I NTR ODUC TION. 
17 
renovated. It is, however, pleasant to learn that many rem¬ 
nants of the old floral customs still linger about the Grecian 
isles, and to read of a marriage ceremony in the Isle of Delos, 
in which flowers form the principal decorations. One authority 
tells us that at daybreak the islanders assembled, and crowned 
themselves with garlands ; strewed showers of blossoms upon 
the path of the bridal train ; wreathed the house with flowers; 
singers and dancers appeared adorned with oak, myrtle, and 
hawthorn garlands ; the bride and bridegroom were crowned 
with poppies ; and upon their approach to the temple, a priest 
received them at its portals, and presented to each of them a 
spray of ivy—a symbol of the tie which was to unite them for 
ever. 
The Italians, as a rule, are said to evince great dislike of 
perfumes ; and this, perhaps, combined with lingering memo¬ 
ries of the disgraceful scenes that were enacted by the Romans 
in their decadence, at the Floralian festivals, appears to have 
somewhat damped the national love of floral symbolism ; 
nevertheless, the innate affection man entertains for commun¬ 
ing by means of these golden stars is not quite dormant even 
there, as occasional references in these pages will demonstrate. 
Floral emblemism is still powerful in the Iberian peninsula, 
but generally assumes a superstitious tinge, and, indeed, is 
principally indebted to Catholic legends for what little vitality 
it there possesses. 
In France the language of flowers reigns paramount, and 
amongst her gallant sons and vivacious daughters, reckons its 
admirers by myriads. Many of the pretty little floral vocabu¬ 
laries and grammars that have appeared during the last few 
years in England and America have been simply word-for- 
word translations from the works of our Gallic neighbours. 
The manifold editions which the various Blumen-Sprachen 
of Germany have attained, prove that this fascinating study 
numbers numerous devotees amongst the philosophizing Teu- 
tonians; whilst the frequent mention of floral emblematic 
customs by Gothe, and other distinguished writers, is sufficient 
to convince us of the hold which these ancient ideas have upon 
the mind of even the most educated classes of society. 
Hans Christian Andersen, the friend and favourite of young 
and old, of every reading child and of every grown person who 
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