48 THE GLORY OF THE GARDEN 



him to the two daughters of the King of Greece, 

 Melissa and Amalthea, in order that the young god 

 might escape the fate that awaited him, that of 

 providing a repast for his father, Saturn. To 

 smother the cries of the unfortunate baby god, the 

 sisters continually beat upon brazen pans, and this 

 attracted the neighbouring wild bees, who forth- 

 with undertook the responsibility of his nourish- 

 ment, bringing him daily supplies of honey. In 

 acknowledgment of their services, Jupiter endowed 

 these wild bees with the power of parthenogenesis, 

 so waiving the ordinary male and female principles; 

 and entrusted their descendants with the work of 

 gathering honey for the food of man. 



The countryfolk of Scotland and Ireland, who 

 seem to live in such close touch with Nature, still 

 cling to the old custom of " telling the bees." This 

 is a relic of the time when the honey bees were 

 looked upon as the guardians of the household, and 

 every important event in the family life, whether 

 of joy, sorrow, or adventure, was told to them as a 

 mark of courtesy and consideration. 



" Bees, Bees ! Haste to your bees. 



Hide from your neighbours as much as you please, 

 But all that has happened to us you must tell. 

 Or else we will give you no honey to sell." 



The old bee-fathers used to raise their hats to the 

 honey bee, a gracious act of courtesy, the spirit of 

 which we should do well to emulate. 



It is an old and well-known fact that the honey 

 bee is possessed of marvellous — one might almost 

 say psychical — perceptions, and is extremely sensitive 

 to conditions not merely material and physical, 



