e, in pity to the deed,
And her loving luckless speed,
Twined her to this plant we call
Now the 'flower of the wall.'"

The tea-tree in China, from its marked effect on the human constitution,
has long been an agent of superstition, and been associated with the
following legend, quoted by Schleiden. It seems that a devout and pious
hermit having, much against his will, been overtaken by sleep in the
course of his watchings and prayers, so that his eyelids had closed,
tore them from his eyes and threw them on the ground in holy wrath. But
his act did not escape the notice of a certain god, who caused a
tea-shrub to spring out from them, the leaves of which exhibit, "the
form of an eyelid bordered with lashes, and possess the gift of
hindering sleep." Sir George Temple, in his "Excursions in the
Mediterranean," mentions a legend relative to the origin of the
geranium. It is said that the prophet Mohammed having one day washed his
shirt, threw it upon a mallow plant to dry; but when it was afterwards
taken away, its sacred contact with the mallow was found to have changed
the plant into a fine geranium, which now for the first time came into
existence.

Footnotes:

1. "Plant-Lore Legends and Lyrics."

2. Folkard's "Plant Lore Legends and Lyrics," p. 430.

3. "Sacred Trees and Flowers," _Quarterly Review_, cxiv. 239.

CHAPTER XXIII.

MYSTIC PLANTS.

The mystic character and history of certain plants meet us in every age
and country. The gradual evolution of these curious plants of belief
must, no doubt, partly be ascribed to their mythical origin, and in many
cases to their sacred associations; while, in some instances, it is not
surprising that, "any plant which produced a marked effect upon the
human constitution should become an object of superstition." [1] A
further reason why sundry plants acquired a mystic notoriety was their
peculiar manner of growth, which, through not being understood by early
botanists, caused them to be invested with mystery. Hence a variety of
combinations have produced those mystic properties of trees and flowers
which have inspired them with such superstitious veneration in our own
and other countries. According to Mr. Conway, the apple, of all fruits,
seems to have had the widest and most mystical history. Thus, "Aphrodite
bears it in her hand as well as Eve; the serpent guards it, the dragon
watches it. It is the healing fruit of the Arabian tribes. Azrael, the