The Primrose 



of the tongue -like character, depends 

 mainly upon this slight and gradual 

 alteration in the curve. 



But what marvellous spell possesses 

 these leaves, so that each of them falls 

 upon the heart with such soft and silent 

 tread ; nay, rather say that each seems 

 gifted with a low voice heard in silence, 

 like that of the last fruit when it drops in 

 autumnal, mist upon the dead damp gar- 

 den path. But the Primrose leaves create 

 the silence in which they speak. It is, 

 perhaps, not mere fancy that Milton's 

 line 



" Bring the rath primrose that forsaken dies " 



is somewhat fitted to express this voice. 

 If I had to find words for it, the letter a, 

 long and short, and tk t would seem par- 

 ticularly appropriate. Such words as path, 

 bath, faith. This effect depends chiefly 

 upon the great breadth of the leaf-tongue, 

 and the roundness of their extremities, 

 assisted by other qualities of which we 

 have spoken, by no means forgetting the 

 wrinkling, or the dryness, which we shall 

 presently mention. What a difference 

 between these and other tongue-shaped 

 leaves, as those of the Hart's-Tongue 

 Fern ! 



61 



