MUSCARDINE. 150 MUSCI. gated after an oulliieak tu [iievent infection of the new brood. MUSCAT, nius-kat'. An old name for the Arabian !State of Oman (q.v. ). MUSCAT, MUSKAT, or MASKAT, miis- kiit'. The cajiital of Oman, in Southeastern Arabia, situated on the Gulf of Oman (Map: Turkey in Asia (Arabia), T 11). It is fortified and lias a good harbor, which makes it one of the most important conniiereial centres in Aral)ia, and the port for almost all the trade of Oman, amounting to over .^.'i.OOd.OOd annually. Though situated amid beautiful surniun<linf.'s, it is poorly built and unclean, and its climate is very hot and unhealtliful. The population is estimated at 40,- 000. Mu.scat is the seat of a British Resident and has been declared to be nnder British intluence. In the si.xteenth century ^Muscat was ca]itured by the Portuauese, but was restored to the ruler of Onjaii in the seventeenth century. MUS'CATEL (also muxciiihl. OK, muscadel, tiitiscadet, Fr, muscadet, from ^IL, muscatdUim, muscatel wine, diminutive of muscat urn, musky cdor, from T-at. miisciis, musk). The name given to nuiny kinds of sweet and strong French and Italian wines, whether white or red. Among the finest are the white Rivesalt and red Bagnol wines from Roussillon, the Luuel from the Pyr- enees, and the LacrymiE Christi and Carigliano of Xa])les. See Wise. MUSCATINE, mns'kA-ten'. A city and the county-seat of .Muscatine County, Iowa. 210 miles west of Chicago; on the Mississi])pi River, and on the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific, the Burlington, Cedar Rapids and Xorthern. and the Iowa Central railroads (Map: Iowa, F 3). It is built on high blufl's at a bend of the river; and among noteworthy features are the !Mnsser Li- brary (public), a soldiers' luonmnent, and a high hriilge across the river. The city carries on considerable trade in lumber and agricultural produce, l)eing known especially for the water- melons grown on Muscatine Island, just below the city. It is an important industri;il centre, its establislnnents including th>ur and oatmeal mills, jiickle works, foimdries and machine shops, rolling mills, sheet iron, boiler, and engine works, manufactories of varicnis lumber products, lead works, potteries, button factories, box and pack- ing case factories, brick and tile works, carriage and wagon shops, etc. Settled in HXi, Musca- tine was incorporated first in IS.'iO. The govern- ment, under a charter of 18.51, subse()uently amended by State special charter laws, is vested in a mayor, elected every two years, and a uni- cameral council, which controls important powers of confirmation ami election in administrative ofiices. The police judge, treasurer, wharf mas- ter, assessor, and school hoard are chosen by popular vote. The city owns and operates the water-works. Population, in 1800, 11,4.54; in moo, 14,07."?. MUSCHELKALK. mushVl-kalk (Ger. shell- lime). The iiiiddle member of the Triassic or Xew Red Sandstone period in Continental Europe. In (Jermnny the formation consists chiefiy of limestones, which abound in the re- mains of mollusca; hence (he name muschelkalk. The beds are of much economic importance, con- taining salt, marl, and gypsum. MUSCI, mus'si ( Lat., mosses ) . The technical name of the group of plants known as mosses, one of the two subdivisions of bryophytes, the other being the Hepatica> (liverworts). Mosses are adapted to all conditions, from submerged to very dry, and are most abundantly displayed in temperate and Arctic regions. They have great jiower of vegetative multi])lication. new leafy
- >hoots putting out from old ones, thus forming
thick carpets and cushions. Bog mosses often completely fill up bogs or small ponds and lakes with a dense growth which dies below and con- tinues to grow above. These cjuaking bogs or 'mosses' furnish very treacherous footing. In their depths the dead moss plants become slowly modified into peat. Fig. 1. The so-called flower of a moss in longitu seftion, showing antheriiiin ia). archeponia (h), ftnd para- physesf^). Outside all are lougitudiual sections of leaves. There are two gi"cat groups of mosses, the Sphagnum forms (peat or bog mosses) and Bryum forms (true raossesK The life history Fm, 2. 1, pametoiih.vtp. sliowhi^c original spore (.r), protduenm {p), buds (/*) wliloh develop the leafy brunchea s). 2. a youug sporophyte (c) emerging from the leafy plant («). of a true moss shows a distinct alternation of generations (q.v.). When a spore germinates, there is first developed a small, green, thready i
