I have never seen in print the story or legend the Chinese have about their national flower, "Twe dan Fa," a variety of Polyanthus Narcissus, which blooms at their New Year, in February. A man died and left two sons. To one he left all his good fertile land and house; to the other he left nothing but a little piece of poor, stony, wet ground, that no rice or anything else would grow on. He was in distress, and had nothing to eat, so his god took pity on him, and one morning he looked, and the ground among the stones was covered with beautiful white flowers, and the god told him to care for them and sell the plants to buy food. So he prospered and became richer than the other brother, and his ground was the only place the flowers could be had."

There is a double form of the flower, and they (the Chinese) consider it fortunate for the flower to be double. Last year my Chinese cook brought me three fine bulbs - they come in clay. A friend's cook had given her some, and the first one to bloom for her was partially double, and the first one of mine was single. My cook was quite annoyed, but my others were double - one like a small rose, with nine large trusses on one cluster of bulbs. He was quite pleased, as he said it was "good too me; you sabe good, good; heap plenty to you." Another time the same cook gave me some, and I had one bloom in January. He went off when he saw it in bloom to keep his New Year. He came back in a day or so, and when he came into the house he went to where the flower was and said to it: "You heap cheatee me; you no sabe anything;" they use the Spanish sabe for know. It had bloomed too soon.

[The Chinese read from the top down. The three characters are the Chinese words. - Ed. G. M.]