27 
A PROPOSAL OF PHRENOLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS 
ON MOSSES. 
Bg William Arnell. 
Simultaneous observations on periodical phenomena in plants 
and animals, or so called phonological observations, have for 
many years been made as well in most of the European countries, 
as also in North-America and even at some few stations in the 
Russian part of Asia. It is especially after 1842, in which year 
Professor Quetelet in Brussel’s renowned “ Instructions pour V obser- 
vation des phenomenes periodiques ”* were issued, that a very lively 
interest has been taken in these phenomena. Many and impor- 
tant are the laws of nature that have been discovered by means of 
the stock of comparable phonological observations thus collected 
to the greatest part after the above-mentioned year. As for plants 
these observations have, however, hitherto extended only to 
phanerogams. It has even, strangely enough, as for what I know, 
only once before been proposed, to wit by doctor A. Pokorny ,f to 
extend the observations also to cryptogams ; but these summons 
appear to have led to no purpose, probably because the proposal 
was made in too vague terms. It must, however, of course be as 
important to examine cryptogams as phanerogams with respect to 
their phrenological relations. Especially it would be very impor- 
tant to find whether the laws, existing for phanerogams, are followed 
also by cryptogams, or, if this be not the case, what differences 
these may display in this respect. It is from these reasons, that, 
to the readers of Revue Bryologique , I renew the summons, 
already issued by doctor Pokorny , as far as they refer to mosses, 
and summon to simultaneous phrenological observations on these 
plants, the more so as mosses, on account of the wide distribution of 
some of their species, are still better adapted to such observations 
than phanerogams ; and, because in observations of this kind it is 
necessary that all observers agree on a common plant, lest the 
observations of different observers may become fully comparable to 
each other, I dare at the same time give an account of the plan 
according to which I have believed that these observations would 
be arranged with the greatest profit. 
As it is especially the blooming and the fructification that have 
been made the objects of observation in phanerogams, it is 
highly desirable that the same phenomena were observed also in 
mosses. The blooming is, to be sure , not fully so well adapted to 
phrenological observations in mosses, as in phanerogams, because 
it is only through very toilsome and time-wasting researches by 
* In “ Bulletins de l’Acad. Royale des Sciences, etc., de Bruxelles,” 
tome 9. 
f A. Pokorny : “ Ansichten iiber Beobachtungen an Kryptogamen (in 
Jsehrbiicher der K. K. Central-Anstalt fiir Meteorologic,” etc., in Wien. 
Band 8. Anhang). 
