38 BRITISH FLORAL DECORATION 



Neither has the Rose been forgotten in the world 

 of song ; hence we find, among many more or less 

 popular airs taking Roses for their theme, " The 

 Last Rose of Summer," and " She wore a Wreath 

 of Roses," two songs which will live for ever. 



And its very name proves it to be the flower 

 of flowers par excellence. This name varies but 

 slightly in any language, and Max Miiller has 

 shown that its root is to be found in an Aryan 

 word signifying a flowering shrub, thus marking it 

 as the flower of the vegetable world, taking rank 

 above all others. That its name is a symbol of 

 beauty is also shown by the fact that it has been 

 conferred on many plants which have no claim to 

 it. Thus we find the Christmas Rose, the Guelder 

 Rose, the Alpine Rose, the Water Rose, the Holly 

 Rose, the Tuberose, and the Primrose, all mas- 

 querading under false pretences in the world 

 of flowers. 



If any further mark of its popularity were needed 

 it can be found in the fact that it has been adopted 

 as a standard colour by all nations and in all busi- 

 nesses throughout the world. Hence in porcelain 

 we find " Rose du Barry" and " Rose Pompadour " ; 

 in silks " vieux rose " and every imaginable shade 

 of rose is employed in the colour-charts of silk- 



