 
 Proclaiming from within, 
 That he alone rejoices 
 
 In this drear world of sin, 
 
 I 
 
 i 

 
 e^|=^ 
 
 A EOSE IN WINTEE. 
 
 ' T\Tio holds in blest relation 
 
 The Bridegroom through the Bride^; 
 And his shaU be salvation 
 
 When all the world is triede." 
 
 ' Eph. V. 32. 
 
 s Jdbn XV. 4 ; 1 John ii. 28i 
 
 I 
 
 60
 
 -4* 
 li 
 
 
 THE RETROSPECT. 
 
 ■ My song shall be alway of the loving-kindness of the Lord." 
 
 Psalm Ixxxix. 1, 
 
 Seest thou that streamlet wending 
 From the upland through the vale, 
 
 O'er its crystal waters bending 
 Many a fern and floweret frail ? 
 
 Scotland's Blue-beUs^ there are waving 
 
 In the gentle western breeze ; 
 Lady-fern her fair fronds laving ^ 
 
 'Neath the silver bu'ken trees. 
 
 Anemones, like starlets, twinkle ; 
 Hyacinths their perfume breathe ; 
 oiTcl, Primrose, Periwinkle, 
 And May-lilies ^ form a wreath. 
 
 •> Harebell. 
 
 ' "Where the copse-wood is the greenest, 
 Where the fountain glistens sheenest. 
 Where the morning dew lies longest. 
 There the Lady-fern grows strongest."— Sir Walter Scott. 
 ^ The old name for Lily of the Vale. 
 
 61
 
 THE KETEOSPECT. 
 
 "Willow-herb, St. Lewis' flower^, 
 And the regal Meadow-sweet™, 
 
 By the cascade's dewy shower. 
 Like old friends in converse, meet. 
 
 In the mystic hour of gloaming n, 
 
 To the fancy's aiiy flights. 
 Look they to be gliding, roaming, — 
 
 As it were unearthly sprites. 
 
 Thus, as life is onward winding 
 By the " banks and braes" of Time, 
 
 Many a joy our souls are finding, — 
 Piu'c and fi-esh as morning's prime ; — 
 
 Happy moments, festal pleasures, 
 
 Breathings of the heart to heart. 
 Holy friendship's priceless treasures, 
 
 Sweets that thoughts of Heaven impart. 
 
 • F!eur-de-Luce, or Yellow Iris. 
 
 ™ Queen of the Meadow. 
 
 " "Gloaming, or gloamin (Sax. Glomung], fall of the evening, the twilight. 
 This is sometimes called tlie edge of the evening. In Saxon, this word was ap- 
 plied to the dawn, as well as to the twilight." — Imp. Dictionary.
 
 
 THE EETEOSPECT. 
 
 And when shades of eve draw near us, 
 Seem they, to the backward glance, 
 
 Forms celestial sent to cheer us 
 
 In earth's eveiy change and chance. 
 
 
 63
 
 I 
 
 <0> 
 
 
 " 'Tis the merry month of Maying." — Page 13, note i. 
 
 " It was anciently the custom for all ranks of people to go 
 out a-lMaying early on the 1 st of IMay." — Brands Popular 
 A'/Uiquities. 
 
 " Hail, bounteous May ! that dost inspire 
 
 Mirth, and youth, and fond desire ; 
 
 Woods and groves are of thy dressing. 
 
 Hill and dale doth boast thy blessing. 
 Thus we salute thee with our early song. 
 And welcome thee, and wish thee long." — Milton. 
 
 " I have more than once been disturbed early on May- 
 morning, at Newcastle-upon-Tyne, by a song which a woman 
 sang about the streets who had several garlands in her 
 hands : — 
 
 * Rise up, maidens ! fye, for shame ! 
 For I've been four lang mUes from hame ; 
 I've been gathering my garlands gay : 
 Rise up, fau- maids, and take in your May.' " — Brand's Pop. Ant. 
 
 " Children weave the garland gaily ." — Page 13, note i. 
 
 " On May-day the young maids of every parish carry 
 about garlands of flowers, which afterwards they hang up in 
 their churches." — Awhrey. 
 
 64
 
 NOTES. 
 
 *' It was of old a festive day, 
 That ushered in the birth of May ; 
 Right early on the jocund mom 
 When that delightful month was bom. 
 Regardless of the timely sleep. 
 The noble fi-om the castled steep, 
 The burgher fi-om the busy change, 
 From village, hamlet, lonely grange, 
 The peasantry, a mingled throng. 
 Lasses and lads, and old and young, 
 Poured forth promiscuously, to pay 
 Observance to the merry May : 
 With shout and song, and winded horn, 
 Alert to wake the slumbering morn ; 
 To rove the good greenwood, and bring 
 Away the spoO of early Spring, 
 With nosegays decked, with garlands crowned. 
 And hang each smiling homestead round 
 Window and door and porch with bowers 
 Of verdant boughs and blooming flowers." — Bp. 3Iant. 
 
 Thus we read in Chaucer's Court of Love, that early on 
 May-day, ' Fourth goth al the court, both most and lest, to 
 fetche the floui-is fresh, and braunch, and blome.' 
 
 Page 31, note e. 
 
 " The Pimpernel grows everywhere ; on the sandy heath 
 among the furze and broom, on the bank by the road, and 
 especially among the ripening corn, it may be seen, on any 
 sunny day, dm-ing July and August. It is commonly called 
 the ' Shepherd's Warning' or ' Poor man's Weather-glass,' 
 from the influence that a moist atmosphere has upon the 
 blossom, which is so sensitive, that long before we can be 
 
 65
 
 I 
 
 t 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 aware of the approach of rain, it closes up, and it does not 
 open at all upon a wet or even cloudy dny. The botanical 
 name is taken from the Greek word afayf\dii}, signifying to 
 lauuh ; because the ancient Greek writers believed it to be 
 a useful medicine in liver complaints, and thus favourable 
 to good and cheerful spirits. Though it may not be found, 
 in our times, to deserve this praise, yet its pleasant aspect 
 and love of sunshine render its name a suitable one." — Wild 
 Flowers, Societt/for Promoting Christian Knowledge. 
 
 Page 39, note p. 
 
 " I have read, in a Latin author, of flowers inscribed 
 with the name of kings ; 
 
 ' Die, quibus in terns inscripti nomina regum 
 Nascantur floras.' — Virgil. 
 
 but here is one emblazoned with the marks of the Prince of 
 Life. I read in the inspired writings of apostolic men, who 
 bore about in theu- bodies the dying of the Lord Jesus ; but 
 here is a blooming religioso, that carries apparent memorials 
 
 of the same tremendous and awful event Is Nature 
 
 then actuated by the noble ambition of paying commemora- 
 tive honours to her suffering Lord ? Is she kindly officious to 
 remind forgetful mortals of that miracle of mercy which it is 
 their duty to contemplate, and their happiness to believe ? 
 Or is a sportive imagination my interpreter, and all the sup- 
 posed resemblance no more than the precarious gloss of fancy ? 
 Be it so ; yet even fancy has her merit when she sets forth 
 in such pleasing imagery the crucified Christ. Nor shall I 
 refuse a willing regard to imagination herself, when she em- 
 
 66
 
 NOTES. 
 
 ploys her creative powers to revive the sense of such ua- 
 parallcled love, and prompt my gratitude to so divine a 
 Mend. 
 
 " That spiral tendril, arising from the bottom of the 
 stalk, is it a representation of the scourge which inflicted 
 those stripes by which our souls are healed 1 or is it twisted 
 for the cord which bound His hands — those beneficent hands 
 which were continually stretched out to unloose the heavy 
 burdens, and to impart the highest blessings ? Behold the 
 nails (the stamens) which riveted His feet to the accursed 
 tree — those feet which always went about doing good, and 
 travelled far and near to spread the ' glad tidings of great 
 joy ".' See the hammer, ponderous and massy, (the pistil,) 
 which drove the iron into the flesh. View the crown of 
 thorns which encircled our Saviour's brow ; and beyond, 
 observe the glory, delineated in double rays, rich with 
 ethereal blue. There stand the disciples, (the petak, I pre- 
 sume.) ranged in the green impalement, and forming a circle 
 round the instruments of their great Master's death. 
 
 " While others appoint this type of ' the righteous Branch, 
 the Plant of renown,' a place in the parterre, I would trans- 
 plant the Passion-flower, or rather transfer its sacred signifi- Jl 
 cancy to my heart. That I also may wear the traces of | 
 Immanuel, pierced for my sins, and bruised for my trans- ^ [ 
 gressions ; that I also may be ' crucified with Christ,' at S 
 least in penitential sorrow ; that I may ' know the fellow- 
 ship of His sufierings.' " — Herveu's Reflection on a Flower- 
 garden. 
 
 • Isaiah lii. 7. 
 
 \ 
 
 er
 
 NOTES. 
 
 
 Page 49, note m. 
 
 " Happy omens rest 
 
 On love so pledged, and hallowed by the Rite 
 Which God appointed and Christ's presence blest ! " — Bp. Mant. 
 
 Page 49, note o. 
 
 " Glide by the banks of virgins then, and passe 
 The showers of roses, lucky four-leav'd grasse : 
 The while the cloud of younglings sing. 
 And drown ye with a flowrie Spring." 
 
 Herrick's Hesperides. 
 
 " Now busie may dens strew sweet flowers." — England's Helicon. 
 
 " Fine flowers and rosemary were strewed for them coming 
 home ; and so to the father's house, where there was a great 
 dinner prepared for his said three bride-daughters, with 
 their bridegrooms and company." — " A Wedding of three 
 Sisters together," Stone's Survey, {Strype's edition). 
 
 " The strewing herbs and flowers at marriages is still kept 
 up in Kent and many other parts of England." — Brand's 
 Popular Antiquities. 
 
 Page 50, note p. 
 
 " Only kneel on, nor tuni away 
 From the pure shrine, where Christ to-day 
 Will store each flower, ye duteous lay. 
 For an eternal wreath." — Keble. 
 
 Page 51, note r. 
 
 "It was usual in the primitive Christian Church to place 
 crowns of flowers at the heads of deceased virgins : for this 
 
 =H>r^
 
 NOTES. 
 
 we have the authority of Damasccn, Gregory Nyssen, St. 
 Jerome, and St. Austin." — Brand. 
 
 Prudentius, A.D. 405, thus writes : " Now death itself is 
 blessed, since through its pangs a path is thrown open to the 
 just, a way from sorrow to the stars. We will adorn the 
 hidden bones with violets and many a bough ; and on the 
 epitaph and the cold stones we will sprinkle liquid odours." 
 • — Vide Maitland's Church in the Catacombs. 
 
 Shakespeare makes Ophelia to sing most touchingly : 
 
 " He is dead and gone, lady, 
 
 He is dead and gone ; 
 At his head a grass- green turf, 
 At his heels a stone. 
 White his shroud as the mountain snow, 
 
 Larded all with sweet flowers ; 
 Which bewept to the grave did go. 
 
 With true-love showers." — Hamlet, Act iv. Scene 6. 
 
 Spenser in describing the seven Bead-men of the " Holy 
 Hospitall," or House of Mercy, thus wi-ites : 
 
 "The sixt had charge of them now being dead, 
 In seemly sort their corses to engrave '', 
 And deck with dainty flowi-es their biydall bed, 
 That to their heavenly Spouse both sweet and brave 
 They might appear, when He their souls shaU save. 
 The wondrous workmanship of God's owne mould, 
 Whose face He made aU beastes to feare, and gave 
 All in his hand, even dead Ave honour should. 
 
 Ah, dearest God, me graimt, I dead be not defould"^ !" 
 
 i" Engrave, bury. c Defould, insulted.
 
 KOTES. 
 
 s 
 
 So Collins : 
 
 "To fair Fidele's grassy tomb 
 
 Soft maids and village hinds shall bring 
 Each opening sweet, of earliest bloom. 
 
 And rifle all the breathing Spring." — Dirge in Cymheline. 
 
 " Gay describes the strewing of flowers upon the graves : 
 
 ' Upon her grave the Rosemary they threw, 
 The daisy, butter'd-flow'r, and endive blue.' 
 
 " He adds the custom, still used in the south of England, of 
 fencing the grave with osiers, &c. ; and glances at clerical 
 economy, for which there is oftentimes too much occasion, 
 in the two last lines : 
 
 * With wicker rods we fenc'd her tomb around, 
 To ward from man and beast the hallow'd ground ; 
 liest her new grave the Parson's cattle raze, 
 For both his horse and cow the churchyard graze.'" — Brand. 
 
 " Independently of the religious comfort which is imparted 
 in ouv burial service, we sometimes see certain gratifications 
 which are derived from immaterial circumstances ; and, how- 
 ever trivial they may appear, are not to be judged improper 
 as long as they are perfectly innocent. Of this kind may be 
 deemed the practice in some country villages of throwing 
 flowers into the grave." — The Female Mentor, Land. 1798, 
 vol. ii. p. 205, 206. 
 
 " The grave of the deceased is constantly overspread with 
 plucked flowers for a week or two after the funeral. It is 
 very common to dress the graves on Whitsunday and other 
 festivals, when flowers are to be procured : and the frequency 
 of this observance is a good deal afiected by the respect in 
 
 70
 
 NOTES. 
 
 I 
 
 which the deceased was held. Mj father-in-law's grave at 
 Cowbridge church has been strewed by his surviving servants 
 every Sunday morning for these twenty years," — Malkins 
 South Wales. 
 
 Page 51, note r, 2. i| 
 
 " The herse, covered with velvet, was carried by six servant- 
 maidens of the family, all in white." — The Virgin's Pattern, 
 d'c. London, 1G61. 
 
 In the northern division of this county (Nottinghamshire), it 
 is generally the practice for six virgins clad in white to bear j^ 
 
 the body of a sister virgin to her burial. And this, I believe, 
 is the ordinary custom in the south of England. 
 
 Page 51, note r, 3. 
 
 " \\' hen a young unmarried person dies, his or her ways to 
 the grave are sti-ewed with sweet flowers and evergreens ; and 
 on such occasions it is the usual phrase, that those persons 
 are going to their nuptial beds, not their graves." — Malkins 
 South Wales. 
 
 Page 53, note y. 
 
 " Our Saxon forefathers called the churchyard ' God's 
 Acre ;' and beautiful is the idea which that name conveys, 
 reminding that it is sown with a seed which will one day 
 spring up as God's great harvest, even more surely than we 
 cun look for the corn which we cast on the tilled ground 
 to spring up in due time with a new life and a new body. 
 
 71
 
 • 
 
 KOTES. 
 
 " And surely this thought should lead us piously to regard, 
 and affectionately to bestow some pains on, the places of 
 Christian burial. Just as in a church everythirg should 
 remind us that it is the ' House of God' and the ' House of 
 Prayer ;' so in a chui-chyard, everything should remind us 
 that it is God's garden, and there lay the bodies of those 
 who shall hereafter be raised up to everlasting life. To this 
 intent grow there the never-fading yew-tree, and other ever- 
 greens. To this intent spring up, at the earth's annual resur- 
 rection, the pure snow-drop, the star-like primrose, the per- 
 fumed violet, and other such simple flowers, which the affec- 
 tionate hands of mourning friends and relatives have placed 
 on and about the graves of those who have gone before. And 
 to this intent likewise should the more substantial monuments, 
 — whether they be tombs, or head-stones, or memorials of 
 wood or metal — be erected there. That these should be of 
 a chaste and simple character, and formed, like the church 
 itself, according to the principles of Christian art, will, I 
 think, at once be admitted ; nor will it be disputed that the 
 epitaphs and ornaments which they bear should, like the 
 burial service, at once teach a solemn lesson of mortality 
 and testify the Christian's hope. The tomb-stones of the 
 early Christians were of this instnictive nature. They almost 
 invariably bore the sign of the Cross. The name — sometimes 
 only the initials — of the deceased was engi-aved on them, and 
 a few words, generally taken from Holy Scripture, leading 
 the mind of the living to the common lot of all, and the 
 common hope of them that believe in Jesus." — Extract from 
 a Sermon 'preached hy the Author on the First Sunday after 
 Easier, lb.j3, on the ttxt, " Cone, see the place where the 
 Lord lay," St. Matt, xxviii. 6. 
 
 72
 
 I 
 
 NOTES. 
 
 For the inscriptions of early Christian tombs, see Maitland's 
 Church in the Catacombs. 
 
 I 
 
 Page 53, note a. 
 
 " It is a very ancient and general practice in Glamorgan 
 to plant flowers on the graves ; so that many churchyards 
 have something like the splendour of a rich and various 
 parterre. 
 
 " In the Easter-week most generally the graves are newly 
 dressed, and manured with fresh earth, when such flowers or 
 evergreens as may be wanted or wished for are planted. In 
 the Whitsuntide holidays, or rather the preceding week, the 
 graves are again looked after, weeded, and otherwise dressed, 
 or, if necessary, planted again. This work the nearest rela- 
 tions of the deceased always do with their own hands, and 
 never by hired persons. Should a neighbour assist, he or she 
 never takes, never expects, and indeed is never insulted by 
 the offer of any reward, by those who are acquainted with 
 the ancient custom. 
 
 " None ever molest the flowers that grow on graves ; for 
 it is deemed a kind of sacrilege to do so. A relation or friend 
 will occasionally take a pink, if it can be spared, or a sprig 
 of thyme, from the grave of a beloved or respected person, 
 to wear it in remembrance ; but they never take much, lest 
 they should deface the growth on the grave. This custom 
 prevails principally in the most retired villages ; and I have 
 been assured that in such villages where the right of grazing 
 the churchyard has been enforced, the practice has alienated 
 the affections of very great numbers from the clergymen and 
 their churches ; so that many have become dissenters for the 
 
 73 
 
 ^^"^^^
 
 NOTES. 
 
 singularly uncommon reason that they may bury theu friends 
 in dissenting burying-grounds, plant their graves with flowers 
 and keep them clean and neat, without any danger of their 
 being cropped." — Malkias South Wales.
 
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