206 Windsor Road, 
Waban:,. Mass. 
March 8:, 1916 
Dear Mp, Collins, 
If you have not seen Houghton Mifflin's Spring bulletin, you may 
not know that I have been preparing a book on mosses that I hope will meet 
the demands of the Camp Fire Girls, summer camp people,and the popular na¬ 
ture student in general; all of whom are not disposed to study with hand- 
lens or microscope. The question has come up how to label my illustration 
°f Polytrichu m com mune which is really that of the common shorter variety 
drawn natural size and which you have spoken of as probably perigcniale, 
I have mentioned in the text that P. c ommune typically has stems from 8- 18 
inches long with leaves rather distant and is found in moist shady places 
and that the plants commonly found in dryer places with shorter stems and 
leaves more crowded is probably the v ar . p e r igonia le. I have been told by 
the friend who urged me to write the book that I am constantly forgetting 
the kind of people the book is intended for, and that I have shown that my 
type of mine! is altogether too exact to write for the popular student. 
In view of all these facts and knowing Polytrichum: commune and its varieties 
as- you do would you advise na to call the ^ ' I us (.ra tion by its leal name ci 
just P. commune ? I also stated in the text that this common variety is 
spoken of my most moss students as P. commune. I shall greatly appreciate 
your opinion on the question if you can take time to write me briefly. 
Sincerely yours, 
