THE STAR OF BETHLEHEM. 
185 
THE STAB OF BETHLEHEM. 
ORNITHOGALUM UMBELLATUM. 
Yes, yes, all have a voice ! the heavens above, 
The earth beneath, and things that under earth 
Lie deeply hidden — all send out a sound. 
And lecture man, the wandering, and the lost, 
In holy lore. 
To the storied names of certain plants, such as the 
“passion-flower,” the “star of Bethlehem,” &c. the 
solitary wanderer is indebted for many a pleasing and 
solemn train of reflection, in pursuing which, he is dis¬ 
posed to say with the poet. 
“ To give them thus a tongue 
Is wise in man.” 
The flower under immediate consideration grows na¬ 
turally in most parts of southern Europe, in orchards, 
vineyards, and thickets ; it has been also seen in the 
neighbourhood of Smyrna. In our island it is held 
by some botanists as a doubtful native, though found 
apparently wild in many places. “ Its petals are of a 
