even after death; as the poet observes in the following passage: "And first of all, the rose; because its breath Is rich beyond the rest; and when it dies, It doth bequeath a charm to sweeten death." BARRY CORNWALL'S FLOOD OF THESSALY, page 2. But nothing has yet been said to prove the assertion that poets forge chains of Roses; and were this to be omitted, many persons, considering their apparent fragility, might doubt the fact: to avoid so unpleasant a catastrophe, Tasso shall appear and speak for himself. "Di ligustri, di gigli, e delle rose Le quai fiorian per quelle piagge amene, Queste al collo, alle braccia, a i piè gli pose." "Of privet, lilies, and of roses sweet, TASSO, Canto 14. Which proudly flow'red through that wanton plain, Fairfax translates ligustri woodbines: but when a foreign witness is brought into court, as Tasso is upon this occasion, it is but common justice to see that he is correctly interpreted. Suppose it had pleased the English poet to change Roses into turnips, what would have be come of our cause? We must indulge in one more quotation: "Ye lilies, and ye shrubs of snowy hue, Jasmin as ivory pure, Ye spotless graces of the shining field, And thou, most lovely rose, Of tint most delicate, Fair consort of the morn; Delighted to imbibe The genial dew of heaven, Rich vegetation's vermeil-tinctured gem; April's enchanting herald, Thy balmy sweets ascend." ANDREIN'S ADAM. Our delicate Eglantine has been scarcely less honoured by the poets than the more luxuriant Roses. It is usually coupled with the Woodbine, as the Lily with the Rose, the Myrtle with the Bay, or Beaumont with Fletcher. Shenstone, in describing the delights of a country walk after long confinement in sickness, makes particular mention of this fragrant pair: "Come gentle air! and while the thickets bloom, Convey the woodbine's rich perfume, "Yonder is a girl who lingers To reach the hedge-enveloped prize." "Wound in the hedge-row's oaken boughs And, blushing, the uncultured rose Hangs high her beauteous blossoms there." MRS. C. SMITH. The two latter passages equally apply to the Common Wild Rose; which can boast the praise of Chaucer: "As swete as is the bramble floure That bereth the red hepe.". Chaucer, in the Flower and the Leaf, describes a pleasant arbour formed by Sycamore and Eglantine: "And I, that all these plesaunt sightis se, There is no hert (I deme) in such despair, Keats alludes more than once to the sweet perfume of the Eglantine, when moist with rain or dew: "Its sides I'll plant with dew-sweet eglantine ENDYMION, p. 193. "rain-scented eglantine Gave temperate sweets to that well-wooing sun." LABIATE. ROSEMARY. ROSMARINUS. ENDYMION, p. 8. DIANDRIA MONOGYNIA. The botanical name of this plant is compounded of two Latin words, signifying Sea-dew; and indeed Rosemary thrives best by the sea. French, romarin; encensier [incense-wort].-Italian, rosmarino; ramerino; ramarino. ROSEMARY is common in the South of Europe, Barbary, and the Levant, and in the open ground will bear the winter in this climate; but, when in pots, it is necessary to afford it the protection of a roof during the winter season. It has been held in high esteem as a "comforter of the brain," and a strengthener of the memory; and on the latter account is an emblem of fidelity in lovers. Formerly it was worn at weddings, and at funerals also: in some parts of England, Mr. Martyn says, "that in his time it was still customary to distribute it among the company at a funeral, who frequently threw sprigs of it into the grave.” It was also planted near tombs, like Mallow and the Asphodel. Spirit of wine, distilled from Rosemary, produces the true Hungary-water; but this is more generally made by merely dissolving the oils of rosemary and of lavender in spirit of wine. By many persons Rosemary is used as tea, for headaches and nervous disorders. Slips or cuttings taken in the spring, just before they shoot, and planted in a pot of light fresh earth, will soon take root. When accidentally rooted in a wall or crevice of a building, it will thrive, and endure the greatest cold of our winters, however exposed to the wind. Mr. T. Moore alludes to its character as a mourner in the following passage: "the humble rosemary, Whose sweets so thanklessly are shed To scent the desert* and the dead." Shenstone expresses great indignation at the little respect shown to the Rosemary in modern times: "And here trim rosmarin, that whilom crowned The daintiest garden of the proudest peer; Ere driven from its envied site, it found A sacred shelter for its branches here; Where edged with gold its glittering skirts appear. Ere this was banished from its lofty sphere: Nor ever would she more with thane and lordling dwell." SCHOOL MISTRESS. Shakspeare and others of our old poets repeatedly speak of Rosemary as an emblem of remembrance; and as being * In the Great Desert are found many stalks of lavender and rosemary.-Asiat. Res. worn at weddings, to signify the fidelity of the lovers. Thus Ophelia says: "There's rosemary for you, that's for remembrance; pray you love, remember." Again, Perdita, in the Winter's Tale: 66 For you there's rosemary and rue; these keep Grace and remembrance be with you both!” Rue is the herb of grace, commonly so called in the dictionaries of Shakspeare's time. The following passage occurs in Drayton's Pastorals : "He from his lass him lavender hath sent, "will I be wed this morning, Thou shalt not be there, nor once be graced with A piece of rosemary." RAM ALLEY, OR MERRY TRICKS. "I meet few but are stuck with rosemary: every one asked me who was to be married." NOBLE SPANISH SOLDIER. In the notes to Steevens's edition of Shakspeare, many passages of this kind are quoted. |