— 94 — 



filicinum had previously been found fossil by the author, also from near 

 Fulda. Mr. Geheeb mentions still another fossil moss which was found in 

 1869, in the Schussenquelle, near Schussenried, Wiirttenberg, by Apotheker 

 Valet, and determined by Schimper as Hypnum sarjjtentosuin Wahlenb., 

 an arctic-alpine moss. 



NoTe. — Since writing the above I have asked Dr. G. N. Best to examine 

 the Oelwein moss. To my surprise he found the bulk of what I sent to be 

 Hypiium revolveiis Sw., coming in between var. typicum and Cossoni. He 

 also found bits of a Calliergon which appears to be H. Richardsoni. This 

 difference in conclusions led me to float out a larger quantity of the moss, 

 submitting a second iot of twelve packets to Dr. Best, with the result that 

 he agreed with my first determination of that material. I had doubtless 

 overlooked the presence of Hypmun revolvens, and the Calliergon, bits of 

 both of which species are scattered through the mass of H. Jiuitans. 



Prof, Myers also entrusted to me a very small bit fossil moss, taken 

 eighteen feet under ground, also from under Kansas Drift, from the excava- 

 tion under the Iowa City High School. This Dr. Best finds to be nearest to 

 Hypnum fliiitans glaciale Ren. 



It thus appears that Iowa has furnished at least four fossil mosses. The 

 material from Oeilwein is mostly Hypnujn Jiuitans brachydictyon Ren., with 

 q.X\\X\q. Hypnum revolvens Sw., and Hypnum Richardso7ii\ the Iowa City 

 moss is Hypnum fluitafts glaciale, Winona, Minn. 



SOME nOSS SOCIETIES. 



By a. J. Grout. 



By the above title I do not mean to designate any generalizations in the 

 phytogeography of mosses, but merely to record a few observations on 

 species associated together in different groupings under different conditions, 



I was led to take up this topic by poor health, which prevented my 

 walking more than two or three'miles daily. To entertain myself I selected 

 the various places mentioned in this account, and set myself to find all the 

 mosses growing in each spot under conditions as nearly similar as possible. 

 For instance, when collecting on the stone wall I carefully avoided plants 

 growing on the soil at the base of the wall. I have been greatly surprised 

 by the results, as I have collected several species for the first time, in locali- 

 ties that have been familiar to me for years, and I have discovered a great 

 extension of range in at least one case {Fabroleskea). 



I have also found several plants on unusual substrata, e. g., Grimmia 

 apocarpa and Hedwigia on the old roof, and Ulota crispa on the stone wall. 

 In this last case Dr. Best suggests that scraps of bark, etc., from the trees 

 overhead furnished the material suitable for the first stages in the develop- 

 ment of the plants. 



Perhaps the most interesting collecting place was the cut in Brooklyn 

 Heights, where the Wall St. Ferry cars pass up along Montague St., from 

 the water level to the level of the Heights. The ground here is apparently 

 springy, and in the chinks between the stones I found five or six species, the 



