MINIATURE MALLOW 



Jlniva Crctaiia. 



-'Garden mallows afford us sug- 

 gestion of the place that many 

 mallow-worts occupy in the 

 world of art. They are at once 

 peculiar and beautiful, but 

 they make no special appeal 

 to us until we follow the good 

 old plan of taking some know- 

 ledge to school with a view to 

 add to its store, for such as 

 go empty are but too likely to 

 come empty away. We have 

 but few garden mallows ; and 

 we may venture to add that the 

 world has not very many. But 

 a certain proportion of them 

 are of great impiortance to the 

 human race. The marsh-mallow 

 {Aithaa officinalis) is known to be emollient and demul- 

 cent, but it is not known as an article of food in this 

 country, although in the East it is commonly eaten, and 

 is much valued. The common hollyhock i^Althaa roaea) 

 is known for its beauty, but it is of importance as a plant 

 yielding an abundance of fibre and a blue dye equal in 



