98 



NOTES AND QUERIES. 



[No. 249. 



1634 : the royal arms with supporters, " C. E." 

 on either side, "iames" as before, in centre of 

 dedication, which ends * ^ *. Edition of 1640 : 

 centre of title differently set up, the dedication 

 surmounted as before with supporters, and "C. 

 R.," " JAMES " being commenced with the proper 

 letter. Other variations are pointed out in Mr. 

 Wilson's Catalogue, but the entire volume of this 

 impression presents a peculiar appearance, as 

 though printed with worn-out type. The New 

 Testament title is dated 1639, and the substitu- 

 tion of the Psalms from this edition into incom- 

 plete copies of the other impressions may be 

 detected, by noticing that at Psalm ex. the head- 

 line is printed " Psalmes." H. T. 



FLOWERS MENTIONED BT SHAKSPEAKE. 



Can any of your Shakspearian correspondents 

 inform me what flower is meant by " Cuckoo- 

 buds," in the song " When daisies pied," &c. ? 

 On referring to Johnson's Dictionary, I find : 

 " Cuckoo-hud, Cuckoo-flower (Cardaminus, Lat.), 

 the name of a flower," with the quotation — 

 " When daisies pied and violets blue, 

 And cuckoo-buds of yellow hue," &c. 



On turning to the word " Cardamine, " I find it 

 thus defined : " In botany, the plant lady's smock, 

 called also the cuckoo-flower and meadow-cress." 

 And again, under the word " Lady's smock," I 

 find " {^Cardamine'] a plant," with the quotation — 



" When daisies pled and violets blue. 

 And ladysinock all silver white," &c. 



Now it is evident that Shakspeare speaks of two 

 different flowers, and that the lexicographer con- 

 founds them, for the same flower cannot be both 

 silver white and of yellow hue ; but what I wish to 

 know is, which of the many meadow flowers of a 

 yellow colour that bloom in spring is the one that 

 the poet calls by the name of cuckoo-buds ? Is it 

 the marsh-marigold, the lesser celandine, the 

 crow's foot, or any other of the numerous family 

 of RanunculacecB ? The Germans call the wood- 

 sorrel "kuckucks-blume," but this flower, although 

 yellow, is not a meadow plant. In Normandy 

 the oxlip (^Primula elatior) is called " coucou." 

 If either of these bears a similar name in any part 

 of England, and particularly in Warwickshire, it 

 may very well be the flower mentioned in the 

 song. 



Mary-buds, in the beautiful song of " Hark, 

 hark, the lark," &c., is, I believe, generally re- 

 ferred to the marigold. Am I right ? 



The long purples of Ophelia's garland is another 

 plant about which there appears to be some un- 

 certainty. I have seen the name assigned to the 

 purple orchis, but I incline to think that the arum, 

 or cuckoo's pint, is the plant meant. It is spoken 



of as bearing " a grosser name," and although this 

 is applicable to either of the plants, I am confirmed 

 in my view by the following passage in Crabbe's 

 Parish Register : 



" Where cuckoo-pints and dandelions sprung, 

 (Gross names had they our plainer sires among). 

 There arums, there leontodons we view." 



What particular kind of rose is that which decks 

 Titania's bower, "sweet musk-roses?" Is it our 

 moss-rose, or some other now forgotten variety ? 



The woodbine and honeysuckle are generally 

 considered to be one and the same, but in the 

 passage, — 



" So doth the woodbine the sweet honeysuckle 

 Gently entwine." 



they are evidently two different plants. What 

 then is the woodbine ? Is it another creeper, the 

 convolvulus or bindweed ? 



" Love-in-idleness " is said to be the pansy, but 

 none of the original indigenous varieties of this 

 flower, now so changed by cultivation, seems to 

 answer the description of — 



" The little western flower, 

 Before milk-white, now purpled with love's wound." 



I ought to apologise for the length of this string 

 of Queries ; but an interesting chapter might be 

 written on the flowers of Shakspeare, and I trust 

 all lovers of the great bard will forgive me. 



Edgar MacCulloch. 



Guernsey. 



read 



smith's "dictionaries of antiquities." 

 (^Continued from Vol. vii., p. 302.) 

 I send a few errata in addition to my previous 

 list. 



Dictionary of Antiquities. 



Page 182. a, Aurtjm, for "~:L'' 

 „ 119 • 6 .. ^^^ ^^ 



113 . 12' 



Page 1040. b, Servus, for " 1770Z. 16*.," read 

 " 1770Z. 16s. 8d." 



Page 1272. October EQUus,/or "880. a," read 

 " 850. a." 



Ditto, after "oppidum," add "opponere, 527. a." 



Dictionary of Biography. 

 Vol. L 



Page 8. b, AcHiEMENES, for " xiii. 8.," read 

 "Epod. xiii. 8." 



Page 251. a, Apries, /or "Herod. 161. &c.," 

 read "Herod, ii. 161. &c." 



Page 471. a, Bassus I., after " by Ovid," insert 

 « Tristia iv. 10. 47." 



Vol. II. 



Page 538. b, Htperboi-tjs, /or " Thuc. viii. 74.," 

 read ''73." 



