158 TRambles wttb IRatute Students 



ACANTHUS 



' And hear the emerald-coloured waters falling 

 Through many a woven acanthus- wreath divine.' 



Tennyson. 



I always look with interest at this handsome plant, 

 with its finely shaped, glossy green leaves. It is not 

 merely its beauty as a foliage plant that attracts me, 

 but I am reminded of the many classic associations 

 which have clustered around it. 



ORIGIN OF CORINTHIAN ORDER. 



It is said that the graceful form of these acanthus 

 leaves and their mode of growth suggested to Calli- 

 machus, a sculptor who lived nearly four hundred 

 years before Christ, the first idea for the decoration of 

 the capital of the Corinthian column. It is easy to 

 suppose that some vase or basket accidentally over- 

 grown by this plant would furnish an excellent model 

 to an observant eye ; and skilful hands would soon 



