_Price._--The prices received by the quahaugers are small, compared with the retail prices. "Little necks" fetch from $2.50 to $4 per bushel, sharps and small blunts from $1.10 to $2, and large blunts from 80 cents to $1.50, according to the season, fall and spring prices necessarily being higher than in summer. The price depends wholly upon the supply in the market, and varies greatly, although the "little necks" are fairly constant, as the demand for these small quahaugs is very great. To what excess the demand for "little necks" has reached can best be illustrated by a comparison between the price of $3 paid to the quahauger per bushel, and the actual price, $50, paid for the same by the consumer in the hotel restaurants. _Bedding Quahaugs for Market._--By town laws in Orleans, Eastham and Wellfleet, each quahauger may, upon application, secure from the selectmen a license, giving him not more than 75 feet square of tidal flat upon which to bed his catch of quahaugs. While no positive protection is guaranteed, public opinion recognizes the right of each man to his leased area, and this alone affords sufficient protection for the success of this communal effort, which is the first step by the people toward quahaug farming. The quahauger needs only to spread his catch on the surface, and within two tides the quahaugs will have buried themselves in the sand. Here they will remain, with no danger of moving away, as the quahaug moves but little. The quahauger loses nothing by this replanting, as not only do the quahaugs remain in a healthy condition, but even grow in their new environment. The result of this communal attempt at quahaug culture is beneficial. While the market price for "little necks" is almost always steady, the price of the larger quahaugs fluctuates considerably, and the market often becomes "glutted." This would naturally result in a severe loss to the quahauger if he were forced to keep shipping at a low price. As it is, the fortunate quahauger who possesses such a grant merely replants his daily catch until the market prices rise to their proper level. An additional advantage is gained by the quahauger, who at the end of the season has his grant well stocked, as higher prices are then offered. As many as 1,000 barrels are often held this way at the end of the season. _Food Value._--See food value table in scallop report. _Uses._--Besides its many uses as a food, raw, cooked and canned, the quahaug is of little importance in Massachusetts. (1) For bait the soft clam (_Mya arenaria_) is generally preferred, and but few quahaugs are used for this purpose. (2) The shell was once prized by the Indians for their wampum; now it is occasionally used for ornamental purposes. (3) Oystermen use it for cultch when they can get nothing better; though more fragile shells are usually preferred, so that the masses of oyster "set" can be easily broken apart.