MOSSES. 87 



alonsr with it the food of that useful animal, the 

 two constituting the sole verdure of the snowy regions. 

 I placed some specimens in my box, and proceeded on 

 my way. 



There is a Northern Hair- moss, (P. sexangulare, with 

 leaves turning inward at the point, and six-sided urns ; 

 and a Slender Hair-moss (P. gracile), with densely tufted 

 stems, and oval urn with indistinct angles ; and a Buff 

 fruited Hair-moss (P. formosum) scarcely at all branched, 

 and with a thick buff urn. We did not find any specimens 

 of these members of the family. The Bristle-leaved Hair 

 moss, we found on hills in Shropshire (P. piliferium), it is 

 characterised by sharp hair-like points at the end of the 

 leaves, the urns are long and square. The Juniper- 

 leaved species, with its slightly squared urns, and 

 glaucous foliage, was sent us from Blair Athole, (P. 

 juniperium.) 



The Timmia (T. austriaca) is a rare moss, about an 

 inch high, in form something like a Fox's brush ; we 

 have found no specimen. 



When wandering one damp February day in the 

 beautiful woods about Eoss in Herefordshire, I came 

 upon a block of red sandstone, forming a perfect nursery 

 ground for flowerless plants ; grotesque lichens were there 

 in several varieties, and infant ferns, and delicate liver- 

 worts ; but the plant most interesting to the subject 

 under consideration, was the Bud-headed thread m< 

 which covered large areas of the rock with soft green 

 crowded branches. What especially rivetted my attention 

 was a quantity of tiny knobs, like minute rounded pin's 

 heads, standing on short stems, all proceeding from the 



