292 FLORA DOMESTICA. 



zakki ; which implies, that they wish one another a long 

 life. The origin of this festival is as follows : 



It is related by several authors, that a Chinese emperor, 

 who succeeded to the throne at seven years of age, was 

 distressed by a prediction that he would die before he 

 attained the age of fifteen. An immortal having brought 

 to him, from Nanyo-no-rekTcen, a present of some of the 

 beautiful yellow flowers of the Motherwort, he caused zakki 

 to be made from them, which he drank every day, and 

 lived upwards of seventy years. 



This immortal had been in his youth in the service of 

 the emperor, under the name of Zido. Being banished 

 for some misdemeanour, he took up his residence in the 

 valley before-mentioned, drinking nothing but the water 

 impregnated with these flowers, and lived to the age of 

 three hundred years; whence he obtained the name of 

 Sien-ninjoso. 



The Japanese are, indeed, very fond of flowers in ge- 

 neral ; and the houses of respectable people have always 

 pots of flowers in the windows. They have a great esteem 

 for plum and cherry trees, and for the beauty of their 

 blossoms. Some dwarf trees of these kinds are cultivated 

 in boxes behind the houses almost invariably ; and persons 

 in easy circumstances have in their apartments one or more 

 branches, when in flower, in a porcelain vase*. 



* See Titsingh's Illustrations of Japan, translated from the French 

 by F. Shoberl. 



