April 25.] 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
“ Then sitting down, when school was o’er, 
Upon the threshold of the door, 
Picking from mallows, sport to please, 
The crumpled seed we call a cheese.” 
The emollient properties which all parts of the plant, and 
particularly the root, possess have raised it high in the 
esteem of our predecessors. They used a decoction of it tor 
the cure of nearly every form of inflammation, whether 
external or internal. It is of considerable efficacy in any 
irritation of the throat or the alimentary canal, as well as for 
bringing forward any tumours or swellings. The French, at 
present, use it to a much greater extent than we do: with 
them it is a favourite poultice ; while we commonly use it as 
a fomentation. The common mallow is a most useful sub- 
I stitute for those who cannot procure the marsh mallow; but 
j the latter possesses the properties of the former to a greater 
extent, and is therefore more generally used. 
Marsh Mallow ( Allhtea. officinalis), —Like the plant last 
described, the marsh mallow yields from the whole herb, 
but especially from the roots, a plentiful, tasteless mucilage, 
which is salutary in most cases of irritation. That well 
known French lozenge, the Fate de guimauve, is a prepara¬ 
tion made from this plant; and is a very effectual remedy 
for coughs, hoarseness, or sore throats. Our less civilized 
progenitors used an equally efficacious, though ruder form, 
of prescription : they boiled the roots hi water, with a little 
honey, or else in milk, and drank the beverage. 
In diarrhoea, and other diseases where there is much irri¬ 
tation and inflammation, from one to three pints of the 
decoction may be taken daily with great benefit. Wounds 
and bruises are often treated with advantage with this fluid 
as a fomentation; and the juice of the plant, with linseed 
meal, makes an excellent poultice. 
Hypkrutxel.—A lthough no wild or cultivated species of 
the order Hypericineas are now used in medicine, by regular 
practitioners, yet there are three native English species 
which have long been accounted specifics in certain diseases, 
and these I propose to speak of. 
The order contains no very remarkable plants. They all 
possess an abundance of a yellow juice, which resembles 
gamboge, and is slightly purgative. Most of them are bitter, 
and somewhat astringent, whence they have been used ns 
febrifuges. The bright yellow blooms of various species of 
ITypericum, or St. John’s Wort, are common ornaments to 
our roads and hedges ; the fine golden colour of one kind, 
tinged, as it is, with red (Hypericum, pulcUrum), makes it a 
very striking object; and so numerous are the flowers upon 
a single stalk, that the poet Cowper has well spoken ot it as 
“ all bloom ; so thick a swarm 
Of flowers, like flies, clothing its slender rods, 
That scarce a leaf appears.” 
Tutsan, on Park Leaves (Hypericum Androsamum). — 
The tutsan is the largest-leaved of any of our species of 
Hypericum, and is to be met with in the moist woods of 
some parts of England, though not very plentifully. It is, 
however, a very common plant in gardens, where its solid 
leaves and fine orange blooms render it a desirable and 
showy tenant. 
It derives its former English name from a barbarous cor¬ 
ruption of the French la toute saine —the leaves being for¬ 
merly much used for fresh cuts or wounds. Its specific 
name is a compound of two (Ireek words, signifying man's 
blotul —from the claret-coloured juice which the. leaves give 
when squeezed ; their scent then is very aromatic. This 
juice is said to possess tonic and astringent properties ; but 
its application to the cure of wounds is the only use which I 
have ever made of it, and in this it is very serviceable. 
St. Peter's Wort ( Hypericum quadrangulare), St. 
John’s Wort (Hypericum perforatum). —The medical pro¬ 
perties of these two plants are so little different, that they 
may be used indiscriminately for the purposes for which 
they may be required. As yet, however, it is not well known 
how they act upon the human system, and on this account 
I have been loath to experiment with them. Their taste is 
astringent and bitter, and hence they are probably tonic. 
They have been found beneficial in some inflammatory 
diseases of the kidneys, and have even been accounted as 
febrifuges ; these, and some other testimonies to their vir¬ 
tues, would seem to entitle them to further trials. 
To these plants some small interest attaches, from the 
superstitious notions which were formerly connected with 
them. A very discursive writer, about 100 years ago, in 
giving an account of different plants thus speaks of these : 
“ If superstition had not been the father of tradition, as well 
as ignorance the mother of devotion, these herbs had found 
some other names to be known by; but we may say of our 
forefathers as St. Paul did of the Athenians—“I perceive 
in many things that ye are. too superstitious.” The St. 
Peter’s Wort lisetli up greater and higher than the St. John's 
Wort; and good reason too—St. Peter being the greater I 
apostle (ask the Pope else!); for though God would have 
the saints equal, the Pope is of another opinion.” The 
common people in France and Germany gather the St. 
John’s Wort with great ceremony on St. John's day, and 
hang it up in their windows as a charm against storms, 
thunder, and evil spirits. It was also formerly earned about 
by the people of Scotland as a charm against witchcraft and 
enchantment; and in some parts they still believe that ropy 
milk—which they suppose to be under some malignant, 
influence—can be cured by being milked afresh upon the 
herb. Both species are common in Britain. 
THE HOUSEWIFE. 
On seeing a new seiies of papers commenced, the readers 
of The Cottage Gardener will naturally inquire, “ What 
anil to expect from them ? " “ On what subjects are they 
to treat ? ” “ What class of readers are they designed for ? ' 
I will, therefore, commence by explaining my wishes, and 
answering these questions. In the first place, the class of i 
readers whose attention I hope to enlist, whose welfare 1 
have at heart, and to whom I hope to be of some little assist 
ance, are the wives and daughters of men in the middle and 
lower ranks of life. Women who work and labour during 
the day, perhaps not actually in gaining their daily bread, 
but in those offices which, although they do not bring money 
in, prevent its being wasted by having a needless number of 
servants to perform duties which every sensible person in | 
that rank of life has a pleasure in undertaking. The subjects j 
on which I intend touching are numerous, including various 
arts, which, if properly understood, would make a small 
income appeal’ a tolerable one, by the air of comfort which 
would pervade the household where such arts were prac¬ 
tised. Occasionally, I hope to treat on the management of 
a dairy, the cow-slied, pig-stye, and hen-roost, as well as on 
the more sedentary occupations, such as “making and mend¬ 
ing.” I trust, also, whilst pointing out the necessity of at¬ 
tending carefully to our earthly duties, I may be the humble 
means of reminding you that "this world is not our “ abiding 
city,” that it is not our home, but that we are placed here to 
prepare us for that kingdom which has been promised to 
those who glorify their heavenly Father—“ Whatsoever we 
do, let us do all to the glory of God.” And let us all remem¬ 
ber, that whether we read or whether we write, a day is fast 
approaching (to many of us how very near!) when we shall 
have to give an account for every idle word, and each mis- | 
pent hour. Let us, therefore, work whilst it is called to-day. i 
Let us remember, also, this precept, “ Whatsoever thy hand j 
findeth to do, do it with all thy might.” This shews us that I 
whatever we undertake should be done thoroughly— “ 11 a J 
thing is worth doing at all, it is worth doing it well. No ; 
pains should be spared, no trouble grudged, which will help ; 
to make the earnings of the husband or father last as long j 
as possible. 
The past winter has been a trying one both for farmers 
and labourers, but I hope many a heart has been cheered 
and “ kept up ” by the energy and forethought displayed by 
the manager of the household. A busy and, I hope, a better 
time is fast approaching, and the privations which many, I 
fear, have been forced to undergo, will be forgotten amidst 
the happiness and bustle of full employment. Let the wife 
of the labourer carefully save every penny that is not abso¬ 
lutely required for the daily wants of the family. In many 
■ villages a club is established, into which the poor can put a 
penny or twopence a week. At Christmas the savings are 
given out, and some money added to each member’s sub¬ 
scription. This is an excellent arrangement for we all 
know how difficult it is to save any money the poor espe¬ 
cially feel this. How often after a little hoard has been 
| made does it disappear in a glass or two of “ something j 
