84 SOURCES OF NECTAR 
has become established in a locality that produces good yields, 
others will locate within a short distance of his apiaries, and 
the number of colonies brought in will so reduce the surplus 
secured that no one will get satisfactory returns. This is not 
only short-sighted business policy on the part of the newcomer, 
but very unjust as well. While a bee-keeper has no way to estab- 
lish a legal right to the bee pasturage, it would seem that the first 
man on the ground should have some moral rights that should be 
respected. Indeed, there has come to be an unwritten law among 
bee-keepers that does respect the rights of the man already 
located. Unfortunately this unwritten law is not always recog- 
nized, and much friction sometimes develops as a result. The 
only remedy is to move to a new locality, or be patient until the 
newcomer will realize that there is not room enough for two, and 
move on in search of richer fields. 
THE BEE AS \ POLLENIZING AGENT 
The value of the honey-bee in the pollenation of blossoms has 
come to be so generally recognized that commercial fruit growers 
and gardeners are anxious to secure the location of an apiary 
near their plantings. Since Darwin laid down the law that 
nature abhors self-fertilization, there has been much study of 
the problems of cross-fertilization and the agents that serve to 
accomplish nature’s purpose in the distribution of pollen. While 
there are numerous butterflies, wasps, wild bees and other in- 
sects that ussist in the work, the honey-bee, because of its greater 
abundance, and because it can be readily controlled, has come to 
be recognized as the most valuable agent for certain plants. 
In this connection a quotation from Dr. Burton N. Gates, of 
the Massachusetts \gricultural College, will serve to show the 
present recognition of this fact by well-known authorities.1 
The value of the honey-bee in cranberry cultivation has but recently 
been recognized. The cranberry industry of Massachusetts, for instance, is 
+“ The Value of Bees in Horticulture,” by Burton N. Gates, in 3rd 
Annual Report, State Bee Inspector of lowa, 1914. 
