POETRY OF FLOWERS. 
73 
Lycidas, amid such gentle flowers as sad em¬ 
broidery wear, “Cowslips wan that hang the 
pensive head.” 
The cowslip belongs to the same genus as the 
primrose, and is supposed to have received its 
name from its soft velvety texture, resembling 
that of a lip. 
CROCUS. 
Crocus . Class 3 ; Order 1. 
CHEERFULNESS. 
Light to thy path, bright creature! I would charm 
Thy being, if I could, that it should be 
Ever as thou now dreamest, and flow on, 
Thus innocent and beautiful, to heaven. 
Willis. 
According to some authors, these bright little 
flowers, which 
“Come before the swallow dares, 
And take the winds of March with beauty,” 
derive their name from a Greek word signifying 
thread, from the fact of the thread or filament 
being in such request for saffron dye ; but the 
ancient legend affirms that it was styled Crocus 
after an unhappy lover, whom the gods in pity 
changed into the flower that now bears his name. 
It has teen observed of the rich tint obtained 
