oe 
INTRODUCTION. Vil 
plying fear, as the leaves hope ; remove the leaves 
and thorns and then it signifies that * There may be 
neither hope nor fear ;” while, again, a single flower 
may be made emblematic of a variety of ideas; a 
rosebud that has been already used and deprived of 
its thorns, says, ‘*‘‘Lhere sg much to hope;” but 
stripped of its leaves also, it tells, “‘ There is every- 
thing to fear.” ‘The expression also of almost any 
flower may be varied by changing its position. 
Place the marigold upon the head, for instance, and 
it signifies ¢ distress of mind ”—on the bosom, “ list- 
lessness.” And it may be added, when a flower is 
given, the pronoun Tis understood by changing it to 
the right, thow by inclining it to the left. 
The language of flowers is a study at once inte- 
resting and innocent, cultivating, as it does, a taste 
for the works of nature, filling the soul with the 
sweetest emotions, and presenting to view one of the 
most enchanting phases of a beautiful world full of 
wonders. 
Flowers are the interpreters of the sweetest senti- 
ments of our nature, and imbibe their charm from 
love itself—love pure and chaste—the inspiration of 
the Deity. ‘The expression of this divine passion 
should be divine also: and for this purpose, what in 
nature is so suitable as flowers ? 
The sincere lover frequently finds it impossible to 
convey his sentiments in words, if he can even find 
courage to utter them. Here, then, 1s a medium by 
which he may communicate with his mistress in a 
manner at once delicate and impassioned, and Jaud 
her virtues and beauty in terms that, in spoken lan- 
guage, would appear over-strained and hyperbolic. 

