198 
LANGUAGE AND 
Loudon seems to think that the white rose 
(typical of silence ), and the yellow rose (typify¬ 
ing infidelity), were unknown to the ancients. 
Those ancients fabled that the red rose was 
originally white, but received a rosy hue from 
blood drawn by a thorn from the foot of Yenus, 
as she was hastening to the aid of her adored 
Adonis. Carey fancifully ascribes its ruddy 
tint to the kisses of Eve ; and some to those of 
the Goddess of Love, from whose bath, Greek 
writers say, it originally sprang ; whilst the full- 
bosomed cabbage-rose, they say, sprang from 
the tears of Lycurgus, the enemy of Bacchus. 
Those glorious ancients who regarded the rose 
as the emblem of silence, as well as of love and 
joy, frequently represented Cupid offering one 
to Harpocrates, the god of Silence; and on fes¬ 
tive occasions suspended a rose over the table, 
intimating to the assembled guests that the con¬ 
versation was to be literally, as well as meta¬ 
phorically, “ under the rose.” This latter account 
is generally given as the correct derivation of 
the saying “ sub rosa ,” applied to communica¬ 
tions not to be repeated ; but some writers say 
that the rose was dedicated to Harpocrates, and 
thus became the emblem of taciturnity, for 
which reason it is frequently placed over the 
confessionals in Roman Catholic Churches, in¬ 
dicating the secrecy which should attend what¬ 
ever may be there disclosed to the priest. 
