158 THE POETRY OF FLOWERS 
MILD, OR SWEET DISPOSITION. 
MALLOW. 
Who cut up mallows by the bushes, and juniper-roots for their meat. 
Job xxx. 4 
From the above passage we learn that the mallow was used 
for food by those nomadic tribes who have always pitched 
their tents in the desert in preference to dwelling in fixed habi¬ 
tations, where it would have been their duty to cultivate the 
earth in order to multiply the benefits of nature. 
This plant was also eaten, boiled, by the Greeks and Romans, 
and in salads, with lettuce and other vegetables ; it is still used 
by the Chinese and the Egyptians. 
It grows, naturally, by the rivulet’s side; and is of easy cul¬ 
ture in any common garden soil. Its appearance is graceful 
and pleasing ; and its rose-coloured flowers harmonize tvith its 
leaves and branches, the whole plant being covered with a sil¬ 
ver-coloured silky down. It is equally agreeable to the sight as 
to the touch. Its flowers, its stalks, its leaves, and its roots, 
are all useful. We procure from them various juices, sirups, 
pastilles, and pastes, alike beneficial to health, and agreeable to 
the palate. The Romans used it on account of its medicinal 
qualities. 
And on that cheek and o’er that brow 
!?o soft, so calm, yet eloquent, 
The smiles that win — the teints that glow — 
But tell of days in goodness spent — 
A mind at peace with all below, 
A heart, whose love is innocent. 
Byron. 
