Xll INTRODUCTION. 



lends itself so readily to the critical examination of the 

 student and to the decorative fancies of the artisan. 

 Neither is it necessary to enter a plea for the kindly 

 consideration of these plants because they have been 

 neglected and abused. Lichens do not require pity : 

 they are more than competent to hold their own in 

 the great struggle for existence. Indeed, many of the 

 much petted and much praised higher plants owe their 

 very existence to the lichens. It is true, lichens can- 

 not boast of an exalted origin or noble ancestry, but 

 they have gradually advanced in a beneficent life-work, 

 so that at present their lowly origin is wholly lost 

 sight of. 



Let us, therefore, obtain a better insight into these 

 plants, so that we may judge them more fairly and as- 

 sign them to their proper position in the world of life, 

 and duly credit them with the grand work they are 

 performing. Let us hope that no one, on seeing a 

 lichen, will say, " Oh ! that is a moss," or, " It's noth- 

 ing ; it just grows on trees." A lichen is as deserving 

 of recognition as the oak upon which it grows or the 

 reindeer whose life it sustains. 



