MOSS 



Moss. 1. Germinating spore. 2. Moss-protonema. 

 3. Protonema which gives rise to a bud developing 

 into leafy moss-shoot. 4. Longitudinal section of tip 

 of male shoot. 5. Tips of female shoot with arche- 

 gonia, two of which are enlarged to show the calypters 

 or caps which are thrown off when the spores are ripe. 

 6. Leafy female shoot with fully developed capsule. All 

 highly magnified 



From Kerner't Natural Biliary of Plant! (Blaekie) 



Moss (Muscineae). One of the 

 two classes of Bryophyta, the other 

 class being the Hepaticae. The 

 Bryophyta come in systematic 

 botany between the Thallophytes 

 and the Pteridophytes. Like the 

 Thallophytes (algae, fungi, diatoms, 

 etc.), their structure is entirely 

 cellular, there being neither vessels 

 nor woody tissue, though they have 

 conducting cells which to some 

 extent serve the purpose of vessels. 

 They have stems, which are clothed 

 with apparent leaves, though 

 these are not homologous with the 

 f oliar organs of the flowering plants. 



Mosses are reproduced by spores 

 which are contained in an urn- 

 like capsule produced by a sexual 

 process. We have thus an alter- 

 nation of generations as in the 

 ferns, but with the difference that 

 the asexual generation (spore cap- 

 sule) grows on the sexual. The 

 sexual elements are contained in 

 what are popularly styled the 

 " flowers " of the moss techni- 

 cally the perichaete. This is formed 

 at the apex of the stem, and con- 

 sists of more crowded whorls of 

 " loaves " enclosing either the male 

 or the female elements, or both in 

 the same flower. The male flowers 

 contain antherids, the females 

 archegones. 



The antherids break up into a 

 number of cells, each containing a 

 coiled-up antherozoid which makes 

 its way through a mucilage accom- 

 panying its liberation to the arche- 

 gone, and fertilises the contained 

 oosphere. The latter ultimately 

 develops into a capsule filled with 

 dust-like spores and covered with a 

 cap (calypter), thrown off when the 

 spores are ripe. The spore-capsule 

 is then seen to have a distinct lid, 

 and when this falls off the spores 

 are protected in certain orders by 



5550 



a peristome a series 

 of long hygroscopic 

 teeth. These open 

 out in a dry atmo- 

 sphere to liberate 

 the spores, and close 

 down in damp to 

 keep them dry. 

 There are variations 

 of this mechanism in 

 different orders of 

 mosses. The spore 

 on germination pro- 

 duces a hair-like 

 thread which 

 branches, and deve- 

 lops buds which 

 grow into leafy 

 stems the moss- 

 plant. Mosses are 

 ubiquitous, growing 

 almost anywhere, 

 even on the bare 

 rock and the brick- 

 wall, preparing the 

 way for higher vegetation by form- 

 ing a humus of their dead bodies 

 and the minute particles of organic 

 matter which every tuft of moss 

 collects from the air. See Bog Moss ; 

 Botany ; Hair Moss ; consult also A 

 Synopsis of the British Mosses, C. 

 P. Hobkirk, 1873; The Student's 

 Handbook of British Mosses, H. N. 

 Dixon, 1904. 



Moss. Seaport of Norway, in 

 the co. of Akershus. It stands on a 

 small bay of the Christiania Fiord, 

 33 m. due S. of Christiania There 

 are extensive iron mines in the 

 vicinity, and a large quantity of 

 timber is exported. The act of 

 union between Norway and 

 Sweden was signed here Aug. 14, 

 1814. Pop. 8,600. 



Mossamedes. Port on the S. 

 coast of Angola, Portuguese West 

 Africa. It is situated on Little Fish 

 Bay. Its industries are connected 

 with fishing, whaling, and oil 

 refining. A rly. has been construc- 

 ted from Mossamedes as far as the 

 Chefa Mountains (105m.)., and is 

 to be continued to Lubango, in the 

 Huilla district. Pop. about 3,000 

 Mosse, RUDOLF (b. 1843). Ger- 

 man journalist. Born at Gratz, 

 May 9, 1843, he was educated at 

 Lissa. Moving to Berlin, he became 

 a journalist, started a large pub- 

 lishing and advertising business, 

 and founded the newspapers, 

 Berliner Tageblatt, Berliner Volks- 

 zcitung, and Berliner Morgen- 

 zeitung. 



Mossel Bay. Seaport of Cape 

 Province. It lies 318 m. by rly. E. 

 of Cape Town, and is situated 

 almost midway between that city 

 and Port Elizabeth. The bay on 

 which it is built was frequently 

 used by the Portuguese navigators 

 in the early 16th century. White 

 pop. 2,500. 



MOSTAR 



Mossgiel. Farm in Ayrshire, 

 Scotland. It is 1 m. N. of Mauch- 

 line, and was occupied by Robert 

 Burns from 1784 to 1788. See Burns. 



Mossley. Mun. borough of Lan- 

 cashire. It stands on the Tame, 

 JOm. N.E. of Manchester, with a 

 station on the L. & N.W. Rly. It 

 is also served by the Huddersfield 

 canal. The industries include cot- 

 ton and woollen mills, also engin- 

 eering works. Mossley became a 

 borough in 1885. Near the town are 

 some British remains known as 

 Bucton Castle. Market day, Fri. 

 Pop. 13,200. Mossley Hill is a 

 suburb of Liverpool, with a station 

 on the L. & N.W. Rly. 



Mossop, HENRY (c. 1729- 

 c. 1774). Irish actor. Son of Rev. 

 John Mossop, he was educated at 

 Trinity College, Dublin, but his 

 tastes led him to the stage. In 1749 

 he made his first appearance in 

 Dublin, and in 1751 in London as 

 Richard III under the patronage 

 of Garrick. After a few successful 

 years he quarrelled with Garrick, 

 and in 1759 returned to Dublin 

 where he opened a theatre of his 

 own. There, as in London, he had 

 many successes, but financially his 

 theatre was a failure, and he 

 became a bankrupt in 1771. He 

 passed some time in prison for debt 

 before his death which took place 

 in Nov., 1773, or Dec., 1774. 



Moss Side. Suburb of Man- 

 chester, England. It comprises 

 the eccles. dist. of S. James and 

 Christ Church on the S. side of the 

 city. See Manchester. 



Moss vale. Town of New South 

 Wales. It is 86 m. by rly. on the 

 main line from Sydney to Mel- 

 bourne. It is a tourist resort, and 

 near it is the summer residence of 

 the governor-general. Pop. 1,500. 



Mpstaganem. Small port of 

 Algeria. It stands between Oran 

 and Algiers, and is directly con- 

 nected with the former, via Arzeu, 

 by rly. It is identified with the 

 Portus Magnus of the Romans. 

 The harbour is exposed. Alfalfa is 

 the chief export. Pop. 18,000. 



Mostar. Town of Yugo-Slavia, 

 in Herzegovina, formerly in the 

 Austro-Hungarian territory of 

 Bosnia. It stands on the Narenta, 

 in a narrow valley within a district 

 of great fertility, 33 m. S.W. of 

 Sarajevo, with which it has rly. 

 connexion. Many of the modern 

 buildings are Italian in character, 

 although the town is predominantly 

 Turkish. There are many mosques 

 and a fine Greek cathedral. It is 

 the seat of a Greek and a Roman 

 Catholic bishop. Tobacco is the 

 principal manufacture. The single 

 span foot bridge over the river, 

 95 ft. in length, is reputedly a 

 Roman structure. Pop. 16,400. 



