But notwithstanding the fact that the plant is held sacred, many of the Chinese cultivate it for sale. The fragrant blossoms reach a diameter of ten inches, and find ready purchasers. The seeds are used as an article of food; sometimes eaten raw, sometimes ground and made into cakes.
The fleshy stems are used as a vegetable, while the fibres of the leaf-stalks serve for lamp-wicks.
The ancient Egyptians used to inclose the seeds in balls of clay or mud and cast them into the Nile, and in due season the plant appeared, followed by buds, flowers and seeds. Does that make you think of a Bible verse?
ON THE NILE.
In Siam the lotus lilies grow in great profusion, and one may sail for miles along the rivers through flooded fields covered with the lotus blossoms, which the natives are gathering for market.
Then there are the royal lotus gardens of Bangkok. These are several miles from the king’s palace. There is a carriage road leading out from the city, and these gardens are a famous place for picnics. At the grand funeral ceremonies of the Queen of Siam, one of the companies which walked in the procession carried tridents, the triple tips of which were each crowned with the white lotus. Every year thousands of real and artificial lilies are floated on the rivers and sea as offerings of the water spirits.
They are launched at night, with little wax tapers burning, and they are loaded with offerings to the gods.
Many beautiful fancies cluster about the lotus, and many songs have been written, which you may appreciate the more if you happen upon them, for knowing something about the beautiful fragrant flower “trembling on the crystal tide.”
