15 



to avoid his creditors ; the cormorant is for ever diving into the 

 deep to discover his foundered vessel, while the bramble seizes hold 

 of every passing sheep, to make up his loss by stealing the wool." 



We can scarcely mention a legend of a flower without being at 

 once reminded of the well-known pretty legend of the Forget-me-not. 

 You all know the legend, how the German knight walked with his 

 lady-love, and was bidden by her to fetch from the island in the 

 middle of the river the bright little flower : — how he gallantly swam 

 and secured his prize, and returned again with too little strength 

 to regain the shore, but with enough to throw the flowers on the 

 bank, with his dying words " forget-me-not." It is a pretty, 

 romantic legend — but it is not an English one, and many of you 

 will be surprised to hear that it has not been known in England 

 for much more than 40 years, when it was told by Mills in his 

 history of chivalry. The story at once became popular, and the 

 little flower was made to take the name in England, which it had 

 long borne in Germany and Denmark, and to lose its old English 

 name of ^^ Mouse-ear," this name being the exact translation 

 of the pretty Greek name fjivoauns given to it 1800 years ago by 

 Dioscorides, and which it still bears as its botanic name. Yet the 

 name " Forget-me-not" is a genuine old English name, but was 

 applied to very different plants. The little Blue Speedwell was so 

 called, and still, I believe, in some parts bears the name, but it 

 was more anciently applied to a very different plant, and for a very 

 diff"erent and unromantic reason. It was the name of the plant we 

 now call the Ground Pine (Ajuga chamcepUi/sJ, a plant of no great 

 beauty — not in our Bath flora, but not uncommon in the chalk 

 districts, and it was called forget-me-not, from its unpleasant taste, 

 which is not only unpleasant but long-enduring. You may 

 remember a similar idea in Shakespeare where he makes Ophelia 



say, 



There's rosemary, that's for remembrance, 

 I pray you, love, remember. 



Rosemary being emblematic of remembrance on account of its 



long-enduring taste and smell. It is rather curious, as some of 



you may remember, that a few years ago our friend, Mr. Punch, 



suggested the same name, and for the same reason, as a pleasant 



ladylike name for the Onion. I may remark in passing that onion 



