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Gen. Char.

COMMON MALLOW.

Order VII.

POLYANDRIA.

Calyx double; outer three-leaved. Capsules many,

united in a depressed whorl, one-celled, one-seeded.

Spe. Char. Stem prostrate. Leaves cordale, orbiculate, five-lobed. Peduncle declining.

"The root of the Malva Sylvestris is perennial, thick, long, whitish, and furnished with many strong fibres; the stem is erect, round, strong, hairy, branched, and rises from one to three feet in height; the leaves are numerous, roundish, and divided into five or seven lobes, unequally serrated or notched at the edges, and stand upon long, round, hairy footstalks; the two stipules are placed at the base of each footstalk; the flowers are large, consisting of five petals, which are inversely heart-shaped, sinuated at the apex, and of a purple color, painted with veins of a deeper hue, and stand upon slender pe duncles, which proceed from the bottom of the leaf-stalk; the calyx is double, the outer being composed of three, and the inner of five oval, pointed, hairy segments; the stamens are numerous, united at the base in a cylindrical form, above separate, bending downwards, and furnished with kidney-shaped anthers; the germen is roundish; the style is cylindrical, short, and furnished with many filiform stigmas; the seeds are numerous, of a kidney shape, and covered with a coat or arillus, which opens inwardly."-Woodv. Med. Bot., p. 554.

This species of Mallow is a native of England, where it grows in

abundance on waste lands and by the side of roads, flowering from May till August. It is sometimes cultivated in our gardens for medicinal purposes.

Medical Properties and Uses. Mallow is emollient and demulcent. The infusion and decoction are sometimes employed in catarrhal, dysenteric, and nephritic complaints; and are applicable to all other cases which call for the use of mucilaginous liquids. Several varieties are introduced into medical practice, all possessing nearly the same properties-Malva Rotundifolia, Dwarf Mallow, Malva Sylvestris, Common Mallow, Althea Officinalis, Marsh Mallow. The last of these abounds with a mucilaginous matter, without smell or taste; the root contains the greatest proportion of this mucilage, from which alone it is extracted for medicinal purposes. By boiling the sliced roots in water the whole of the mucilaginous parts may be extracted; this is the chief preparation derived from the root. The herb and flowers, which are the parts directed for use, have a weak, herbaceous, slimy taste, without odor. They abound in mucilage, which they readily impart to water, and the solution is precipitated by acetate of lead. The infusion and tincture of the flowers are blue, and serve as a test of acids and alkalies, being reddened by the former, and rendered green by the latter. The roots and seeds are also mucilaginous.

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