WHAT FLOWERS TEACH US. 71 



WHAT FLOWERS TEACH US. 



BY MRS. L. 0. HODGKINS. 



Flower-gardening has been called woman's work. Why shouldn't it 

 be? Mother Nature herself farmed and gardened on a large scale, 

 and gave us a good lesson in the preparation of the soil. Before mor- 

 tals were put on the earth, she raised the mountains, lowered the valleys, 

 and started irrigation canals. Beasts walked under the shade, and birds 

 flew in the branches of trees, whose size were almost beyond our com- 

 prehension. After that a great fire was kindled; wood was made into 

 coal, and minerals crystallized and stored away. Some plants were 

 pressed, and impressions taken quite equal to those of the present day. 

 They were not left on the surface, but stored away where men must 

 seek if they would find, teaching us not to be satisfied with the outward 

 appearance, and to avoid sham, be what we seem. 



If we give credit to the Hebrew tradition of the creation of man, the 

 first couple were put to gardening, and Eden was the first experimental 

 station. This did not prove a success. The fault was not in the gar- 

 den, but the Landlord had furnished too much. Everything was ready 

 for them, the flowers that were pleasant to the eye, the fruits which 

 were good for food. They had nothing to do, and the Landlord dis- 

 charged them, telling them that hereafter they must look out for them- 

 selves, or in "the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread." Here the 

 first manual training school was started, teaching man that what is 

 worth having is worth digging for. 



The Greek tradition did not give man so good a start. The garden 

 of Hesperides and the Elysian fields were for them only in the future, 

 as a special delight for the blessed. Plants formed such an important 

 part that they were put under special charge of superior beings. 

 Jupiter believed in the division of labor. He gave Ceres the grain, 

 Pomona the fruit, and Flora the flowers. When Jove saw Flora had 

 strewn the hills and meadows with beautiful, sweet-scented plants, he 

 crowned her queen, and gave a feast in her honor. They banqueted on 

 ambrosia and drank nectar from the cup of the lily and the rose. Be- 

 coming intoxicated with the perfume, she fell into a deep sleep and saw 

 everything with distorted vision. Under this influence she created a 

 new order of plants. She made them ill-shapen; they grew without 

 grace. The branches stood up stiffly in all directions; they were 

 covered with hooks and spines; some had soft, velvety bunches which 

 were filled with fine needle points. She planted them in deserts among 

 rocks and sand, and called them cacti. When she came to herself, she 



