94 THE OLIVE LEAF. CHAP. 



and growth and death counterbalance each other on its 

 little unheeded stage. Had we the eyes of the little 

 countless tribes of insects that find in its tangled mazes 

 all the scenery that they need to shelter and support 

 them, the moss-tuft would be to us what the woodland 

 and the forest are now, and we should see in it the same 

 vicissitudes marking the varying seasons of the year. 



Most admirably has the moss been adapted for the 

 part which it serves in the economy of nature, not only 

 by the structure of its single individuals, but also by its 

 social habit. Not only is the foliage by its shape and 

 character fitted to endure the extremes of temperature, 

 of dryness and moisture, and the fructification so 

 simple and yet so efficient that it cannot fail of success 

 even in the most unfavourable circumstances, but the 

 habit of the whole moss tribe is to grow in thick tufts 

 and thus secure to the individual the solidarity of a 

 multitude. This habit is one of the most remarkable 

 things connected with this curious class -of plants. It 

 is a wise provision for securing both prominence and 

 security. The little single moss would be inconspicu- 

 ous ; it would have no effect in clothing the nakedness 

 of the soil and making the surface upon which it grew 

 picturesque. It would besides be powerless in resisting 

 the hostile influences opposed to its welfare, and would 

 speedily perish. But in the form of a tuft or aggre- 

 gated mass of individuals, the united force of the whole 

 can overcome the physical evils , that would be fatal to 

 the single plant. The purpose of the moss can also be 

 achieved more perfectly through the tuft than through 



