56 the: story or the oak tree 
tinguish themselves from the enemy the soldiers wore 
such badges as they could obtain, As they marched 
through a field, every Welshman plucked a leek and 
stuck it in his cap. The Welsh won the battle, and in 
grateful memory of the victory they kept the leek as 
their national flower. 
On the Mexican shield is pictured an eagle perched 
upon a cactus stem. After the Aztecs had wandered 
many years they met a wise man, who told them, 
“Where you find an eagle perched upon a rock, there 
shall you build your city.” 
As they drew near Lake Tezcuco, they spied an eagle 
perched upon a cactus branch which grew upon a rock. 
They rejoiced, because they were tired of roving, and 
there they stayed and built their city, which they called 
by a name meaning cactus-on-a-stem. 
Our own country has no national flower, but almost 
every state has its favorite. Maine has the pine cone 
and tassel, Nebraska the goldenrod, Kansas the sun¬ 
flower, California the poppy. Many states have asked 
their school children to select a flower for them. Which 
flower would you choose for your state? 
The rose has always been the queen of flowers. To 
the ancients it was the emblem of silence, love and joy. 
At great feasts they would hang a rose over the table 
to remind the guests that the talk must not grow too 
