THE DAFFODIL 141 



Sophocles as forming the garland of the Greater 

 Goddesses, and in Ovid as one of the flowers that 

 Proserpine was gathering when she was seized by 

 Pluto. Mahomet says of it, " If thou hast two 

 pennies spend one on bread and the other on 

 Narcissus." Poets, too, of all ages, have paid tribute 

 to its beauty, and it is doubtful if any flower except 

 the Rose has been so frequently alluded to in 

 classical poems as the graceful flower of which 

 Spenser says : 



Foolish Narcisse that likes the watery shore ; 

 and Wordsworth, writing in his inimitable style : 



The waves beside them danced, but they 

 Outdid the sparkling waves in glee 

 A poet could not but be gay 

 In such a jocund company. 



The number of Daffodils which daily help to 

 beautify our homes in and around London is almost 

 beyond statistical record, but careful calculation 

 gives us the following figures. During one week in 

 February when our own outdoor Daffodils were 

 still barely pushing their sword-like leaves through 

 the ground, over 25,000 boxes arrived in Covent 

 Garden. Of these a great number came from the 



