[E249] "Lillium cum vallium," the "Lily of the Valley," in Lyte Lyllie Conuall, and also termed May Blossoms, May Lyllies, and Lyryconfancy.
[E250] "Nigella Romana." The Nigella Damascena, Linn., a favourite old-fashioned garden annual, still to be met with in gardens under the names of "Love-in-a-mist," or "Devil-in-a-bush."
[E251] "Pansy," or Paunce, Fr. pensée, thought. According to Dr. Johnson the name is derived from Lat. panacea, but there is no evidence of the plant ever having been so called, or having been regarded as a panacea. It has received more popular names perhaps than any other plant, both in our own and in foreign languages. The following are some of the quaint titles given to it: "Cull me to you," or "Cuddle me to you," "Love and Idle," "Live in Idleness," "Love in Idleness" (originally "Love in idle," i.e. in vain); "Love in idle Pances," "Tittle my fancy," "Kiss me, ere I rise," "Jump up and kiss me," "Kiss me at the garden gate," "Pink of my John," "Herb Trinity," and "Three faces under one hood," from the three colours combined in one flower. It was also called "Hearts-ease," and "Flame flower" (M. Lat. Viola flammea).
Heartsease, a term meaning "a cordial," as in Sir W. Scott's Antiquary, ch. xi., "Buy a dram to be eilding and claise, and a supper and hearts-ease into the bargain," given to certain plants supposed to be cardiac: at present [applied] to the pansy alone, but by Lyte, Bulleyn, and W. Turner, to the Wallflower equally.—Dr. R. A. Prior's Popular Names of British Plants, which see for an account of the origin of the name.
[E252] "Sops-in-Wine," the Clove Gilliflower, Dianthus caryophyllus, L., so called from the flowers being used to flavour wine or ale. Cf. Chaucer's Rime of Sir Thopas, B. 1950:
"Ther springen herbes grete and smale,
The lycorys and cetewale,
And many a clowe gilofre,
And notemuge to putte in ale,
Whether it be moyste or stale."
"Bring Coronations and Sops in wine worne of Paramoures."
—-Spenser, Shep. Cal. April.
"Garlands of Roses and Sopps in Wine."—Ibid. May. E. K., in his Glossary, says: "Sops in Wine, a flowre in colour much like a coronation (carnation), but differing in smel and quantitye."
[E253] "Sweete Williams,"from Fr. œillet, Lat. ocellus, a little eye, corrupted to Willy, and thence to William, "in reference, perhaps, to a popular ballad, 'Fair Margaret and Sweet William,' [printed in Ritson's Early Songs and Ballads, ed. Hazlitt, 1877] a name assigned by W. Bulleyn (f. 48) to the Wallflower, but by later herbalists and modern gardeners, as here, to a species of pink, Dianthus barbatus, Linn. According to an article in the Quarterly Review (No. 227), it formerly bore the name of 'Sweet Saint William'; but the writer gives no reference, and probably had no authority for saying so."—Dr. R. A. Prior, pp. 228 and 250.