POETRY OF FLOWERS. 145 
marvellous stories to account for its many shapes 
and tints, which, now-a-days, are as varied as 
are the hues of the rainbow. One legend tells 
that Jove, being desirous of rendering the in¬ 
fant Hercules immortal, caused Somnus to pre¬ 
pare a nectareous sleeping-draught, which he 
administered to Juno, who soon fell into a pro 
found slumber. Whilst the mother of the gods 
was in this condition, Jove placed the babe to 
her breast, in order that it might imbibe the 
divine milk that would insure its immortality. 
The little Hercules, in his over-eagerness, drew 
the milk too quickly, and some drops falling to 
the earth, the white lily, emblematical of 'purity, 
immediately sprang up. 
Throughout Spain and Italy the white lily is 
emblematic of the Virgin’s purity, and is fre¬ 
quently used to decorate her shrine : in nearly 
every Catholic country it is especially dedicated 
to her. 
The Victoria Regina, so named by Dr. Lind- 
ley in honor of the queen of England, may be 
considered as the most magnificent of all lilies, 
if not, indeed, of all flowers. Its gorgeous, 
snowy, blush-tinted blossoms attain four feet, 
and its enormous leaves eighteen feet of circum- 
ference! 
An heraldic work, published in France, gives 
the following singular and interesting account 
of the lily as an emblem : It is the symbol of 
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