FLOEAL CEEEMONIES. 123 
with no other ornament than a beautiful altar 
picture, and the flowers and branches of trees, 
with which the walls and floor were decorated 
in honor of the occasion.” Yes !— 
“ ’Tis a morn for a bridal, the merry bride bell 
Tolls out through the woodland that skirts the chapel. 
Do you not hear it ringing ? Do you not see 
the gay procession pass onward ? and are you 
not aware of a delicious perfume emanating 
from the flowers which bestrew the way, and 
garlands of the merry company ;— 
“ But other lands and other floral rites, 
The thought poetic, and the pen invites.” 
In Eastern nations flowers and perfumes have 
been considered one of the indispensable enjoy¬ 
ments of the higher classes of society, from the 
remotest antiquity. From those nations the 
Romans appear to ha,ve borrowed this delicate 
refinement, and to have carried it to the utmost 
excess in their costly entertainments. They 
soon began to consider flowers as forming a very 
essential article in their festal preparations ; and 
