ian song."

The poppy, from its somniferous effects, has been made symbolic of sleep
and oblivion; hence Virgil calls it the Lethean poppy, whilst our old
pastoral poet, William Browne, speaks of it as "sleep-bringing poppy."
The heliotrope denotes devoted attachment, from its having been supposed
to turn continually towards the sun; hence its name, signifying the
_sun_ and _to turn_. The classic heliotrope must not be confounded with
the well-known Peruvian heliotrope or "cherry-pie," a plant with small
lilac-blue blossoms of a delicious fragrance. It would seem that many of
the flowers which had the reputation of opening and shutting at the
sun's bidding were known as heliotropes, or sunflowers, or turnesol.
Shakespeare alludes to the,

"Marigold, that goes to bed with the sun,
And with him rises weeping."

And Moore, describing its faithful constancy, says:--

"The sunflower turns on her god when he sets
The same look which she did when he rose."

Such a flower, writes Mr. Ellacombe, was to old writers "the emblem of
constancy in affection and sympathy in joy and sorrow," though it was
also the emblem of the fawning courtier, who can only shine when
everything is right. Anyhow, the so-called heliotrope was the subject of
constant symbolic allusion:--

"The flower, enamoured of the sun,
At his departure hangs her head and weeps,
And shrouds her sweetness up, and keeps
Sad vigils, like a cloistered nun,
Till his reviving ray appears,
Waking her beauty as he dries her tears."[5]

The aspen, from its tremulous motion, has been made symbolical of fear.
The restless movement of its leaves is "produced by the peculiar form of
the foot-stalks, and, indeed, in some degree, the whole tribe of poplars
are subject to have their leaves agitated by the slightest breeze."[6]
Another meaning assigned to the aspen in floral language is scandal,
from an old saying which affirmed that its tears were made from women's
tongues--an allusion to which is made in the subjoined rhyme by P.
Hannay in the year 1622:--

"The quaking aspen, light and thin,
To the air quick passage gives;
Resembling still
The trembling ill
Of tongues of womankind,
Which never rest,
But still are prest
To wave with every wind."

The almond, again, is regarded as expressive of haste, in reference to
its hasty growth and early maturity; while the evening primrose, from
the time of its blossoms expanding, i