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MOSSES AT THE CONGRESS OF NEW ENGLAND NATURAL 
HISTORY SOCIETIES. 
Cora H. Clarke. 
In the middle of October, 1905, there was held in Boston a Congress of 
Natural History Societies, it being thought that it would benefit isolated 
societies in the different New England States to come together and learn 
what others are doing. There was an exhibition of specimens, contributed 
by the different organizations, open for three days, and on the last day, 
October 14th, was held a meeting at which there was a roll call of all the 
societies represented, and a delegate from each gave statistics as to its 
meetings, membership, and work. Many of the organizations studied but 
one section of Natural History, (Geology, Entomology, Ornithology or Botany). 
In all there were twenty-nine societies represented, with thirty-one exhibits 
by members of fourteen societies. 
That the Congress was felt to be a success we may infer from the fact 
that a committee was appointed to arrange for a Federation of the Societies 
and for the holding of future meetings. 
In the exhibition room were to be seen minerals, crystals, fossils, land 
snails, insects, bird skins, birds preserved in glass tubes, spiderwebs preserved 
between glass plates, inexpensive apparatus for collecting and preserving 
plants and insects, a book of photographs of tracks on sand, one of photo- 
praphs of wild flowers, ecological specimens of Phenogams, two sets of water- 
colors of fungi (hung on a net draped over one wall), also fungi fresh, fungi 
pressed, and fungi in bottles, pressed algae in books and on separate sheets, 
and finally, three exhibits of mosses and one of lichens. The lichens and 
the companion box of mosses was the work of our Sullivant Chapter member, 
Mrs. Dunham (who also showed a book of water-colored sketches of mosses). 
Her mosses are dried in tufts just as they grow, and the green foliage, 
golden setae, and brown capsules make a very pleasing color-combination. 
Each species stood in a small tray, and the trays were fitted into a large, 
flat box, with a lid. Mosses too tall for the box were laid on their sides. 
Her lichens were arranged in the same way, and of course these two boxes 
were but a sample of her whole Herbarium. 
The next set of mosses to attract attention bore the name of Miss M. 
Edna Cherrington, though she disclaimed merit for them, and said they were 
the work of the whole Botany Class of the Teachers’ School of Science, and 
represented about a year’s study and excursions; many of them were naihed 
in the field. We noted that there were about one hundred species, nearly all 
from Eastern Massachusetts, some from Maine and New Hampshire: that the 
dates ran from April to November, 1904, including a few gathered in August, 
September, and October, 1905. These mosses were put up so as to occupy 
but little space, to be handled with perfect safety, examined with a magnifier 
on each side ; and could be taken out in an instant, to put under a high power, 
and return to the same envelope. These envelopes or slides are made of a 
^Simplex Mount Co., Wellesley, Mass. 
