407 
Order CCLXXXIV. MUSCI, 1 
or I The Moss Tribe. 
BRYACEiE.J 
Musci, Juss. Gen. 10. (1789) ; Hedivig Descr. et Adumh. (1787-1797) ; Bridel Muscolog. 
recentiorum (1797-1803) ; Hedw. Species Muscor. Frondos. (1801) ; Palisot Pro- 
drome des 5 et 6 Fam. de VMtheogam. (1805) ; Bridel Suppl. (1806-1819) ; Weber 
Tabul. Muse. Frondos. (1813) ; DC. FI. Fr. 2. 438. (1815) ; T. F. L. Nees de Mus- 
cor. Propag. (1818) ; Hooker and Taylor Muse. Brit. (1818) ; Hooker Musci Exo- 
tici (1818-1820) ; Agardh Aphor. 105. (1822) ; Greville and Arnott in Wern. Trans. 
4. 109. 8fc. (1822) ; Nees v. Esenbeck, Hornschuch, and Sturm, Bryoiog. Germ. 
(1823) ; Grev. FI. Edin.yim. (1824) ; Ad. Brongn. in Diet. Class. 11. 248. (1827) ; 
Hooker. Brit. FI. 1. 459. (1830). 
Essential Character. — Erect or creeping, terrestrial or aquatic, cellular plants, 
having a distinct axis of growth, destitute of a vascular system, and covered with minute 
imbricated, entire, or serrated leaves. Reproductive organs of two kinds, viz. 1. Axillary 
bodies, cylindrical or fusiform stalked sacs, containing a multitude of spherical or oval par- 
ticles, which are emitted upon the application of water ; 2 Thecce, hollow urn-like cases 
seated upon a seta or stalk, covered by a membranous calyptra, closed by a lid or operculum, 
within which are one or more rows of cellular rigid processes, called collectively the peris- 
tome, and separately teeth, which are always some multiple of four, and combined in 
various degrees ; the centre of the theca is occupied by an axis or columella, and the space 
between it and the sides of the theca is filled with sporules. Sporules in germination pro- 
truding confervoid filaments, which afterwards ramify, and form an axis of growth at the 
point of the ramifications. 
Affinities. These little plants, which form one of the most interesting 
departments of Cryptogamic Botany, are distinctly separated from all the 
other tribes by the peculiar structure of their reproductive organs, in which 
they resemble no others, except Jungennanniacese, which, however, approach 
them in this respect more in appearance than in reality. In their organs of 
vegetation they are strikingly similar to many Lycopodiums, which are always 
to be known by their vascular axis. The reproductive organs have been de- 
scribed above as of two kinds. Those which are called axillary bodies have 
been supposed to be anthers ; with how little reason will be clear from the 
following extract from Greville and Arnott’ s excellent memoir, published in 
the 4th volume of the Transactions of the Wernerian Society, to which I refer 
those who are desirous of minute information upon the structure and history 
of Mosses. 
“ What the organs really are, in the plants under review, which the ac- 
curate Hedwig so well figured and described under the name of stamens, we 
leave to others to decide ; but we cannot help entering our protest against 
those bodies called Stamina and Pistilla (the young thecae) being regarded in 
a similar light with the same organs in more perfect plants. ‘ Though,’ says 
Sprengel, ‘ I have formerly been a zealous advocate for Hedwig’s Theory of the 
Fructification of Mosses, it has nevertheless appeared to me an insurmountable 
objection, that the supposed anther can again produce buds and strike roots, 
which is certainly the case with regard to the disks of Polytrichum commune, 
Bartramia fontana, Bryum palustre, undulatum, cuspidatum, punctatum, and 
with those of Tortula ruralis. In Brynm argenteum we see the buds con- 
taining the supposed anthers constantly drop off, strike root, and produce new 
plants ; this I have observed myself times out of number. Still more in point 
is the experiment first made by David Meese, of sowing the stellulse of Poly- 
trichum commune, containing merely club-shaped bodies, when he found that 
plants came up, which in their turn produced fruit. Another excellent natu- 
ralist, Dr. Roth, has made similar observations with regard to Hypnum 
squarrosum and Bryum argenteum.’ He afterwards adds, — ‘It is more 
