120 
tu im,a ies’ Sflaral Baiknef iftetaimi BHEanie 6om|ianion. 
HOUSEHOLD ELEGANCIES. 
NEW YORK, AUGUST, 1879. 
ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE MONTH. 
Upon page 113 is a sketch of a very handsome 
stand or bracket for holding fish-globes. It is 13 
inches high, 10 inches wide, and is finished in 
nickel and blue at the very modest cost of about 
$1.50. It is something very new and beautiful just 
manufactured by G. Hennecke & Co., of Milwaukee, 
Wis. 
Upon page 121 are familiar rural scenes, remind¬ 
ers of country life—the young folks and the birds, 
in spring and summer pleasures. 
On page 124 are sketches of rustic flower-stands, 
which almost any one can make from a glance at the 
en graving. Collecting rustic bark, roots, and branches 
from the woods, they can be cut apart, and fastened 
upon the frame-work, and in a short time a very de¬ 
sirable ornament is made for the lawn, garden, or 
piazza. 
The other illustrations give home-like suggestions 
needing no description. 
LILIES. 
As August is the month when many beautiful va¬ 
rieties of Lilies are fully in bloom, I would suggest to 
those whose purses are limited to make a selection 
of bulbs while they can compare the flowers of each 
variety, and not trust the wonderful description of 
perfection which the floral catalogues would lead you 
to suppose each plant had attained. 
The Lilium cmratum is styled the “ Queen of 
the Japanese Lilies,” and is deliciously fragrant, 
but there are some varieties to which I would 
give the preference, were I making a selection of 
bulbs. 
The Lilium landfolium jmnctatum has flowers of 
a flesh color, with spots of delicate rose. The Lilium 
speciosum, which is also found in the collection of Dr. 
Siebold, who introduced them from Japan, would, in 
my opinion, both rank higher than the Auratum, but 
the common garden Lily (Lilium candidum) is un¬ 
equalled for purity, beauty, or ease of culture. 
In The Country, a journal of rural pursuits pub¬ 
lished in England, I read not long since a piece on 
Lilies which gives many facts of interest concerning 
the white Lily and the scarlet Martagon. 
This article states that Mr. Shirley Hibberd, editor 
of a serial work descriptive of garden flowers, issued 
by Messrs. Cassell, says that the Lilium candi¬ 
dum is a native of the Levant, and as that country 
includes Palestine, it is by no means improper to 
consider this as the “ Lily of the field ” referred to by 
our Lord in the Sermon on the Mount (Matt. vi. 28). 
If, however, we seek for a distinct flower as the Lily 
of the Holy Land, we must take note of Canticles vi. 
2, where the Lily is associated with spices ; and this 
Lily has a powerful and spicy odor that exactly an¬ 
swers to the suggestion of the text. 
Thus the white Lily may be the Lily of Solomon, 
because of its powerful fragrance, but the Gospel 
Lily need not be scented, but must be glorious in 
apparel, comparable with this splendid monarch. 
It happens, then, that the Martagon Lily (L. Chal- 
cidowicum), which is almost odorless, but produces 
flowers of a brilliant scarlet, like the robes of Solo¬ 
mon, grows in profusion in the Levant, and is espe¬ 
cially abundant about the Lake of Gennesareth, on 
the plains of Galilee, and the pastures on the borders 
of the desert. 
But it must also be borne in mind that the 
Shushan, or Lily of Scripture, may be rendered 
“Rose ” or “ Violet ” with propriety, and probably 
had a very broad meaning, so that we might read, 
“Behold the flowers of the field, how they grow,” 
without in the slightest degree misrepresenting the 
purpose of our Lord. 
The word “ Lily ” is of unknown origin, and in all 
its older forms is of general application, and, there¬ 
fore, we cannot hope to identify with certainty any 
flower so called in ancient, and especially Eastern, 
documents. 
It is none the less interesting, however, to note 
how admirably these two Lilies answer to the two 
references cited, so that we may, without resorting 
to invention, regard the scarlet Martagon and the 
common white as par excellence the “ Lilies of 
Scripture.” 
In conclusion, I will add that in color this Lily is 
a reddish orange, its strongly revolute sepals are 
thickly covered with dark purple spots, the leaves 
are a glossy dark green and grow up the entire 
length of the stem, which is a rich brown, about two 
feet high. It may be found in the swamps of tide¬ 
water Virginia, in full flower, the end of July or 
early in August. 
The Floral Cabinet comes to hand with its 
usual bright array of illustrations and interesting 
articles on floriculture. —From Bepublican Star. 
One of the best reasons for doing fancy work is to 
get rid of all unsightly articles. This can only be 
done by making them ornamental, and modern in¬ 
genuity seems determined to effect such a change 
even in a clothes-basket. The Domestic Monthly 
gives a very pretty illustration of how this may bo 
done. We copy the description, hoping our readers 
will be glad to avail themselves of the suggestion. 
The large basket is an article of necessity in a house¬ 
hold, and in limited quarters it is not always possible 
to keep such an article out of sight. The next best 
thing the housekeepers taste suggests is to orna¬ 
ment it so that it need not be barely practical and 
nothing more. The decorations of the basket here 
seen are the upholstery canvas bands which como 
already stamped, as previously described. Coarse 
wools of the brightest colors are used for this work ; 
and if the basket is open and not very fine, cross- 
stitch proves more satisfactory than single stitch for 
working. A linen or jute fringe trims each band, 
and a square worked in colors to match the borders 
is placed upon the cover. The spaces intervening 
between the decorated bands on the basket are filled 
in with cross-stitch, executed in black or any color 
that accords well with the general shadings employed. 
A great deal of fancy-work and filling-in is done at 
present by the Gobelin stitch, which is perpendicular, 
taking up as many threads as may be required for 
making the work finer or coarser. Where canvas is 
ten stitches to the inch, a showy design is worked 
with shaded wools, each stitch over four canvas 
threads. 
WHAT PEOPLE THINK. 
I must tell you a little compliment. The gentle¬ 
man to whom I carried my Cabinets for binding 
said when I called for them: “ I never saw so hand¬ 
some a book as they make. I carried them home to 
my wife to look at.” 
Mrs. Anabel C. Andrews. 
Hudson, N. H. 
I have enjoyed your paper for two years and hope 
to enjoy it many more. 
Mrs. Josie M. Simon. 
Swan, Noble Co., Ind. 
The Cabinet is a most charming paper. I could 
not do without it. It is always interesting and never 
fails to please. I enjoy reading over back numbers ; 
they always seem new, and furnish rich food for busy 
brains. Lona S-. 
Mt. Pulaski, Ill. 
Sir : Since August last I have been a most grate¬ 
ful recipient of your excellent journal, The Floral 
Cabinet. The more I know of it the more I am 
convinced that it must be doing a blessed work. 
Beginning at the home, which is the basis of the 
state, its influence for good upon the latter cannot 
fail to be appreciated. All to whom I have shown it 
are pleased with it, and I trust that some, if they 
have not already, will send in their names as sub¬ 
scribers. Harriette W. Sherrill. 
Le Roy, N. Y. 
