* * * * * * * *
Then the bark increased,
Closed in their faces, and their words suppressed.
The new-made trees in tears of Amber run,
Which, hardened into value by the sun,
Distil for ever on the streams below;
The limpid streams their radiant treasure show,
Mixed in the sand; whence the rich drops conveyed
Shine in the dress of the bright Latian maid.”—Addison.
The species of Poplar into which the Heliades were transformed was the Black Poplar (Populus nigra). This Poplar was consecrated to the goddess Proserpine. The White Poplar was considered to be an antidote to the bite of a serpent, and was dedicated to Hercules, who sometimes wore a crown of Poplar-leaves. When the demi-god destroyed Cacus in a cavern on Mount Aventine, which was covered with Poplars, he bound a branch of one round his brow in token of his victory. On his return from Hades, he wore a crown of Poplar-leaves, the outer portions of which were turned black by the smoke of the infernal regions, whilst the inner surface was blanched by the perspiration from the hero’s brow. At all ceremonies and sacrifices to Hercules, his worshippers wore garlands of Poplar-leaves, as did those who had triumphed in battle, in commemoration of the demi-god’s victory. Groves of Poplar-trees were frequently planted and dedicated to Hercules.——The White Poplar was also dedicated to Time, because its leaves were constantly in motion, and, being dark on one side and light on the other, they were emblematic of night and day.——Of the wood of this tree the Romans made bucklers, on account of its lightness, and covered them with ox-hides: hence, Pliny says, Populus apta scutis.——The prophet Hosea is thought to have referred to the White Poplar when he accused the Children of Israel of sacrificing and burning incense under Poplars “because the shadow thereof is good” (Hosea iv.)——The similarity of sound, in Latin and French, between the words for “Poplar” and “People” seems to be the reason which has led to the tree being regarded as a republican emblem. In the French Revolution of 1848, Poplars were transplanted from gardens, and set up in the squares of Paris, where they were glorified as Trees of Liberty, and hung with wreaths of Everlasting Flowers. Napoleon III. had them all uprooted and burnt.——Under the head of Aspen will be found several legends respecting the quivering foliage of the Populus tremula—the “Quiggen-epsy” of the good folk of Ulster. Mrs. Hemans, in her ‘Wood Walk,’ thus alludes to one of these old traditions, in which the Cross of Christ is represented as having been made of the wood of this species of Poplar:—