THE CONQUEST OF THE DRY LAND 197 
embryo-plant, the possible seed or ovule be- 
comes a real seed, which will grow into a 
plant when it is sown. So the more humble: 
bees, the better next year’s clover crop. 
But the nests of the humble-bees, which’ 
are hidden in the ground or in a mossy bank, 
are often burglared by the field-mice or voles, 
which devour the white grubs of the bees. So 
the more field-mice, the fewer humble-bees. 
But the cats on the prowl kill the field- 
mice, which are therefore scarcer near vil- 
lages than in the open country. The cats do 
not appear to eat the field-mice, but they kill 
them for sport. So the more cats, the fewer 
field-mice. 
One may perhaps go a step further and say: 
The more kindly ladies in the village, the 
more cats there will be; and the more cats, 
the fewer field-mice; and the fewer field- 
mice, the more humble-bees; and the more 
humble-bees, the better next year’s clover crop. 
In any case, we must understand that the 
pollination or fertilisation of flowers by their 
insect-visitors, a linkage established after the 
second great invasion, is one of the most 
important linkages in the web of life. For 
the fertilising dust or pollen is necessary if 
