THE GENERA OF MOSSES^ 
81 
DiFF. Char. Peristome double ; ext. of filiform suh^ 
united processes ; int. membranaceous, conical, plicate^ 
truncate, Cdlyptra mitriform. 
Veg. The root of this most curious plant is rather more 
than a line in length, mostly tortuous, thick, fleshy, brittle, 
slightly hollow towards its extremity, which divides into 
two or three branches There is really no stem, but the 
leaves are situate on the summit of the root, and form to 
the naked eye a minute, brown, rough or bristly tufted 
mass, from the centre of which springs the seta. According 
to Mr Brown, " the leaves of the barren plant are lanceolate, 
and but slightly divided. Those at the base of the female 
perichsetium are even: broader than the former, but more 
deeply cut, both laterally and at top, into several capillary 
segments ; while the leaves which proceed from the surface 
of the perichsetium are still more deeply divided, and their 
segments so much elongated, that the minute foliaceous 
base has been universally overlooked, and the perichsetium 
consequently described as covered v/ith hairs f." We have 
never been so fortunate as to meet with the leaves first 
mentioned by Mr Brown, and, indeed, never saw a barren 
plant ; but the rest we have examined, and they appear to 
differ considerably from each other, and not to resemble 
those of any known moss. Those on the summit of the 
perichaetium are, as Mr Brown observes, deeply divided, 
and terminate in remarkably long filamentous segments: 
indeed, unless very great care be taken in the examination, 
they may pass for mere bundles of long interwoven confer- 
void filaments. Those at the base of the perichsetium are 
* See Grevihe in Wern. Trans, vol. iii. p. 44<7. 
f Linn. Trans, vol. xii. p. 533. 
TOL. V. F 
