The Kitabi Gulistan. Ill 



four-cornered, spiked, collecting the calyxes. Specific charac- 

 ters : lower leaves tomentose ; spikes nodding. 



Tyas tells us, that when Juno presided at the birth of chil- 

 dren, under the name of Lucina, she wore a wreath of this 

 flower, which was purposely obtained for her on such occasions, 

 from Mount Ida in Crete. Ordinary mortals followed her exam- 

 ple in obtaining the flower, and it has since then been so much 

 improved that the Queen of Olympus would herself scarcely 

 recognize it. The agreeable fragrance of this shrub, and its 

 medicinal qualities, which rendered it so celebrated among the 

 ancients, still procure it much esteem. Our specimen is an orna- 

 mental evergreen under shrub, an inhabitant of the greenhouse, 

 bearing pink flowers from June to August. 



The Origanum Marjorana — Sweet Marjoram, is another 

 species of this genus. It has been long cultivated in the gardens 

 for various purposes, as it excels the wild' or common Marjo- 

 ram in all its good properties. The leaves and tops have a plea- 

 sant smell, and a warm, aromatic, bitterish taste. Considerable 

 quantities of an aromatic oil are obtained from them, which is so 

 much used as to be for a long time an article of commerce. It 

 is used considerably in nervous complaints with the same inten- 

 tions as lavender, to which it is by many preferred. The dried 

 leaves make a well known domestic snuff, useful in many of the 

 minor affections of the mucous membranes of the head. The 

 tops are sometimes used by country people to dye woollen cloth 

 purple, or linen of a reddish brown color. It is the emblem of. 

 Birth. 



The Kitabi Gnlistan. 



There was a celebrated Persian poet who wrote a volume 

 called Kitabi Gulistan, or the Book of Flowers. My anec- 

 dote merely relates to the way in which he was incited to 

 write it, as he tells his own tale. You will remember that he' 

 lived in a climate where it is a great luxury to pass a great part 

 of the night out of doors, wandering about in their gardens full 

 of beautiful trees and flowering shrubs, which give out their 



