

4 THE ROSE. 
He calls it ‘“‘the most beautiful of flowers,’ 
“the delight of the gods,” “the favorite of 
the Muses,’”’ and since that time it has been 
denominated the Queen of Flowers. It is fre- 
quently spoken of in Holy Writ, and Homer 
often refers to the Rose, both in the Iliad and 
the Odyssey. It may be said to be the oldest 
of celebrated flowers, and, in the impassioned 
strains of the ancients, we find it associated with 
the Lily of the Valley, as expressive of all that 
is pleasing to the senses, and renovating to the 
mind. 
The Rose, the emblem of beauty and the pride 
of Flora, reigns Queen of the flowers in every 
part of the globe, and the bards of all nations 
and languages have sung its praises. Yet, what 
poet has been able, or language sufficient to do 
justice to a plant that has been denominated 
the Daughter of Heaven, the glory of spring, 
and the ornament of the earth? As it is the 
most common of all that compose the garland 
of Flora, so it is the most delightful. Every 
country boasts of it, and every beholder admires 
it. Poets have celebrated its charms without 


