Many opportunities are' offered for the skilful use of 
dowers emblematically on certain special occasions. 
Thanksgiving Day, which is now observed nationally, 
affords fine scope for floral decorations, and partiqularly in 
the churches about the pulpit or altar or other parts of the 
chancel. At suchra time all kinds of bright flowers can be 
used, but specially appropriate are boquets and decorations 
of carefully preserved grasses and stalks of grain, such as 
wheat, barley, oats and rye, and a skilful hand might in¬ 
troduce, in proper places, ears of bright golden com or 
taaize. The tall stalks of corn, too, with the half-declin¬ 
ing partly husked ears, may be brought into use. And so 
also in the cotton regions very fine effects may be produced 
with the stems of the cotton plant, with their little sprigs 
all covered with the opening bolls of white cotton-inter- 
minglmg with these some bright colored berries and green 
leaves and a scene almost fairy-like may be produced- 
