smell their fragrance or gaze upon their beauty.  And many of those who are termed the lords of creation, consider them beneath the notice of intellectual beings, and yet they were made for some wise purpose.  We will therefore admit the truth of an assertion made by a friend, who remarked that flowers were doubtless created for the sole purpose of gratifying the weak and childish minds of the female sex.  Be it so, let us thankfully receive the gift, and think ourselves honored by being thought worthy of the fairest and sweetest part of nature’s productions; for which she has reserved her most grateful perfumes, her richest dyes, and the finest strokes of her pencil.  Yes, we will cultivate flowers, for we do not profess to be more scrupulous about the manner in which we spend our time than the Lord of the universe was, for he planted flowers in his garden.  The scriptures inform us that he planted every tree that was pleasant to the sight.  And flowers certainly were pleasant, even to the pure eyes of our Savior; for while speaking of the lilies of the field, he says, “Even Solomon, in all his glory, was not arrayed like one of these.”  And the wisest of men, when searching the world over for comparisons worthy of his beloved, exclaims in the fullness of a heart overflowing with love and gratitude, “He is the rose of Sharon and the lily of the valley.”

Sweet flowers, there is room enough for you in the female mind.  We will take you to our bosoms and cherish you with that affectionate regard, which your lovely qualities deserve.  We will admire your spotless purity and innocence.  You were thought worthy of a place in the blissful bowers of Eden.  And for aught we know, ye were the only part of nature’s works which were created solely for the purpose of charming the mind and gratifying the senses of sinless beings.  And may we make a profitable use of these lovely relics of paradise!  May they continually remind us of the skill, wisdom and goodness of the great Architect of the universe!

Where can we find a more transparent medium through which we may “look through nature up to nature’s God,” than a veil interwoven with flowers?  When fatigued in body, where can we find a more pleasant resting place than beneath the cool shade of an arbor, in the flower garden?  When our spirits are depressed or our minds perplexed with distracting care, thither let us repair:  it will prove a more effectual remedy than on hour spent in gossipping, or an evening in the ball room.  It can but exert a healthful influence over the mind, to inhale such exquisite odors, and gaze upon such beautiful colors and delicate tints, combined with gracefulness and elegance of form.  The art of man has long been striving to imitate them, but the simplest flower that blooms still eclipses their best performances.  And yet the gorgeous canopy that decks the monarch’s throne owes half its splendor to the imperfect miniature of the inhabitants of the flower garden.