The red rose was the badge of the House of Lancaster; the white rose, that of York; the violet was the favorite flower of Napoleon I.; the cornflower, or blue bachelor's button, that of Kaiser William I. of Germany. Tell as many of the stories as you can find which give the reason for the selection of these flowers. Since the United States has no national flower, how can she get one? What would you prefer as the national flower? Why? The Rose Family. Roses, apples, peaches, plums, pears, strawberries, raspberries, blackberries. How are all these roses? In what do the flowers differ? In what are they alike? Wild Flowers of Spring. Read The Procession of the Flowers, in Out-Door Papers, by Thomas W. Higginson. Wild Flowers of Autumn. Aster, golden-rod, iron-weed, milkweed, eupatorium, sunflower. "The wind-flower and the violet, they perished long ago; And the briar-rose and the orchis died amid the summer glow; But on the hill the golden-rod, and the aster in the wood, And the yellow sunflower by the brook, in Autumn beauty stood, Till fell the frost from the clear cold heaven, as falls the plague on men, And the brightness of their smile was gone from upland, glade, and glen." The Death of the Flowers, by William Cullen Bryant. Varieties of Wild Flowers found in November. It will be found a very interesting enterprise to hunt for wild flowers in November; and the number found will be much larger than any one who has never tried it, would suppose. The Flowers of the Months. Elm blossoms in February and March; maple, in April and May; cherry and apple, in May; rose, in June; golden-rod, aster, and sunflower, in August, September, and October; witchhazel, in November. Add others to the list. Care of House Plants. Effect of gas, Soil-sunlight - moisture- care of leaves. steam, hot air. What varieties flourish in the house? Flowers as Decorations. Suitable for all occasions-joy-sorrow. Always an appro priate gift. Skill required in arrangement of flowers. The Japanese have made the arrangement of flowers a fine art, with definite rules, not to be transgressed. See "Japonica," by Sir Edwin Arnold, in Scribner's Monthly, December, 1890. Flowers of the Bible. Any concordance will give the names and references. Mythological and Sacred Plants. Mistletoe, sacred to the Druids, and still a Christmas decoration. Passion-flower typifies in its parts the passion of Christ. Daffodil, or Poet's Narcissus, was sacred to Persephone. Asphodel grew in the meadows of Hades. Lotus, sacred to Buddha, and also the sacred flower of the ancient Egyptians. Pomegranate was revered by the Hebrews, and placed by them on the robe of the High Priest. Moly is the unknown plant that Homer says was able to fortify one against the transformations of Circe. The lily and the rose were sacred to the Virgin Mary. Witch-hazel was believed to possess occult powers. The Flowers of American Poets. Study the poems of Bryant, Lowell, Longfellow, Whittier, or Holmes, for allusions to flowers. An interesting comparison may be made between the flowers of Bryant and those of Lowell, or those of Longfellow and those of Whittier. LESSON XXXIX. POEMS TO BE READ. Each pupil should bring one or more of the following poems to William Wordsworth. Edith Thomas. James Russell Lowell. Alice Cary. Alfred Tennyson. Thomas Moore. EXERCISE I. - EXPLAIN THE FOLLOWING PLANT PROVERBS. A pine tree wishes herself a shrub when the axe is at her root. The smallest axe may fell the largest oak. Wherever a man lives he is sure to have a thorn-bush near his door. He that handles a nettle tenderly is soonest stung. Get thy spindle and thy distaff ready, and God will send the flax. The tree is no sooner down, but every one runs for his hatchet. CHAPTER X. STUDY OF RHETORICAL FIGURES. Rhetorical figures are intentional deviations from the plain and ordinary mode of speaking, for the sake of greater effect. The following are the figures most commonly used. LESSON XL. — FIGURES BASED ON COMPARISON. Simile. A simile is a comparison, definitely expressed, between objects that are not of the same class. As and like are the usual signs of a simile, but so, just as, similar to, and many others may be used for the purpose; but only such objects as belong to different classes, when compared, form a simile. "John is as slender as his brother," is no simile; but "John is as slender as a young sapling," is a simile. EXERCISE I. - IN THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLES POINT OUT IN WHAT THE SIMILE CONSISTS. The sails are scattered abroad like weeds; The strong masts shake like quivering reeds. She told me her story once; and it was as if a grain of corn that had been ground and bolted had tried to individualize itself by a special narrative. The Assyrian came down like a wolf on the fold. — Byron. Bent like a laboring oar which toils in the surf of the ocean; Bent but not broken by age was the form of the notary public. The lovely moon climbs up the sky As one who walks in dreams, A tower of marble in her light, A wall of black, a wall of white, The stately vessel seems. Longfellow. Longfellow. Simile, being the great illustrative figure, is especially adapted to promote clearness of thought and expression; it is not so well adapted to force and passion. It is very common in imaginative prose and in poetry. EXERCISE II. Write original or well-known similes. Write similes using the names of animals that we take as the type of the following conditions: strength -weakness-poverty - bravery-brusqueness-cold -happiness-sickness. What is the type of freedom? of weight? uncertainty? Quote a simile from Longfellow; from Whittier; from Shakespeare. Metaphor. A metaphor is a comparison which is implied between two objects that are not of the same class. A simile says that two objects are alike; a metaphor says that one object is another, leaving the comparison to be understood. "That man is like a fox in his dealings," is a simile. Sometimes a metaphor consists simply of a transferred epithet. The plowman homeward plods his weary way. |