557 



Specimens of the capsule, seta, calyptra, operculum and peristome 

 are neatly gummed on the paper, and illustrate the description. 



Twenty species of mosses are more minutely described, and a spe- 

 cimen accompanies each description ; the following are selected as 

 examples : — 



" Encalypia vulgaris. — Common Extinguisher Moss. This genus 

 is so named because the veil or calyptra covers the capsule in the 

 same way as we cover the flame of a candle by what is called an ex- 

 tinguisher, to put it out. The fringe has sixteen short teeth, and the 

 veil is entire at the base, — the other four species, which are alpine, 

 having the base of the veil toothed. This grows upon wall-tops, and 

 early in the spring is found along with the little Draba verna, almost 

 the earliest of our spring flowers, and perhaps the smallest, — its white 

 blossoms and diminutive seed-pods being often produced on stems a 

 quarter of an inch high. About the time when these two plants are 

 found in perfection, we listen with delight to the far-off" lark filling the 

 blue heavens with its cheerful melody, and the happy thrush pouring 

 from the topmost branch of some yet leafless tree its sprightly song. 

 There is thus, you will perceive, a great deal of pleasure connected 

 with plants, besides what we derive from contemplating their own 

 beauty. We associate them in our minds with the scenery amid 

 which they grow, the season in which they are gathered, and other 

 circumstances ; which, for many a day or even year afterwards, affords 

 us the most pleasant reflections." — p. 17. 



" Weissia nigrita. — Black-fruited Weissia. The genus Weissia is 

 named in honour of a German botanist, Weiss, and includes about 

 twenty native species. The fringe has sixteen teeth, placed round the 

 mouth of the capsule at equal distances, and are mostly short. The 

 Weissia nigrita derives its specific name from the mature capsule 

 being of a black colour. It is a very rare moss, being found only in 

 a few places. It is said to grow on the mountains near Blair in AthoU, 

 forty miles inland ; and the specimen here given is from the Sands of 

 Barrie, on the coast of Forfarshire. This is a remarkable circum- 

 stance, and shows that the climate of the lofty mountain and that of 

 the sea-shore are very similar. 



"Many mosses, as well as flowers, are so common that they are found 

 all over the country ; others are only met with here and there ; while 

 some are so rai'e, that they are found but in a few particular places. 

 The place where a plant is found is called its locality. The Sands 

 of Barrie is one locality for the black-fruited Weissia — the mountain, 

 Ben-y-Gloe, is said to be another. 



Vol. II. 3 z 



