200 JSotan^ 



urn's top. These teeth rise and allow spores to 

 escape in dry weather only. The moss family is 

 varied and numerous; in temperate zones usually 

 only the smaller members appear. Some of these 

 are almost too minute to be seen with unaided eyes. 



The beds of ground-pine are a depth of verdure ; 

 we can gather long streamers of it for our Christmas 

 wreaths. Ground-pine, which is not a pine at all, 

 looks like fern, and is not a fern. AMiat is it then ? 

 A club-moss, a lycopodium. Its vivid green in the 

 winter woods will remain upon it for weeks after it 

 is gathered, and then it will fade to a beautiful 

 brown with tawny or dull golden edges. 



Most of the ferns have withered to the under- 

 ground stems in this December weather. The winter 

 fern, with its stiff serrated fronds, lifts stoutly above 

 the snow; in some of the most sheltered places 

 walking-fern, shield-fern, bracken, and lately-opened 

 fronds of basket-fern, still linger. 



The checkerberry or Avintergreen, and the par- 

 tridge-berry, just as deeply green in its vines and as 

 brilliantly red in its berries, but less aromatic in 

 flavor, have met winter as courageously as the 

 lichens. Bright green leaves, bright red berries, 

 smile from under the white edges of the snow- 

 blanket. 



We lift our eyes to the bare branches of the trees ; 



