30 



of plants. A portion of the profonema is changed into root-hairs 

 (rhizoids) which produce a secondary protonema. The protonema 

 can reproduce itself by rjemnuc or buds. A protonema is produced 

 on the leaves of many mosses, and even a single leaf, if separated 

 from the plant and kept moist, may produce it. Again, portions of 

 the growing plant such as shoots and bulbils, become detached to 

 form new plants. Hairs, even, may be transformed into protenema. 

 These facts certainly go to show that mosses are not very likely to 

 follow the Megatherium and the Dodo. How are our plants 

 arranged, or better perhaps, how do they arrange themselves for 

 our convenience ? There are four orders — Sphagnaceoe, Andreaeacece, 

 Phascaceoe and Bryaceae. The first has already had about its share 

 of our time. The second includes but a few small plant»3, some not 

 a qriarter of an inch high, all of which are classed by Bryologists with 

 the True Mosses from which they differ in the splitting of the 

 capsule. The third order (Phascaceoe) includes only a few genera, 

 all the species {e.g. Ephemerum) being quite small plants. The 

 spores escape through the decay of the capsule. The fourth and 

 largest order, the Bryacea, or True Mosses, is very clearly marked 

 by an operculum (already described) which is separated from the 

 capsule, sometimes by the aid of an annulus. The True Mosses 

 are divided into two sections. The acrocarpi (summit fruit), and the 

 Pleurocarpi (side fruit),— the fruit, in the former, being at the top 

 of the stem, while, in the latter, it is on lateral branches. 

 Polytrichums, Tortulas, Bryums, and Funarias are all acrocarpous, 

 and Hypnums are pleurocarpous. Very little attention was given 

 to Mosses until about the beginning of last century, when the 

 botanist Kay made a collection. About 1750 Dillenius pubhshed 

 an illustrated work which is still of value and interest for reference, 

 although of course it is very ancient considering the present date 

 of our knowledge. In the time of Linnaeus, and indeed by the 

 great botanist himself, several of the allied orders of plants, — the 

 Liverworts, the Club Mosses and Lichens for instance — were looked 

 upon as Mosses, and we cannot be surprised at this when we re- 

 member that the microscope had not then made its wonderful 

 revelations. The now familiar instrument threw a flood of light 

 on many branches of natural science. To a distinguished German 

 (Hedwig^t belongs the honour of having discovered the foundation 

 for a true system of Moss-classification. Of late years our know- 

 ledge has rapidly increased and many new species have been added 

 to the list. Lastly, it cannot be claimed for Mosses that they are 

 of any great use in every-day life, indeed; we make very little use 

 of any of them — but they certainly have a beauty all their own. 

 They decorate our old walls, fences, and trees as no human hand 

 could, their "living green" contrasting splendidly, in our own 



