Flowers. 59 



quite sure that if rightfully directed it will prove a great and use- 

 ful auxiliary. Man gazes on the beautiful, and whether it be the 

 earth putting on her mantle of green, the bud bursting into life, or 

 the flowers of a thousand hues, his tenderest feelings are touched 

 under such an influence. His nature, hardened by care, begins to 

 relax. It is this wonderful power which the system has of rapidly 

 resting while the mind is entirely diverted by some intense and 

 refreshing pleasure, which makes the cultivation of flowers so pleas- 

 urable. Upon children, flowers have an important moral influence. 

 It is often touching to see how a little blossom is cherished by the 

 rough, stout boy, who might seem to have no lore for the beautiful 

 in his nature. 



The use of flowers at fashionable parties and weddings has 

 increased wonderfully within the last few years. It is not unusual 

 for from $500 to $1,000 to be expended for flowers and plants for a 

 single occasion. Over one million dollars' worth of flowers are 

 sold in New York city annually. Nearly one fourth, or $250,000 

 worth, are purchased during the Christmas and New Year holidays. 

 A writer from England says: "That more than half of the first 

 floor windows in London have flowers or plants before or behind 

 the glass. In some streets every window has its tray on the sill. 

 Gilliflowers or stocks are grown in the greatest perfection among 

 the peasantry of England." The weavers of Paisley are every- 

 where celebrated for their beautiful pinks. In Germany and France 

 the love of flowers is a national trait, and almost every garden 

 among us is brightened by some gorgeous souvenir of Holland. 

 The people of Japan are flower worshipers. 



The flowers are generous; their fragrance is not pent up in them- 

 selves, but is wafted in every tiny current of air, and is shared by 

 every one who passes by our grounds or enters our parlors, and we 

 doubt not but many wistful eyes admire the bright colorings and 

 desire to hold some of them in their hands as their very own. 

 Feeling this is what suggested, I imagine, the Flower Mission of 

 New York city, with which, I presume, many of you are familiar. 

 There is great waste of flowers in the gardens of the wealthy; 

 myriads of fair, sweet blossoms drooped and faded through long 

 summer days, sometimes because the owners were absent, oftener 

 still because of the superabundance resulting from liberal culture. 



