TIM OREGON SUNDAY JOURNAL, POilTLANl), SUNDAY MOkNJN'G, tlOV HlMVAl 21,
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IKE many other . anniversaries which
hare to do with events that covered
more than a single day, the centennial
of the chrysanthemum. ' now refimantaa
- the one flower universally admired throughout
the world, can scarcely be limited to one single
: year.
The flower was never confined to Japan ex
; elneively; it is indigenous 'throughout the East.'
But it "had , for generations" -been a national
-., emblem with the Japanese, and .was the heraldic
symbol of the family of the ' present emperor.
Indeed, the Order of the 1 Chrysanthemum is one
- of the Japanese knighthoods most highly prized.
' eniDiernatic ot all the virtues.
The first of the flowers familia
was the yillow chrysanthemum, so
in Japan, and its presence in the
traced back to a couple of centuries
Holland, with its daredevil sailors and its ari-"
, gelic gardening, found opportunity and time to
discover the chrysanthemum to the-extentof -half
a .dozen varieties. Breyhius tells about
them quite circumstantially.
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Hov 1 00 Years in Europ
and. America Have Brbugtof5.
japan's Flower to High ?:V.'.
Favor 4
JTVSCE there was, in Japan, a beautiful
Jj queen of the loners, who went 1
wandering' abroad until she found
herself in strange ' western lands!, - where
i heavy -seen ted blooms' .and', vari-colo red
earth) bulbs disputed between them the
honors of precedence, and the strange queen
was known only as a pretty foreigner, with
a very distinguished air.
As a great honor the barbarians among
whom she found herself , permitted her to
a ppear in the company of their stolid
Dutch bulbs and their fragile, scented roses;
end people came, and sniffed r at her, and
turned away, saying: ' . , . ...
"Huh! Might as well be a sunflower!"
But the wandering flower queen had all
the pride of her race, and remained dig
nified and exclusive, even in those days of
ignorant curiosity and equally j ignorant
disdain. As the years went by, and her
descendants grew tn beauty and refinement,
the ignorant foreign people comprehended
more and more the true distinction of the
queen they had been entertaining unawares.
Finally, with the whole, world in admi
ration of the numerous family , ! they t made
haste to celebrate a centennial of the first
strange flower's public appearance.
It was in 1 8 og that the chrysanthemum
played its earliest role of prominence in the
flower shows of France and England.
- ' JLhat, is the story of. beautiful Queen
Chrysanthemum; and the opening of the
season this year is a continuation of that
memorable anniversary.
'lh&t was to be accounted .for by the1 iai'
; pressive- manner in whicbVwhen the chrysantbe
mum ,d id ; begin to be admired -in the United
States,;it became ihe- fashion. : Prices were for
a long time much higher than those attachingto
1 the' more familiar" flowers, and .those who in
I 'dulgd 'in .. themi-were -usually the- social leaders
v of ,thjB, communities in which the fair stranger
swas. making her way. The mass of , the people
( ( seemed, to'-jhink that a : bunch of "really worthy
chrysanthemums .was boyoftd their purses.
t. -To'' the vAmerican' girl who first vore chrys- f
r.f7-?"anthemum3 at.-'a-'-foptball7gvimefthe; queen of
y'v. flowers owes the. ajjpointment of some'euch post
:r1 ; ''asDaid yo'hoiyr j 'andi-every. iadiciatioA seema to
-1 be ,thaV, ultimately every ( girl o.whd attends a
X' game. will "hold the position,- at least pro tem.
4 h These lovely. . cheefers .of. "the" hard-fought
pridiron ripBooner saw one of .their number bios- .
som lout iii -chrysahthemuma tfian.'they ali. took
the stranger to, their bosoms, so that-he was a
hardy'-or. a'b'esti-loYed suitor -who 'dared- refrain .
-. from 'gracing: his football invitationv'.with: a big
- bouquet of .the variety'that wduld.be mo5t salient
v , to the crowd's envious gaze. ; , , . c
. .'JTow, with every one. knowing thaj those big,
f beautiful blooms last f or. weeks, and .with, count- .
'f loss florists devoting themselves -to. 'greater and -'
-f greateroutputr antiually'the chrys'anthemuni
" throughout' the-f all -and' winter finds theAn5eri-
T? .. mji-- a vj'i'-nt L- ja',;.'Ji:Mi-;: '?iivrfl,'Mrtpi8k.f:iir.K-'flowiilovM-' can-Beauty, rose- its'only vnvar,'arfd -'that fwitb .
princess -belonged, either to 'the' fainily-of -a .pots. ; " : , " . ! as Jobn Tvpe an'dtheen'of tiat day, who none b ealt,ft,'V; '('
bumboatman or a costermonger. i ' . ; It wasin lS45 that Robert Fortune, sent to gave: the: graceful bloom,-its' first'; real welcome - : ; 'V f i 'A1- JAPANESE LEGEND -, ... ' ' '
Cambridge,': v - C Tv : ' , " .." .. . - . . -
tlie flower '-which j-parallelsi'the. familiar ;myth :
of Pygmalion, and; Galate.a."y ;Lonff.' gear's, ago a
... - . . .. . ' . - I IU J (Jrif lU L-1UIL Ui , LJIO V1113 sniJlllv-lliUJULI "-' . I r , -
One would "think that m HoUand' wliere 16S8 r- c'y young nooieman - oecame. enamor.ea or-a'Deauu-, ;
v i -..v.iv.. - i .v- .v.: amone m members, -iir tnia tiam Kurono hmi , 7" :. - , . . v. it - i Tut maiden wnonaa ceen.impnsonea in a.pnns
juod wxu juKu at .uo uovo,ui-.iuo vui.Toiuiuc-, . , ,. . , . i- , . vrnen tne .nower was maKinir iio' usui,v;uuuuvi- , , ,. , . .. TT . ,. . .
mumV earliest, arrival-those m
wotdd.have be engaged all that time in de-- 9t8. P V LreTy tlfe oertureno; the
reldping and expanding thb prize they-possessed fench autumn bemg much more favorable than ;., bich greets its appearahce every.f all in these . mlyior the lovely reatureof the drawing.
Nothing of the kind. - ' , .England's damp, and-foggy fhmate, he produced Swn' ' J Once, after he hadjong-implored the gods
Sabine,' secretary of .the IIorticultural.S(-;,n There'are.nowVoraethmg like 3000 van
wUt-.,. -AUtinmUhiA -.BthflriW thetn: came the famous Pompon: chrrsantbe-" .ij ..-j -f .and cherish her, a sweet-little voice said to him:
.nta. "vine tW.-in-- lXSl-nnt.. .,-ncrlv, mums. , . ' ' " 'IS- it I -J pi.o- i' 'Only when, thou- layest at my .'feet the pura ,
lli Ul K11 VUU L'sMi ' A VCUVUitJ ' UJUItW
r to Europe r Botanical, science finally,: concluded Queen i '-nina oy tner.oyai,iiorucuuurai society, re- , here. But Dr.m.'P.r,Walcott, of ,
weD; known -v Chrysanthemum was'in'a class of her'own.'and r-lHrB. wih? m,?rIe flower
West c.be, commd-'chrysos," gold, and,"anthos,w flowc; rinoncd in 'his
1. . .t . a 'Hm MWkiM it nim .h iLonm, . " . "rgwiL .anu 4 bniau in. size- - . xui. me Axioyai ao- i- . . m. .t..rt,
anthemunis .
own-garden. ,
themum So-"
MISFORTUNE AT FIRST
T5ut genrral porularitv AiA. nnti fr.Vn
; .O : tra!l ' vg.rdenerVin-IIoUand-knew.nything
to rear a "mom" imported from-China in 1754. '
Vr T'i ifwiiie tbe wanderfng queen
n-arhed France in ITSy and London in 1795. t -
J.r a tune tbe few dolmens available aold
at tery bich pric-., as m.irh frr their rarity as
for th.-ir 1-eauty. It is aaid lv experts ia the
xFx, thrr-aaihemum that the first one
which hIotm. '.a England j-howed iu queenly
Untr,in ColrilleV nnrery, in tbe Kicg'i road,
in CIm.m a. in 173. on a jlant oUairKi from
-i. (Vi-, a famous Eurryman of Faria.
A ot.rnua ojput arse mr,o- 1K0 U. ..J TY. :. v.j -
1 rivlt. ho fit boTind t claMify tl hand- tJ.rjurc.- - -
W, h fam.h.r. So me' Furope was forty-eight rer afterward, at'
;..e f vi-ra awtre it lai to U a feverff w. tdd. where the Ik-rticultnral Socictr ani
about tbe chrysanthemum. It Was ft b though tbe
rose and tnnp had combined to resist the mva
aion'of the beautiful stranger .destined to usurp
the floral tnrone.
" Tet elsewhere th
for the wealthier c:
serymen like. M.' Cola . were steadily faithful to
the promise it displayed. In the ycarlbOS
there were as many as eight orten Tarietiea
known to tlfm. and only another yf a r-the ytar
of which this is -the centtnary waa Eeodd to
make the strange cower f ligille at the showa in
: By the .middle -of the ! laat. century ; Queen
Chrysanthemum bad so far come into her own
.in. tbe V e?t,that ehe .was .theipnncipal winter
thousandv of gardeners-and, sometimes
o-rcot trnnA fortune.- . ' ' -
r , . . . j ---: ..1
;It haa happened here, as,; long ago,.u nap-
he private gardening experta flower shown'atHhe meetings of the Caledonian ' fpl thrr must' hare' their t.hare of the blooms
-lasses .'and raterprJsing nur-':.' Horticultural bonety." ' 4 ' - that-are roral: in' Japan.--' 'Bat.'with this dif
The earl Ut authentic record of the flower ference: abroad.
their- thee." : '-' ; -.' "-'--. ' ' - '
. - . So he hastened to, heap, before the picture
' all his-gold' and, for good measure according
pened abroad that the pooralwell as the rich '..to the ideas .of women, all au jewel, too. jjus
'Her-loter -'mourned, yet would not believe
nt. feel ;thf v t if f false' to; her promise. ; He grew lean and
'Japan.
the very
pea?
in th rnikxl State inwan'tA.U j iV.;, w,.,tt o. - thrv war.t . wan. . ihenV to cbeer him, the gardener- of hi
- the Acwiriglacd t armor of .November 26, them; , here, ur.l-a sotw apology .lor 1 a con
ben several Tarinfie wertf mfntioned a. having
lcn shown ire loiv tbe JJat achuvetta llortKau
tural Society. Tby- were . of .Fnglih -origin,
'a ; evidenced-' their -ram: tangled whit
Park's amall yHow;- (JnilM 'lnac'-gullU-d - whit
"and rbkn lotus.' "" , . . : ,,
'"""'It a. howe rrr.'.lh-late 'Tefef 'ITrn-Ur-n
who, in by: in.portirar d-nx-t "frnm Japan
some ct . tie t-t varittirs txif tirg t t,t
wrvatry tkr.g to the ijou-e, Mn. we
iin gice . reserved for wealth lone, . we go lout
and ray them, potted or cut. - '
- It i, however, only of late that American at
iro Lar attained tbe tsr" of arf rfCi,'ont
f. J.tl.e itnali mt iife -of fkill. in chryMnthe
rc.im, tVet r required to make thftn the
j atrona of tie 'rx.ted llcm. Thry S'tmeJ for-
1 rg time- to t ia ae-cf tLsw - v - - -
noble" father's estate .brought him, one day,
magnificent yellow cLrTsanithrmtim, round and
radiant as the golden sun itstlf.. . " . (
.Fetulant, tbe despairing lover flung it from
Mm. The flower fell bffore the picture, and
frth stTPed all liv and t loving the laly
f his longing, human for his embrace. "
That is tV Japanese legend of the chryian
tViemuJTi. Iut ii it ny more rl srniicg than
tbe real slcry of the cwer ittlf . .
i