BLUE AND PURPLE WILD FLOWERS 



were cast upon the cradles of children and the beds of 

 young bridal couples much after the custom with 

 which we shower the latter with rice and old shoes, 

 as a token of good luck. The former ceremony is still 

 practised in parts of Germany, where the Violet is also 

 believed to prevent ague. The Violet has some religi- 

 ous significance among the followers of Mohammed, 

 who considered the odour of the Violet, which he 

 referred to as the "Flower of Humility," superior 

 to all others. The Romans offered Violets of solid 

 gold as prizes for poetic competitions. In England, 

 broths, salads, and puddings were at one time flavoured 

 with Violets, and many dishes were garnished with the 

 flowers. Napoleon adopted the Violet as his emblem, 

 and when he ascended the steps of the Tuileries, 

 upon his return from Elba, he was greeted with showers 

 of Violets from every direction, and beautiful violet- 

 gowned ladies and children welcomed him with great 

 masses of the flowers which were cast before him that 

 he might tread upon them. In Paris, the statues com- 

 memorating the loss of Alsace and Lorraine, and the 

 tomb of Victor Hugo in the Pantheon, are annually 

 decorated with wreaths of Violets. In royal and in 

 religious ceremonies violet is a conspicuous colour. 

 It is the college colour of New York University. Yale 

 University has adopted the Violet as its floral emblem, 

 and it is also the state flower of Rhode Island. Sev- 

 eral fragrant varieties have been highly cultivated, and 

 are regularly sold by florists for every conceivable 

 floral purpose, and they are popularly worn as a cor- 



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