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Show 112 The Hij}ory of P L A N T S. furface of the earth and fends down a multitude of fibres; from this there rife, at arl inch or two diftande, ftalks of fix or eight inches high; they are roundi!h, and are covered with fmallleaves, or fquammous membranes. Thefe fend .out, on every. fid~, . a kind of digitated branches, an inch or two in lengt~, a.nd e~tendmg as n~uch 111 d~ameter. They Hfue fingle from the ftalk, but they d1vancate. mto fix o~ eight ramifications, which, dividing again each into two at the extrer!uty, form, m the whole, a very elegant clufier · thefe ramifications are thin and flatt1il1, but fomewhat convex on the upper fide, an'd concave on the under. They are. of a yellow i01-green colour, and, in feme degree, refemble the leaves of the ar?or .v1tre; they are very t?ugh and firm and each is compofed of a middle rib, thus d1vancated, and covered w1th fmalt leav~s, broad at the bafe, and narrower to the point, preffed clofely down upon it. From the upper parts of the plant arife pedicles of three, four, or more i~c~1cs l~ng, each divided into two branches at the fummit, and each of thefe branches d1v1ded mto two again; at the top of each of thefe laft ramifications there grows a fpike, flenderer than that of the common Lycopodium. The pedicles have a few fqu ammous leaves on them, and the fpikes are compofed of fquammre broad at the bafe, fhort, and terminating in a point; in the alre of thefe are placed capfules, of a kidney-like ihape, filled with a fine yellow powder. It is a native of North America : Penfylvania and Virginia produce it in .abundance ; it produces it's fpikes in Auguft and September. The other fpecies of Lycopodium are, 1. The favin-like Lycopodium, called Cyprefs Mofs, and the Heath Cyprefs. 2. The tall, double-forked Lycopodium of the Eaft-lndies. 3· The great, flender, fpiked, Eafi-Indian Lycopodium: this grows to three feet in height. 4· The fmall, creeping Lycopodium, with fingle fpikes, and extremely long pedicles. 5· The !hort, creeping Lycopodium, with fingle, upright fpikes. 6. The fox-tail Lycopodium, fending roots from it's branches. 7· The juniper- leaved Lycopodium, with no pedicles to the fpikes. 8. The fine-leaved, curled , fhrub Lycopodium, with fhort, drooping clubs, or fpikes: and, 9· The !harp, fqu arefpiked, hoary Lycopodium: both thefe laft alfo have fpikes without any pedicles. M 0 s s E s. Clc!fs the Sixth. Genus the Second. T R I S P E R M I U M. T R IS PERM I U M is a genus of Moffes, confifiing of fialks, furnifhed with leaves, difpofed in three regular feries; two feries or rows of larger and broader placed oppofite to one another, in the fame plane, on the two fides of the fi alk; and a third feries of fmaller leaves covering the upper part of the fialk, or rib, between the other two; and producing fpikes, fometimes with, fometimes without pedicles; which fpikes contain capfules of two kinds, thofe of the one kind holding only a powder. and thofe of the other containing each three feeds. The fpikes of thefe Moifes are lefs different from the reft of the plant in their !l:ruB:ure than thofe of the lycopodium, and in many of the fpecies, after a certain period, become undifiinguifbable from the ftalks on which they grow. Dillenius has called this genus, from the refemblance it's fpikes bear to thofe o~ the lycopodium, Lycopodioides. It feems properer to dift inguilh them by a name which expreffes the great fingularity of it's producing feeds, three in a capfule. I. Trifpermium jpicis brevibus fejjilibus. The Jhort-fpihed Trifpermium, without pedicles. This is a creeping Mofs; it': branches lie flat upon the ground, and extend themfelves to five, fix, or more mches in length, and to as much in breadth ; they fend out numerous r.amifications, and thefe fubdivide themfelves again into fmaller. They fend out roots m feveral places, and are ornamented on each fide with a row of broad and obtufely-pointed leaves, and with a row of fomewhat !horter and fmaller between them. The fpikes are !hort and fmall ; they grow from the extremities of th~ Tbe Hijlory of P L A N T S. 113 the young branches, ~ithout any pedicles, and generally grow two from the fame bafe. They are cloathed With fquammre, much refembling the leaves of the plant in {hape a~d~ at the bafes of thefe, there fiand capfules of a roundi!h figure, bivalve, and con~ tammg a fine powder : befide thefe, t?ere are alfo other capfules, not only placed in the alre of the other fquammre of the fptke, but alfo in the alre of the leaves of the plant . thefe are fmall, and f:arce vifible, at firfi; but, in fine, they increafe to a confiderabl~ :fize, and each contams three round and tolerably large feeds. As thefe increafe in :fize, ti:ey thruft ?ut the leaves frofi1 the fialk, and, the fquamm~ of the fpikes, at the fame tlme, growmg larger, the fp1kes themfelves become undifiinguiil1able from the branches of the plant. It is a very fcarce plant : it has been talke~ of as growing in England, but it docs not appear that there eve1: was any better f?und~tiqn for. this opinion than peoplC:s mifiaking feme other plant for 1t. . Clu~us rece1ved 1t from Portugal, and figured it: almo£1: all the late author~ have copted h1s .figure, and kn.o~ no more of the plant than what they collect from tum. Dr Shaw, mdeed, found 1t 111 the Eafr, and it has fince been difcovered in. Sout.h America. It grows in moifl:, fiony places. Moil: of the old authors have defcnbed 1t under the name of Mufcus denticulatus and Mufcus terrefiris Lufitanicus. ~a~ calls._it, Mufcus denticulatus m~nor; and, Buxbaum, Lycopodium parvum, hermanre folus; he has a good figure of 1t, but erroneouf1y calls it a new-difcovered plant. Lobel fays it grows on Mendip-hills; and Merret in Lancail1ire · but no body ever found it in either of thofe places. ' ' 2. Trifpermittm Jpicis longioribus pediculatis. The Trifpermium, with long /pikes 01z pedicles. This is a very el~ga~t Mofs, of the c~eeping kind. It's brahches lie clofe upon the ground, and are dtvancated every way mto a number of ramifications which often divide again into fiill fmaller; every branch has three feries of leaves 'on it; two of larger, placed oppofite to one another, and a third of finaller, covering the rib between them. They are broad a~ the bafe, and have no pedicles, and are placed rather alternately, than exaCtly overagamll: one another. The middle feries of leaves is as it were, double, one fmall leaf growing at the bafe of every larger one. Thefe ar~ narrower, as well as !horter, than the others, and are fmooth; the others are a little curled, or crooke?.. From ~everal parts of. the branches there arife pedicles of an inch long, each fufl:~1mng ~omeo.mes a fingle f})Ike, fometimes two, fometimes three, of the £<1me length w1th the1r pedJcles, and fomewhat thicker, but not much fo; thefe are compofed ?f oblong fquammre, convex on one fide, and concave on the other, and of a yellowi!h colour. At the bafes of thefe there are affixed bivalve capfules, containing a fine powder, and, on the branches themfelves, as well as at the bafcs of the lower fquammre of the fpike, there are alfo other capfules of an oval figure, each containing three fmall feeds : thefe latter capfules are much fmaller than the others, and are much lefs frequently found on the plant. It !s found on the Alps, and in many parts of Swifferland. It has been faid to be a nat~ve o[ ,Engl~nd, but we.do not find it here at prcfent, and, probably, thofe, who mentwn It s bemg found with us, took feme other fpecies for it~ Ray defcribes it under. the na.me of M.ufcus denticulatus major; and Tournefort and mo!l: of the other botamcal wnters call It by the fame name; but fome call it Denticulatus minor . and many ha~e wron_gly afferted, that it is the fame fpecies with the former: the diffe'rence of the fpikes fufficiently proves the contrary. 3· 'I'rifpermium ereflum .fpicis triangularibus. EreEl Trifpermium, with triangular ./pikes. !hi.s is a. fpecie~ ~f Tri(permium extremely different, in it's genera1 figure, ft-om the [01eg?mg k!~ds: It 1.s an ereCt, robuil:, and large plant. It grows to a foot, or more, m ~eight;. 1t s !l:alk .Is .very tough ~nd firm, and carried up fingle for about four inches, dur~ng which fpace It IS cov.ered w1th a few fcatt7ring fq~ammre. From this height it begms to fend out branches 111 great numbers, wh1ch ramtfy again and form upon the whole, a plant with much of the external appearance of a fer~. The b:·anches a:ll have, on each fide, a row of leaves, fhort, and moderately broad, rigid to the tOuch, of a fmooth !iuface, and of a beautiful green colour; and, between thefe two rows, G g is |