You have chosen a gift which is at once the simplest and the rarest of all.

High on he roof of the palace, the prince has caused to be built a house of glass., where a hypocaust maintains a climate of spring throughout the winter's cold. Here in great pots of clay, the roses of the gardens of Mieza bloom amidst the snows of winter.

That which is a simple thing at one time may become the dearest of objects at another. Wear this garland of spring roses when you leave the palace and the tale shall at once, begin to spread throughout Hellas. In a week, strong armed rowers shall speak of you in the tavernas of Brindisium. Your name shall be spoken in the great houses of Rome. Within a year, you shall be known throughout the world.

The gold and jewels the others have chosen shall pass through their hands. Your gift shall remain past your time for it is not the roses which I give to you, It is the gift of fame which endures for many years after the roses in the snow have passed away.