FORGET-ME-NOT. 
183 
FORGET-ME-NOT. ‘ 
The name of this beautiful little jflower, which 
enamels the banks of our rivers with its corollas of 
celestial blue, corresponds with the signification that 
is now universally attached to it. That name it 
derived from a German tradition full of melancholy 
romance. It is related that a young couple, on the 
eve of being united, whilst walking along the de¬ 
lightful banks of the Danube, saw a cluster of these 
lovely flowers floating on the stream, which was 
bearing it away. The affianced bride admired the 
beauty of the flower, and lamented its fatal destiny. 
The lover plunged into the water to secure it: no 
sooner had he caught it than he found himself sink¬ 
ing, but, making a last effort, he threw it on the 
bank at the feet of his betrothed, and, at the mo¬ 
ment of disappearing for ever, exclaimed Vergiss 
mein nicht ! Since that event, this flower has been 
made emblematical of the sentiment, and been dis¬ 
tinguished by the name of Forget-me-not. Its 
