LICHENS 



It was said that a person l)itten by a mad dog could 

 be cured by the use of this plant. 



A black, leatherlike lichen with l^lack spots scat- 

 tered over its surface is often found fastened Ijy strong, 

 short fibers to rocks on the mountains. This is the 

 rock tripe. In the arctic region it covers the surface of 

 every rock with a dark, gloomy growth. These are bit- 

 ter lichens, yet they have kept alive hunters and ex- 

 plorers when no other 

 food could be found. 



To the ParmeUa 

 family belong some of 

 our most common 

 leafy lichens. They 

 are sometimes called 

 leaf lichens or Shield- 

 edge hchcns. The 

 common yellow wall moss is one of these that is 

 abundant. It grows almost everywhere on rocks, 

 trees, and walls. It is often seen with much fruit on 

 roadside walls and fences. 



A Uchen sometimes called beard moss, is found in 

 great quantities hanging from trees in the northern 

 part of North America. Longfellow compares trees 

 covered with it to old men ''with beards that rest on 

 their l)osoms." Another form is found along the coast 

 of California, where the oak trees are often co^Tred 

 with festoons several yards long. These hanging 



130 



Rock Tripe. 



