Myrrha

“ She shall die for it! God, whose stars
Are vermin, she shall die!
Myrrha. O!
Arduin (frenziedly) . Die, die, die!
As trustless women should: until no womb
Of lies is left in the world! Die, and be shut
Again into the curst sarcophagus
From whence I brought her ...
Myrrha (in his grasp) . Sir!—help!—sir! do not!
O, I will love you! [48]
Arduin. ”

“ He continues that “the name Myrrhus is also called Myrrha, taken from his pleasant flavour of Myrrh.” Sweet Cicely has a very pleasant flavour, with this peculiarity, that the leaves taste exactly as if sugar had just been powdered over them, but personally I have never been able to recognise [90] myrrh in it. It is a pretty plant, with “divers great and fair spread wing leaves, very like and resembling the leaves of Hemlocke... but of sweet pleasant and spice-hot taste. Put among herbes in a sallet it addeth a marvellous good rellish to all the rest. ”

“ Through the open window came the echo of the Bacchic songs of the friends of Anatolius, making merry in their purple galleys on the blue twilight sea.
Myrrha pointed to them—
"And that is also beautiful, and that is also to be blest," she murmured.
"What? These vicious songs?" asked Juventinus, dreading her reply.
Myrrha shook her head—
"No! all is well, all is pure. Beauty comes from God. Friend, what are you afraid of? To love, one must 191 be unspeakably free!... Fear absolutely nothing. You are still ignorant what happiness life can give!" ”

“ He pours the ingredients, and quickly fumes arise. They clear and a liquid is seen in the bottom of the glass. With a cry he starts toward the sarcophagus, when Myrrha's face—which, excited, has parted the curtains—stops him enspelled. Rhasis, unnerved, quits the room—leaving them agaze. ”

“ The character of Myrrha, which bears some resemblance to Aspasia, "a native of Phocea in Ionia—the favourite mistress of Cyrus" (see Plutarch's Artaxerxes, Langhorne's Translation, 1838, p. 699) , was introduced partly to pacify the Countess Guiccioli, who had quarrelled with him for maintaining that "love was not the loftiest theme for true tragedy," and, in part, to prove that he was not a slave to his own ideals, and could imagine and delineate a woman who was both passionate and high-minded. ”

“ Der Stengel ist etwas hohl, sehr fest, so dass viel Kraft dazu gehört, ihn zu zerreissen. Es wächst an sumpfigen Stellen. Wird dasselbe allein oder auch getrocknet mit Essig als Umschlag aufgelegt, so schützt es die frischen Wunden vor Entzündung. Es wird auch bei hohem Sturz mit Wasser und Salz getrunken.
Körbel Die Myrrhis - Einige nennen sie Myrrha, Andere Konile - gleicht an Stengel und Blättern dem Schierling. Sie hat eine längliche, zarte, runde, wohlriechende, süss schmeckende Wurzel. ”

“ When broken, they exhibit a rough or waxy fracture, having a moist and unctuous appearance, especially when pressed, and a rich brown hue. The fractured, translucent surface often displays characteristic whitish marks which the ancients compared to the light mark at the base of the finger-nails. Myrrh has a peculiar and agreeable fragrance with an aromatic, bitter, and acrid taste. It cannot be finely powdered until deprived by drying of some of its essential oil and water; nor when heated does it melt like colophony. ”

“ According to some authors, myrrh528 is the produce of a tree that grows in the same forests as the incense-tree, though most say that they grow in different places: but the fact is that myrrh grows in many parts of Arabia, as will be seen when we come to speak of the several varieties of it. A sort that is highly esteemed is brought from the islands529 also, and the Sabæi even cross the sea to procure it in the country of the Troglodytæ. It is grown also by being transplanted, and when thus cultivated is greatly preferred to that which is grown in the forests. ”

“ He collects a quantity of myrrh, and to try his strength makes frequent excursions with a load on his back. When he has gained sufficient confidence in his own vigor, he takes up the body of his father and flies with it to the altar of the Sun, where he leaves it to be consumed in flames of fragrance.” Other writers add a few particulars. The myrrh is compacted in the form of an egg, in which the dead Phœnix is enclosed. From the mouldering flesh of the dead bird a worm springs, and this worm, when grown large, is transformed into a bird. ”

“ I know that many a time thou hast refused to join thy young friends in their merry-making, solely that thou mightest be with me, thy stupid, dull old father. But this cannot be always, Myrrah, for I am old, and my Master will call me hence while thou art yet young.”
“Father! father!” Myrrah exclaimed, “do not speak so! God will not take thee from me. He will not leave me alone!”
“Not alone, Myrrah, darling, I trust Thou hast not surely forgotten Othniel? I would that he were here to day with us. He wanders long.” ”

“ Miles mentions [585] that myrrh, called there hodthai, is only used in the Somali country, by men to whiten their shields (by means of an emulsion made with the drug) , by women to cleanse their hair. Probably hodthai and habaghadi is one and the same thing.
Bissa Bôl differs from myrrh in its stronger, almost acrid taste and in odour, which, when once familiar is easily recognizable; fine specimens of the former have the outward characters of myrrh and perhaps are often passed off for it. ”

“ A light breeze swept from the sea over the old town, wafting onward the fragrance of the blossoming trees and plants, which filled the air with their rich perfume. The sun rose in splendor, and the brightness which, as the smile of heaven spread over the earth, increased the light-heartedness of the young Jewess, as she moved on so soberly, so cheerfully, and with so much dignity of manner, with her father.
It was a pleasant home to which they were returning. A home of peace, and joy, and love, and Myrrah was its bright and never-failing star. ”

“ Myra always maintains that she never gave the Witch permission to take the moth; but, as she spoke, they both vanished, and Myra only saw the drawer with the big gap in its row of moths where the death's-head had been, and the Memory-Saver grinning ecstatically at her from the window-sill. Poor little fellow; he was so glad to get away from the Witch's pocket. ”

“ The odour and taste are those of the ordinary drug. Pieces of a semi-transparent papery bark are attached to some of the lumps. We extracted the resin of a sample of this myrrh from the territory of the Fadhli, as sent to us by Captain Hunter. Its solution in bisulphide of carbon or petroleum ether was coloured by bromine as stated above, (p. 144) with regard to typical myrrh (Heerabol) from the Somali Country. The name applies to myrrh from the vicinity of Ras Morbat in the same region. ”

“ In the previous article we have pointed out (p. 137) several early references to myrrh in connection with olibanum, in which it is observable that the myrrh (when weights are mentioned) is always in the smaller quantity. Of the use of the drug in mediæval Europe there are few notices, but they tend to show that the commodity was rare and precious. This myrrh is recommended in the Anglo-Saxon Leech-books [556] to be used with frankincense in the superstitious medical practice of the 11th century. ”

“ Myra gazed at him horrified. What could she do to revive him? She turned him over and fanned him with a dock-leaf, but he only gasped. Then she tried the effect of a little geography, but the result was disastrous; as fast as it entered the poor little imp, it oozed out again all over him, and he turned almost green with pain.
"Why are you tormenting my offspring?" said a sharp, angry voice at Myra's elbow. "Leave him alone, or give him to me; I'm hungry!"
It was Myra's turn to gasp now; the Black Cock had never spoken to her before, and she did not even know he could talk. ”

“ The warm glow of her affectionate nature broke through every feature like flame hidden in the heart of a pearl. Her cheek, her mouth, her white forehead were full of animation; her brown eyes sparkled with delight. With her whole being she loved the man whom she believed to be her father, and for the gentle woman who stood gazing upon her with so much affection as her toilet was completed, Myra’s devotion was almost more than the natural love of a child for its mother. Scarcely a minute elapsed before the young girl was ready to go down. ”

“ At last he spoke in a low and troubled voice, kissing the forehead of the child:
“Myra, do you love me?”
“Indeed, indeed I do,” said the little girl, laying her cheek to his. “Better almost than anybody else in the wide world, if you are only my godfather.”
“And whom—” here Mr. Clark’s voice faltered—“and whom can you love better, Myra?”
“Oh,” said the child, shaking her head with a pretty mysterious air, “there is somebody that I love so much, a pretty, beautiful lady, who comes to me so often, and so strangely, just like one of the fairies nurse tells me about. ”

“ Myra is Venus, and Diana too;
All that was feign'd of them, apply'd to her, is true:
Then sing, my Muse, let Myra be our Theme.
As when the Shepherds wou'd a Garland make,
They search with Pains the fragrant Meadows round,
Plucking but here and there, and only take
The sweetest Flowers, with which some Nymph is crown'd:
In framing Myra so divinely fair,
Nature has taken the same Care,
All that is lovely, noble, good, we see,
All, beauteous Myra, all bound up in thee. ”

“ Every spire of grass bent as if with the weight of a diamond at its point. The vines and creeping shrubs that grew along the fences seemed blossoming with gems, so thick were the water-drops among their leaves; so bright were the sunbeams that kindled them into beauty. The atmosphere was full of cool, rich fragrance, and every gush of air, as it swept through the ponderous vehicle that bore Myra from her home, was delicious to breathe. ”

“ But this was far away from Jamestown, where Myron lived and suffered. That winter was a very busy one for her. Tender of touch, strong of arm, brave of heart, she was an ideal nurse. It is said a great grief has before now made a poet out of what was only a man. Myron's sorrows had changed her from a commonplace woman to a creature of most subtle sympathies. The pleading of pained eyes was eloquent to her, and the curves of dumb lips told her the tale of their sufferings. ”

“ Folkard.
There is a belief in the West Country that no girl who is destined to be an old maid, can make a myrtle grow. Mr Friend does not mention this, but he does tell us that a flowering myrtle is one of the luckiest plants to have, and it is often difficult to grow; and he generously presents us with the receipt that he had heard given to make sure of its flowering. The secret is, while setting the slip, to spread the tail of one’s dress, and look proud!
To transplant Parsley is very unlucky, and to let Rhubarb run to seed will bring death into the family before a year is out. ”

“ Myrrhina. Tell me more about the beautiful young hermit. Talk to me about the beautiful young hermit who will not look on the face of woman. What is the story of his days? What mode of life has he?
First Man. We do not understand you.
Myrrhina. What does he do, the beautiful young hermit? Does he sow or reap? Does he plant a garden or catch fish in a net? Does he weave linen on a loom? Does he set his hand to the wooden plough and walk behind the oxen?
Second Man. He being a very holy man does nothing. We are common men and of no account. We toll all day long in the sun. ”

“ A deep blush was the only answer returned to the gently uttered question—for Myrrah turned all her attention just then to busily assisting the old man down the steep stairway, and the moment after they entered, arm in arm, the quiet street; then, as if fearing a recurrence to the subject of her dream and presentiment, the daughter hurriedly again expressed her fears lest the morning exercise should prove too much for his feeble health. ”

“ Simmer! simmer! simmer!
When the Tempter is weak beside Goodness and Grace,
And the Wrong is atoned in the very same place,
Then shall Happiness fall upon Morven's dark race.
How comes Sir Bertram here at such a time?
And has his walk dispelled his phantasies?
Through the crisp night-air faintly booms a bell;
"'Tis from the castle. There is Myra's well!
Eleven o'clock—and still a mile from home!
And there is Elpsie's hut! What did she mean?"
And as he notes the dull outpouring light
The cranny grows more bright, and larger seems! ”

“ The moonlight was not more clear and untouched of baleful fire than Myra's sweet eyes looking up at him, and now he was walking the wet pavement of the great metropolis, with the clang and grind of cars all about him, on his way to meet a woman whose life was spent in simulating acts as destructive as Myra's had been serene and trustful. At the moment he saw his own life as a thread in some mysterious drama. ”

“ That is why in these countries, we ab initio use these myrtles that are imported and do not have three leaves from one node. There is one who says that our myrtles are not considered wild myrtle because they are two by two and are not like the wild myrtle in the Gemara. ”

“ Myra lay in a crumpled heap, her face upturned, open-eyed, expressionless, as if death had either caught her in a moment of impassivity or with his clammy hands had forever wiped out all expression from her features. ”

“ Myrma the fairy opened her mouth, and the sound she made was exactly the little song of a brook, and it seemed to come from the brook itself. She stopped, and the brook was silent again.
“It’s terribly tiresome,” said Myrma, “but I only have to do it when there’s somebody around to hear it. You don’t think the brook sings all the time, do you?”
“I didn’t know,” said Merrimeg.
“When there’s nobody to hear it, what’s the use? But I’m supposed to keep it up as long as there’s anybody around. Oh, dear, I get so [144] tired hiding away behind the waterfall when people come. ”