Plant Lore, Legends, and Lyrics Embracing the Myths,...

Kâmadeva accepted the offering, and tipped with the Mango-flower one of his darts, which, from that time, was known as the arrow of love, and is the god’s favourite dart. Along with Sandalwood, the wood of the Mango is used by the Hindus in burning their dead. Among the Indian jugglers, the apparent production and growth of the Mango-tree is a performance executed in such a marvellous manner as to excite the astonishment of those who have most determined to discover how the illusion is effected.

MANNA.—Some naturalists consider that the Manna miraculously provided for the sustenance of the Children of Israel in the Desert was a species of Lichen—the Parmelia esculenta. Josephus, however, describes it as a kind of dew which fell, like honey in sweetness and pleasant taste, but like in its body to Bdellium, one of the sweet spices, but in bigness equal to Coriander-seed. The origin of the different species of Manna or sugary exudations which cover certain trees, has at all times been a subject of wonder, and for a long time it was thought that these saccharine tears, which appear so quickly, were simply deposits from the atmosphere. The Manna used in medicine is principally procured from the flowering Ash (Fraxinus ornus), which is cultivated for the purpose in Sicily and Calabria: the puncture of an insect of the cochineal family causes the sap to exude. The Manna of Mount Sinai is drawn from the Tamarisk by puncture of the coccus: it exudes in a thick syrup during the day, falls in drops, congeals in the night, and is gathered in the cool of the morning. The Larch-tree furnishes the Manna of Briançon. A sweet substance resembling Manna exudes from the leaves of the Eucalyptus resinifera, dries in the sun, and when the leaves are shaken by the wind, falls like a shower of snow. In some countries, even herbs are covered with an abundant sugary exudation similar to Manna. Bruce observed this in Abyssinia.

Matthiolus relates that in some parts of Italy the Manna glues the grass of the meadows together in such a manner as to impede the mowers at their work.——To dream of Manna denotes that you will be successful through life, and overcome all troubles.

MAPLE.—The wood of the Maple (Acer) was considered by Pliny to be, in point of elegance and firmness, next to the Citron itself. The veined knobs of old Maples, known as the bruscum and molluscum, were highly prized by the Romans, and of these curiously-marked woods were made the famous Tigrine and Pantherine tables, which were of such immense value, that when the Romans reproached their wives for their extravagance in jewels, they were wont to retort and (literally) “turn the tables” upon their husbands. Evelyn tells us, that such a table was that of Cicero, “which cost him 10,000 sesterces; such another had Asinius Gallus. That of King Juba was sold for 15,000; and yet that of the Mauritanian Ptolemy was far richer, containing four feet and a half diameter, three inches thick, which is reputed to have been sold for its weight in gold.”——Some centuries ago, Maple-wood was in great request for bowls and trenchers. The unfortunate Fair Rosamond is reputed to have drunk her fatal draught of poison from a Maple bowl; and the mediæval drinking-vessels, known as mazers, were chiefly made of this material—deriving their name from the Dutch Maeser, Maple.——On May-day, in Cornwall, the young men proceed, at daybreak, to the country, and strip the Maple (or Sycamore) trees—there called May-trees—of all their young branches, to make whistles, and with these shrill musical instruments they enliven their way home with “May music.”——In Germany, the Maple is regarded with much superstitious reverence.

There existed formerly, in Alsace, a curious belief that bats possessed the power of rendering the eggs of storks unfruitful. When once a stork’s egg was touched by a bat, it became sterile; and so, in order to preserve it, the stork placed in its nest some branches of the Maple, and the wonderful power of this tree sufficed to frighten away every intruding bat.——De Gubernatis relates a Hungarian fairy tale, in which the Maple plays a conspicuous part. According to this legend, a king had three daughters, one of whom, a beautiful blonde, was in love with a shepherd, who charmed her with delightful music he produced from a flute. One night, the king, the princess, and the shepherd, were disturbed by disquieting dreams. The king dreamt that his crown had lost its diamonds; the princess that she had visited her mother’s tomb and was unable to get away from it; the shepherd that two fallow deer had devoured the best lamb in his flock. After this dream, the king called his three daughters to him, and announced to them that she who should first bring to him a basket of Strawberries should become his pet daughter, and inherit his crown and seven kingdoms. The three daughters hastened to a neighbouring hill to gather the Strawberries. There, setting down their baskets, each one in turn wished that her basket might be filled with fruit. The wishes of the two elder sisters were unheeded; but when it came to the blonde’s turn, her wish was no sooner expressed, than her basket was filled with Strawberries.

At this sight, the two sisters, mad with envy, fell upon the poor blonde, and slew her; then, having buried her under an old Maple-tree, they broke her basket in two, and divided the Strawberries between them. On their return to the palace, they told the king that their sister had been devoured by a fallow deer. On hearing this sad news, the unhappy father exclaimed: “Alas! I have lost the most precious diamond of my crown.” At the approach of the new moon, the shepherd took up his flute to play a tune; but it was mute, for the fair princess was no longer there to listen to its tuneful notes. Meanwhile, on the third night, there sprang from the stem of the old Maple on the hill a new shoot, on the spot where the poor princess had met her cruel death. The shepherd, happening to pass by, saw this fresh shoot from the Maple, and thought he would make from it a new flute. So he cut the Maple-shoot, and from it fashioned a flute; but the moment he placed it to his lips, the flute sang, “Play, play, dearest. Once I was a king’s daughter; then I was a Maple-shoot; now I am a flute made from the Maple-shoot.” The shepherd rushed off with the flute to the king, who put it to his lips, when instantly it sang, “Play, play, my father. Once, &c.” Then the two wicked sisters approached, and each in turn put the flute to her lips—only, however, to hear it hiss, “Play, play, murderess. Once, &c.”

Then the king, becoming aware of the sisters’ wickedness, cursed them, and drove them with bitter reproaches from his palace into the wide world.——The Maple has been made the emblem of reserve, because its flowers are late in opening, and slow to fall.——A curious belief exists in some parts of England, that the Maple can confer longevity on children, if they are passed through its branches. In West Grinstead Park, Sussex, was an old Maple much used for this purpose, and, upon a rumour reaching the parish, that the ancient tree was to be felled, many petitions were made that it might be spared.——Pliny says that Maple-root, pounded, is a remedy for pains in the liver, and Gerarde states that, steeped in wine, it is useful in stopping pain in the side. He quotes a verse from Sammonicus, which he thus translates:—

MARGUERITE.—The Daisy (Bellis perennis), which Chaucer called “douce Margarette,” derives its French name of Marguerite from its supposed resemblance to a pearl. In Germany, indeed, it is known as the Meadow-pearl, and Chaucer, in describing the flower, says:—

The Greek word for pearl, Margarites, became in Latin Margarita, remained the same in Italian, and in French was spelt Marguerite; the same word in each language indicating both the pearl and the flower we call Daisy. This flower was formerly employed in the treatment of certain female complaints, and on that account, perhaps, was dedicated by the Monks to St. Margaret of Cortona. Chaucer, in error, referred the name Margaret, as bestowed on the Daisy, to St. Margaret of Hungary, who was martyred in the thirteenth century; but in an old legend it is stated

This St. Margaret of Cortona, who in mediæval days was very popular, had for some years, says Mrs. Jameson, led an abandoned life, but having repented and been canonised, she was regarded by the people of her native town as a modern Magdalene; and, like her prototype, was supposed, on account of her early habits, to preside over uterine diseases, and others peculiar to young women. The Daisy, and other flowers which were supposed from their shape to resemble the Moon, were by the ancients dedicated to the virgin goddess of the night, Artemis, or Diana: but in Christian times were transferred to the two saints who replace her, namely, St. Mary Magdalene and St. Margaret of Cortona. Dr. Prior, in his work on plant names, points out that this latter saint has often been confounded with a St. Margaret of Antioch, who was “invoked as another Lucina, because in her martyrdom she prayed for lying-in-women.” This maiden of Antioch is described in old metrical legends as

The Daisy has been connected with several eminent women of the name of Margaret. Margaret of Anjou wore the flower as her device, and had it embroidered on the robes of her courtiers. Lady Margaret, the mother of Henry VII., wore three white Daisies; Margaret, the sister of Francis I., also wore the Daisy, and was called by her brother his Marguerite of Marguerites—his pearl of pearls. (See Daisy).

MARIGOLD.—The African Marigold (Tagetes erecta) is regarded as a sacred flower in Northern India, where the natives adorn the trident emblem of Mahâdeva with garlands of it; and both men and women wear chaplets made of its flowers on his festival.——The Romans named the European Marigold Calendula—the flower of the Calends—from a notion that it blossoms the whole year.——In the oldest of English herbals, the ‘Grete Herball,’ the Marigold is called Mary Gowles, but by the old poets it is frequently alluded to as Gold simply, and it is still called Goules or Goulans in some counties of England. Another old English name for these flowers was Ruddes.——From its tawny yellow blossom the Marigold is presumed to have been the Chrusanthemon, or Gold Flower, of the Greeks.——In mediæval times, this flower, along with numerous others, was dedicated by the monks and nuns to the Virgin, and had the prefix Mary appended to its name. According to an old tradition, however, the Marigold was so called because the Virgin Mary wore this flower in her bosom.——Shakspeare, in ‘Cymbeline,’ speaks of the flower as the Mary-bud, and in ‘A Winter’s Tale,’ alludes to its habit of closing at sunset and opening at sunrise:—

Linnæus states that the flower is usually open from 9 a.m. till 3 p.m., and this foreshows a continuance of dry weather. Should the blossom remain closed, rain may be expected. This circumstance, and the plant’s habit of turning its golden face towards the sun, has gained for it the name of the “Sun-flower” and the “Spouse of the Sun”.——Marguerite of Orleans, the maternal grandmother of Henri IV., chose for her armorial device a Marigold turning towards the sun, and for a motto, “Je ne veux suivre que lui seul.”——In America, Marigolds are called Death-flowers, in reference to an existing tradition that the crimson and gold-coloured blossoms sprang upon ground stained by the life-blood of those unfortunate Mexicans who fell victims to the love of gold and arrogant cruelty of the early Spanish settlers in America.——In the reign of Henry VIII., the Marigold was called Souvenir, and ladies wore wreaths of them intermixed with Heart’s-ease.——To dream of Marigolds appears to be of happy augury, denoting prosperity, riches, success, and a happy and wealthy marriage.——The Marigold is deemed by astrologers a Solar herb, under the sign Leo.

MARJORAM.—The origin of Marjoram (Origanum vulgare: Greek, Amarakos) is related by the Greeks as follows:—A young man named Amaracus was employed in the household of Cinyras, King of Cyprus: one day, when carrying a vase containing perfumes, he unfortunately let it fall, and was so frightened at the mishap that he lost all consciousness, and became metamorphosed into an odoriferous herb called at first Sampsuchon, and afterwards Amarakos. According to Rapin, the goddess Venus first raised Sweet Marjoram. He says:—