48 



FAMILIAR GARDEN FLOWERS. 



fibre ; and during the Lancashire cotton famine the abu- 

 tilons were made note of as possibly capable of helping 

 us out of a difficulty. The cotton-plant {gvit-y/jjinni) is a 

 mallow^ and not very far removed in relationship from the 

 plants now before us. Amongst the abutilons occurs one 

 edible specieSj A. esculentmii. In E-io Janeiro it is known 

 AS " Bencao de Deos." It is not the fruit but the flower 

 that is eaten, and it is a somewhat common article of food 

 with the people of Rio. 



