NAMES OF FLOWERS. 
137 
larkspur ; the bindweed, winding about shrubs and bushes ; the 
honeysuckle, which every child has stolen many a time from the 
bees ; spicy gilliflowers, a corruption of July-flowers, from the 
month in which they blossomed ; daffadowndillies, a puzzle for ety- 
mologists ; pennyroyal ; holly-hock, or holy-oak, as it was some- 
times written ; paigle, another name for cowslips ; primrose, from 
the early season when the flower blooms ; carnation, or “ corona- 
tion,” from the custom of wearing them in wreaths. These last 
were also called sops-in-wine, from their being thrown into Avine 
to improve its flavor, a custom Avhich seems to have prevailed 
formerly in England ; the old Greeks had a practice of the same 
kind, for TAbbe Bartholemi tells us that they threw roses and 
violets into their wine-casks, for the purpose of flavoring their 
wines. May not this ancient custom prove the origin of the com- 
mon French ^rase — le bouquet du vin ? 
There were other names, again, given to the plants in those good 
old times, showing a touch of quaint humor — like Bouncing-Bet, 
Ragged-Robin, bachelor’s-button, snap-dragon, foxglove, monks- 
hood. Others bore names which showed there had been lovers 
in the fields — like Sweet-Cicely, Sweet-William, heart’s-ease, pan- 
sies, truelove. Even mere personal names, such as are so often 
given to-day, were far better managed then — as for instance, 
Herb-Robert, Good King-Henry, Marietts, Bartram, Angelica. 
Others, again, were imaginative or fanciful — as morning-glory, 
night-shade, flag, loose-strife, Avake-robin, simpler’s-joy, thrift, 
speedwell, traveller’s-joy, snow-drop, winter’s pale foundling, 
Avayfaring-tree, eye-bright, shepherd’s-purse, pink meaning eye, 
in Dutch, like the French ceillet ; marigold, lady’s-smock — from 
the white leaves of these flowers blooming in the grass, like 
