26S the language of flowers. 
them as only second to the mistletoe : they used it largely 
in their divinations and casting of lots. 
Sir William Davenant, in his poem of “ Gondibert,” 
alludes to its curative powers : 
“ Black melancholy rusts, that fed despair 
Through wounds’ long rage, with sprinkled vervain cleared ; 
Strewed leaves of willow to refresh the air, 
And with rich fumes his sullen senses cheered.” 
Vervain is used still amongst the Cornish peasantry as 
a charm against ague. 
In gathering the vervain for “good luck,” the herb is 
first crossed with the hand, and then blessed, thus : 
“ Hallowed be thou, Vervain, 
As thou growest in the ground ; 
For in the Mount of Calvary 
There thou first wast found.” \ 
