The Floral Oracle. 
333 
other evergreens used for decoration at Christmas, so many 
eves after that national festival, and according to the brilliancy 
and crackling of the leaves in the fire, so do they draw morals 
as to the steadfastness or falsehood of their admirers. 
A writer on various matrimonial and amatory superstitious 
customs, observes that the belief in the efficacy of St. John’s- 
wort is very widely spread, and gives the following version of 
a poem transcribed from a German publication: 
1 The young maid stole through the cottage door. 
And blushed as she sought the plant of power. 
‘ Thou silver glowworm, O lend me thy light, 
I must gather the mystic St. John’s-wort to-night; 
The wonderful herb, whose leaf will decide 
If the coming year shall make me a bride !’ 
And the glowworm came 
With its silvery flame, 
And sparkled and shone 
Thro’ the night of St. John; 
And soon as the young maid her love-knot tied. 
“ With noiseless tread 
To her chamber she sped, 
Where the spectral moon her white beams shed. 
‘ Bloom here, bloom here, thou plant of power, 
To deck the young bride in her bridal hour!’ 
But it drooped its head, that plant of power, 
And died the mute death of the voiceless flower; 
And a withered wreath on the ground it lay, 
More meet for a burial than bridal day. 
And when a year was past away, 
All pale on her bier the young maid lay! 
And the glowworm came 
With its silvery flame, 
And sparkled and shone 
Thro’ the night of St. John; 
\nd they closed the cold grave o’er the maid’s cold clay.” 
Many other somewhat similar floral oracles are yet consulted 
in various parts of the world, and many somewhat resemblant 
customs are still practised, as will be perceived by the student 
of this volume, wherein may be discovered some amusing 
modes of consulting these modern Sibylline Leaves, with "a 
certainty of obtaining oracular responses. 
There yet, however, remains some customs appertaining to 
florigraphy which must be noticed here, not the least inte¬ 
resting of which are those mysterious ceremonies connected 
with the festival of Saint Valentine, the patron saint of matri- 
