TUE FARMER'S MANUAL. 167 



the enemies of Bees. One trait of sagacity in 

 the Bear, mentioned by the Abbe Delia Rocca, 

 deserves some notice. " The Bear seldom at- 

 tacks a. hive openly, from fear of its stings; but 

 he will in the most gentle manner take a hive in 

 his paws and carry it out to the first river, or pond, 

 and plunge it, until the Bees are drowned, and then 

 feed on the spoil. The proprietor?, therefore, in 

 those countries infested with Bears, attach their hives 

 to walls, and other places, for their security against 

 the Bear," 



The sparrow and the lizard are also enemies of the 

 Bees, and must be carefully watched. 



I cannot too strongly impress it upon the minds of 

 every Apiarian, who wishes to reap any profit from 

 his hives, to be constantly upon the alert, to effect 

 the destruction of those enemies by which his pro- 

 perty is so materially injured. Let him remember, 

 they carry on their depredations in secret, and that 

 in this instance, as well as in every relation in life, a 

 false security, is the most dangerous situation in 

 which a person can repose. 



CHAP. VIII. 



On the Maladies of Bees. 



On this subject, Mr. Huish acknowledges great dif- 

 ficulty, both in discovering the maladies of the Bee, 

 and the remedies ; but adds, if you have many hives 

 and any one becomes sickly, remove it as soon as pos- 

 sible, that it may not infect the remainder. If you 

 have few hives, you may attempt, first to investigate 

 the disease, and next its cure. Mr. Huish states, 

 that the dysentery is one of the most common as well 

 as fatal diseases of the Bee ; and that the mark of this 

 disease is the excrement voided by the Bee at the 



