THE THISTLE FAMILY. 



347 



nial, native of Britain, growing by roadsides and in waste 

 places, particularly in calcareous soils. It has a thick tap 

 root like a carrot, and produces branching stems, 2 to 3 feet 

 high, bearing pretty blue flowers. It is cultivated as a salad- 

 plant, the young leaves being blanched like endive, and in 

 this way is largely used in France ; but its chief importance 

 is from its root, which has come into repute for mixing with 

 coiFee for the purpose of imparting an agreeable flavour ; it 

 has slightly diuretic qualities. It is extensively cultivated 

 for this purpose, both in this country and on the continent, 

 from which latter place the best quality is imported. 



Endive (Cichorium endivia). Said to be a native of the 

 East Indies or China. It was introduced about three hundred 

 years ago ; it is in general cultivation as a winter salad plant. 

 There are several different varieties, the principal being the 

 broad-leaved and curled. 



Lettuce {Lactuca sativd). The native country of the garden 

 Lettuce is unknown, but it is generally supposed to be Asia. 

 It has been cultivated in this country for about three hundred 

 years. There are several varieties, of which the summer or 

 Cos Lettuce is the best known, and is supposed to have come 

 from the island of Cos (now modern Stencho), whence its 

 name. Their properties are narcotic ; the milky juice, which 

 abounds greatly in the wild species, L. virosa, a native of 

 this country, resembles opium in its properties. An extract 

 has of late years been prepared from L. sativa, which is used 

 medicinally, and is milder and not attended with such de- 

 pressing effects as opium. 



Dandelion (Leontodon taraxacum). This well-known plant 

 is a native throughout Europe, Northern Asia, and Africa, 

 and possesses great powers of reproduction by its roots, as 

 also by its numerous seeds being wafted by the wind to new 

 localities, where they grow readily, especially in fields and 

 waste places. It takes its name from the French dent, a 

 tooth, and leon, a lion, the gashes of the leaf resembling large 

 teeth like lion's teeth. The roots are extensively used in 

 medicine, being tonic and powerfully diuretic ; it is also used 



