H4 . [Proc. B.N.F.C., 



those more prominent ones previously known. The beautiful urn 

 or capsule is developed by a process very similar to that which pro- 

 duces the fruits and seed-vessels of trees and other plants. From 

 the growth and appearance of mosses, a casual observer would 

 suppose there was not much difference among them; while a 

 careful examination shows that there is considerable variety, not 

 only of species, but of genera, which last are grouped into orders,, 

 and finally arranged in sections. Berkeley divides the British 

 mosses into four sections, chiefly dependent upon the nature and 

 position of the sporangium or capsule, commonly called the fruit- 

 These sections are divided into thirty -four orders, and one hundred 

 and twenty genera, in which there are about six hundred species. 

 The most abundant are Hypnums, Tortulas, and Bryums ; quite a 

 variety of these is to be found in the shortest walk. Concealed 

 among the leaves, and unknown to all but those who have made 

 these plants their study, are the flowers, consisting oiantheridia and 

 archegonia in separate clusters, the former constituting the male and 

 the latter the female or fertile flower. The archegonia become 

 matured into capsules, rupturing as they grow the mem- 

 branaceous envelope of the germen-like archegonium, and carrying 

 a part of it on the summit of the stalk, it becomes the veil or horn; 

 this after a time is thrown off. When the capsule is ripe its lid is 

 got rid of, the beautiful teeth of the peristome become erect, and 

 the spores or moss seeds dispersed around. Some of the capsules 

 of the smallest mosses contain a great number of spores, and as 

 each spore produces several plants, the great abundance of mosses 

 can easily be understood. The peristome, which forms a very 

 beautiful and characteristic appendage of many mosses, consists of 

 a number of curious tooth-like processes, which are always in num- 

 ber multiples of 4, as 4, 8, 16, or 32. These teeth are sometimes 

 in one row, and sometimes in two rows. They consist of cells 

 transversely jointed and beautifully coloured, and may easily be 

 seen by the naked eye in many mosses. In the genus Tortula the 

 teeth are twisted, and project some distance above the capsule — 

 hence the name of screw moss. These teeth are very beautiful under 



