PREFACE xi 



natural size with an occasional enlarged plant, leaf, 

 or capsule. Average specimens were selected for the 

 illustrations, but allowances must be made for varia- 

 tions in size and branching. 



The nomenclature given is that used by Dr. Bro- 

 therus in Engler and Prantl's Die Natiirlichen 

 Pflanzenfamilien, Teil i, Abteilung iii. As the Latin 

 name of mosses in some cases is still a matter of dis- 

 pute, synonyms are given in italics where the name 

 has recently been changed. English names are usually 

 lacking, but in most cases the Latin names are no 

 longer than geranium or rhododendron, and when 

 one becomes familiar with them they will seem no 

 harder. The generic and specific names have been 

 accented and the former divided into syllables. The 

 grave accent C) indicates the long English sound of 

 the vowel, the acute accent (0 shows the shortened 

 sound. It is the custom in EngHsh-speaking countries 

 to pronounce the botanical names according to the 

 EngKsh method of pronouncing Latin. 



In the preparation of this book, the following books 

 have been used for reference : Mosses with a Hand-Lens 

 and Microscope, A. J. Grout; Mosses of Western Penn- 

 sylvania, 0. E. Jennings; The Bryophytes of Connecticut, 

 Evans and Nichols; Handbook of British Mosses, 

 Dixon and Jameson; British Moss Flora, Braithwaite; 

 and various other sources for derivations of generic 

 names and explanation of abbreviations of author's 

 names not found in the books mentioned. 



