186 The American Cowslip. 



plant, the climate to which it belongs, and he soon conceives the 

 utility of the individual plant to the grand link of vegetation by 

 which the animal world is supported. The pleasure of first 

 meeting with an unknown plant has thus been described by the 

 poet: 



He marks the treasure with an eager glance, 



" Great God," exclaims, and forth his hands advance, 



Sudden to seize the prey ; not more delight 



Feels the fond lover at his mistress' sight. 



He deems it as the most important event of his life, and he joy- 

 fully bestows on it the name of some esteemed friend or eminent 

 countryman ; his fancy pictures it growing under cultivation with 

 his native plants; his immediate acquaintance covet it for his 

 sake, and his name is justly registered among those who have 

 benefited their country by peaceable pursuits. Mr. Catesby, in 

 his Natural History of North Carolina, gave it the name of 

 Meadia, in honor of Dr. Richard Meade, an English physician 

 of that day, who, like some of the present time, was courted by 

 the wealthy and adored- by the needy of his country, whilst his 

 name was revered by the eminent of all parts of Europe. On 

 this account we feel regret that Linnaeus should have thought 

 it necessary to change the generic term of this plant, and more 

 particularly so since he has bestowed upon it one that seems so 

 inappropriate, Dodecatheon being derived from the Greek words 

 which mean twelve gods ; and the only cause he could have 

 adopted for so whimsical a name, was from the observation that 

 each of those plants generally produced twelve corollas. Meadia, 

 however, remains as the specific name of this species. This ele- 

 gant plant flowers about the end of April, or the beginning of 

 May. The stalk often rising to about eight inches in height, 

 throws out an umbel of flowers gracefully pendant, as rockets ap- 

 pear when thrown out of an elevated piece of firework. The 

 petals are of a rosy lilac, inclining to the color of the peach or 

 almond blossom ; and they are reflexed or turned back over the 

 calyx, giving the appearance of a half-expanded parasol, which 

 resemblance is considerably heightened by the long tapering shape 

 of the parts of fructification, and the golden color of the anthers. 

 When taken in the garden, it should be planted in a shady 

 situation, where the earth is of a loose, moist nature ; but its 



