534 pPant T^ore, "begcl^^/, anil Tsijric/'. 



similar ceremony prevailed, under the same designation, in which 

 the Rush-bearings were made in the form of females, with a fanciful 

 rosette for the head; and on looking at these in Ambleside, some 

 faint resemblance of the female form may be traced in the outline. 

 No satisfactory explanation of this ceremony has ever yet been 

 given: the attempt at one is, that it is a remnant of an antient 

 custom, which formerly prevailed, of strewing the church-floors 

 with Rushes to preserve the feet from damp ; but we cannot per- 

 ceive what resemblance there is between the pracftice of strewing 

 the church with Rushes, and the trophies which are now carried 

 from time immemorial." To dream of Rushes portends un- 

 pleasantness between friends. 



RYE. — The Rye-fields are thought by the superstitious Ger- 

 man peasantry to be infested by an evil spirit known as the Roggen- 

 wolf, or Rye-wolf, and in some districfls the last sheaf of Rye is left 



as a shelter for this field demon during the winter. In Germany, 



when a horse is tired, the peasantry will place on his back some 

 crumbs of Rye bread, with a sure convidiion that his fatigue will 

 vanish. 



SAD TREE.— The Indian Sad Tree {Nydanthes Arhor-tristis) 

 is a species of Jasmine whose sweet-smelling flowers open at sunset 

 and fall at sunrise, so that it is unadorned during the day, and has 

 thus obtained the name of the Sad Tree. Its flowers, which re- 

 semble Orange-blossoms, are much used in temples. Thunberg 



relates that the ladies of Batavia, when in the evening they pay 

 visits to one another, are decorated in a particular manner about 

 the head with a wreath of flowers of the Nyctanthes, run upon a 

 thread. " These flowers are brought every day fresh to town for 

 sale. The smell of them is inconceivably delightful, like that of 

 Orange and Lemon-flowers : the whole house is filled with the 

 fragrant scent, enhancing, if possible, the charms of the ladies' 



company." At Goa, this flower is called Parizataco, a name given 



to it from the following circumstances : — A governor, named Pari- 

 zatacos, had a beautiful daughter, who inspired the Sun with pas- 

 sionate love ; but after a time he transferred his affecflions to 

 another, and the poor deserted one was seized with such despair, 

 that at last she put an end to her existence. Over her grave 

 sprang up the Parizataco, or Night Jasmine, the flowers of which 

 have such a horror of the Sun, that they always avoid gazing on it. 



Saffron. — See Crocus. 



SAGE. — Many species of Sage are highly esteemed in Euro- 

 pean countries for their medicinal qualities, and most of the conti- 

 nental names of the plant are like the botanical one of Salvia, from 

 Salvo, to save or heal. The ancients ascribed to the herb manifold 

 virtues, and regarded it as a preserver of the human race (" Salvia, 



Salvatrix, natures conciliatrix.'"). In mediaeval times, the plant, on 



account of its numerous properties, obtained the name of Officinalis 



