ROSE. 



155 



varieties of the house Rose. The effect of cultiva- 

 tion to increase and beautify plants is well illustra- 

 ted in the Rose. Only four species were known 

 in the early ages ; there are now more than seven 

 thousand. The wild brier is parent alike of the 

 constant-blooming Tea Rose and the hundred leaved 

 varieties. 



In the classic ages it was a domestic flower that 

 inspired the devotion of all. The Romans w r ere 

 wild in their enthusiasm over it. They used it 

 alike to decorate their feasts and burials, to crown 

 their heroes of war, to heal the sick, to perfume the 

 bath, to clear the complexion and to brighten the 

 eye ; they slept on couches made of roses, drank 

 rose wine, and esteemed the oil of roses more pre- 

 cious than gold. In mythology the Rose was 

 dedicated to the god of silence and a host in an- 

 cient times often suspended a rose over the guest 

 table as an emblem of secrecy. Many curious su- 

 perstitions and legends of this flower are cherished 

 by the French, Germans and Italians. In this 

 country its emblematic significance seems to be 

 lost, though it is used in vast quantities for pur- 

 poses of decoration and display and many florists' 

 with large investments of capital and skill make its 

 cultivation a speciality. 



SOIL, WATERING, TEMPERATURE AND PROPAGATION. 



The Rose flourishes in widely different soils. 

 Equal parts of loam, leaf-mold and well rotted ma- 



