MOSSES AND LIVERWORTS. 255 



Die Kargen Wasserfasser 

 Moos welkt im Glase Wasser, 

 Die Blatter sind die Leiter, 

 Und aussen geht es weiter. 



Though as Goebel very truly says they are schauder 

 halfist considered as verses, yet they are none the less 

 a true description of the way in which water ascends. 



Even in cases like Sphagnum, where there is a sort of 

 water conduction in the stem, the tissues are only on 

 the outside, and consist simply of large empty cells with 

 pores to allow the water to enter, and strengthening 

 bands to give these cistern-cells rigidity enough to 

 uphold it. 



The life-history of a moss or liverwort is quite un- 

 like that of any other plant. The moss with its leaves 

 and stems absorbs water and mineral matters by 

 means of rhizoids which in their action resemble 

 root-hairs. It has no real roots. Most of the water 

 and mineral salts necessary for its existence is prob- 

 ably obtained from the rain, which has always dust 

 particles in solution, though the rhizoids also absorb 

 food material. The sexual organs are the male ''a^ithe- 

 ridia " and female " archegonia'' which are found either 

 clustered together near the top of the stem or arranged 

 along the branches. The male organs are generally 

 pillow-shaped, stalked sacks containing many male 

 sperniatozoids. They open at the top, through the cells 

 in this part of the antheridium^ becoming gelatinous. 

 The spermatozoids swim in the film of water covering 

 the moss by means of their two actively lashing cilia, and 

 seek out the female organ, or archegonium. This is a 

 shortly stalked, rounded body with a relatively long 

 neck. The female or ^^^ cell is found in the base of 

 the archegonium, and above is a chain of disorganized 



