Another species of Iris is called the Fleur-de-luce, probably a corruption of Fleur-de-lis. Louis the 
seventh of France adopted it on his shield during the crusades ; and Edward the Third transferred this 
emblem from the plains of Cressy to the arms of England. 
The fresh roots have been mixed with the food of swine bitten by a mad dog, and they escaped the 
disease, when others bitten by the same dog died raving mad. The root loses most of its acrimony 
by drying. Goats eat the leaves when fresh : but cows, horses, and swine refuse them. The roots are 
used in the island of Java to dye black. Pennant’s Tour, 1772. (Linnaeus asserts this plant to be deci- 
dedly injurious to all cattle, except goats.) Mr. K. Skrimshire has discovered that the seeds afford an 
excellent substitute for foreign coffee. Being roasted in the same manner, they very much resemble it in 
colour and flavour, but have something more of a saccharine odour, approaching to that of extract of liquor- 
ice. When carefully prepared, they possess much more of the aroma of coffee than is to be found in any of 
the leguminous or gramineous seeds that have been treated in the same way. Coffee made of these seeds 
is extremely wholesome and nutritious, in proportion of half an ounce or an ounce to a pint of boiling water. 
The leaves smell like rancid bacon. Few plants exceed the Iris in elegance of form and colour. Our 
gardens exhibit a rich variety ; nor should we omit to encourage the Water-flag in ornamental grounds, 
where naturally, beside the limpid stream or translucent lake, 
“ Amid its waving swords, in flaming gold the Iris towers.” 
The agency of insects is indispensable to the fecundation of the different species of Iris. In these, as 
Kolreuter ingeniously remarks, the true stigma is situated on the upper side of a transverse membrane, 
(arcus eminens of Haller;) which is stretched across the middle of the under surface of the petal, like ex- 
pansion or style-flag, the whole of which has been often regarded as fulfilling the office of a stigma. The 
anther being situated at the base of the style-flag which covers it, at a considerable distance from the stig- 
ma, and at the same time cut off from all access to it, by the intervening barrier formed by the arcus 
eminens, it is clear, that, but for some extraneous agency, the pollen could never arrive at the place of its 
destination. In this case the humble bee is the operator. Led by instinct, or as Sprengel supposes, by 
one of those honey-marks (saft-maal,) or spots of a different colour from the rest of the flower, which may 
be considered as destined to guide insects to the nectaries, she pushes herself between the stiff style-flag 
and elastic petal, which last, while she is in the interior, presses her close to the anther, and thus causes 
her to brush off the pollen with her hairy back, which ultimately, though not at once, conveys it to the 
stigma. Having exhausted the nectary she retreats ; and, in doing so, is pressed by the petal to the arcus 
eminens, but it is only to its lower or negative surface, which cannot influence fertilization. She now 
takes her way to the second petal, and insinuating herself under its style-flag, her back comes in close con- 
tact with the true stigma, which is thus fertilized by the pollen of the first visited anther : and in this 
manner migrating from one part of the blossom to another, and from flower to flower, she fructifies one with 
pollen gathered in her search after honey in another. Whoever thus endeavours to unravel the wonderful 
contrivance of nature, cannot but sensibly feel, and feelingly exclaim — 
“ Author of all ! How bright thy glories shine ! 
How pure, how perfect is thy least design ! ” 
In the language of flowers, the Iris very appropriately signifies a message, for Iris was the messenger 
of Juno. 
