PREFACE. 
IX 
matical flowers carefully wrapt up in an em¬ 
broidered handkerchief. The freshness of 
these flowers show the speed of the messen¬ 
ger, whilst the selection speaks in silent lan¬ 
guage the sentiments of the party from whom 
they are sent, and whose rank is also distin¬ 
guished by the costliness or beauty of the 
embroidered envelop. These are merely the 
remains of the ancient customs of the eastern 
nations, where all was symbol, emblem, and 
allegory, and it must not he supposed that 
emblems were invented for the purposes of 
intrigue, since we find the scriptures full of 
the most beautiful parables, moral symbols, 
instructive allegories, and poetical emblems, 
that have ever been composed or collected. 
It is presumed that the introduction of a 
few continental garlands in their native garb, 
will be found both agreeable to the taste of 
our readers, and in harmony with the subject 
of the work. With this expectation we 
present the following French wreaths of floral 
verse. 
