56 THE AMERICAN BOTANIST. 



The Sandalwood. — The sandalwood is a member of 

 the family to which our false toad-flax {Coniandra umhel- 

 lata) lielongs and like it is a parasite. To look at either 

 of these plants one would not suspect them of being" para- 

 sites for unlike ths less craft}^ dodder {Cuscuta) they com- 

 mit their thefts underground, stealing from the roots just 

 as the dodder does from the stems. In most cases the 

 sandal is very successful in its underground operations^ 

 but occasionally it makes a mistake. In parts of India 

 the sandal trees are rapidly dying from a disease called 

 "spike" which is thought to be due to one of these mis- 

 takes. It is supposed that its roots in ramifying through 

 the soil fasten upon the roots of the first species the}^ 

 meet. If this happens to be a deep rooted species well and 

 good, but if it happens to be one less extensiveh^ rooted, 

 it soon uses up its substance and then dies. In regions 

 where the Lantana is plentiful the sandal soon dies and it 

 is thought to be due to the fact that it depends upon the 

 Lantana for food. 



Bees and the Cattle-men.— Out in Nevada, accord- 

 ing to the Rural Californian, the ranchers are making a 

 funny complaint against the bees. Every year carload 

 after carload of fine alfalfa honey is shipped from this 

 state, and the growers of alfalfa say that these tons of 

 sweetness belong to them, being just so much saccharine 

 matter stolen from their crops by the bees. It is actually 

 proposed to have a bill passed at the next session of the 

 legislature prohibiting the location of any apiary within 

 reaching distance of alfalfa fields. It is well known, how- 

 ever, that if it were not for the bees visiting the alfalfa for 

 hone3% the blossoms would not be pollinated anti therefore 

 no seeds or pods be formed which would cause a decrease 

 in the weight of the ha^^ It is therefore in order for the 

 bee keepers to get a bill passed obliging the stockmen to 

 pay them for the services of the bees in pollinating and 

 thus increasing the tonnage of the alfalfa crop. This will 

 even matters up. It never occurs to the rancher that the 

 honey is paid b3^ the alfalfa for the bees' services and be- 

 longs to the bee just as truly as the alfalta belongs to the 

 rancher. 



