282 



BEE. 



A rope and a sharp hatchet is all that they require 

 to assist their ascent. The workman places liim- 

 self against the trunk of the tree, around which 

 and his own body he fastens a rope. He then with 

 his hatchet cuts a notch in the trunk at a certain 

 height, and setting his feet against the tree, springs 

 to that height by the help of the rope. He sup- 

 ports himself by the rope, resting his feet in the 

 notch until he has cut another, to which he ascends 

 in the same manner ; and this is continued until he 

 reaches the desired point. As he is to make some 

 stay there, he notches in the tree a more conven- 

 ient stand for his feet than was before necessary : 

 renting his feet in this, and supporting the weight 

 of his body by the rope, he then commences his 

 work, the tools required for which he has taken 

 up in his girdle. It is always considered necessary 

 to cut away the branches below the hive, in order 

 to render the access more difficult to the bears, 

 which still exist in considerable numbers in the 

 Ural, and which are by far the most dangerous 

 enemies known to the bee cultivator. Some of 

 the measures adopted to secure the hives from the 

 depredations of these animals are very curious. 

 The most common contrivance is to insert a num- 

 ber of knives or iron spikes bent upwards into the 

 trunk of the tree. The bear, by the exercise of 

 great caution and sagacity, is generally able to 

 clamber up a tree thus defended without much 

 difficulty; but in sliding down again he seldom 

 escapes with his life, or at least without being 

 desperately wounded, being caught by the hooks 

 and lacerated by the knives in the descent. Some 

 old and experienced bears, who have learned what 

 to expect from these instruments, have been known 

 to loosen or break them with their paws as they 

 went up. Another method, which is considered 

 more certain than the former in its effects, is to 

 suspend a thick and heavy block of wood before 

 the aperture of the hive. This block the bear 

 flings from him repeatedly with increasing fury ; 

 but as often as he does so, the block, of course, 

 returns and hits him violent blows upon the head. 

 Irritated to the utmost, the animal increases the 

 violence of his efforts, and at last, exhausted by 

 his rage and exertions, and partly stunned by the 

 blows, falls upon the spikes that are planted on 

 the ground to receive him. But a more ingenious 

 contrivance than either of these is to take the 

 bear in a trap of very simple construction. It is 

 not. unlike a large scale, such as we sometimes see 

 in wholesale shops ; consisting of a board with 

 ropes at each corner united at the top. It is then 

 fastened to a branch above the hive in such a man- 

 ner that if left suspended perpendicularly, the board 

 would be at some distance from the trunk. But 

 v, hen the rope is properly fastened to the branch, 

 the board is drawn from the perpendicular, and at- 

 tached slightly to the trunk on a level with the 

 door of the hive, in such a manner that the fasten- 

 ing remains the only obstacle to prevent the bear 

 from obtaining access to the hive. When the bear 

 ascends and finds a seat which seems so admirably 

 adapted to his convenience, he gets upon it, and 

 soon commences tugging to remove the only ob- 

 stacle between him and his desired prey ; but as 

 this obstacle is the fastening of the board to the 

 trunk of the tree, the animal no sooner succeeds in 

 his object than his seat swings off with him to its 

 perpendicular. He thus remains suspended in the 

 air, in a sufficiently mortifying situation, until some 

 oi.e arrives to shoot him : but sometimes he throws 



himself off, and is then impaled upon the pointed 

 stakes which are planted round the tree. 



It may be interesting to compare this method of 

 dealing with bees at the eastern extremity of Eu- 

 rope, with the process which is pursued at the 

 opposite extremity of the same continent. 



In Portuyul, when it is intended to form a colony 

 of bees, a spot of ground is chosen exposed to the 

 south, or south-east, well sheltered from the north- 

 ern blasts, and surrounded with shrubs and flowers; 

 the more of rosemary there is among these the bet- 

 ter. In selecting a situation, the condition of the 

 neighbouring grounds is a point of consideration, as 

 bees are said to range as far as a league from their 

 hives in quest of food. The situations being cho- 

 sen, lanes five or six feet wide are cut through the 

 shrubby thickets. The fences of these lanes are 

 of about the same height, and are formed into 

 small recesses or niches for the reception .of the 

 hives. The hive, which is formed of the rind of 

 the cork-tree, is usually of a cylindrical shape, about 

 twenty-seven inches high by fourteen in diameter. 

 This is covered with an inverted earthenware pan, 

 the edge of which projects over the cylinder like a 

 cornice. The whole is fastened with wooden pegs, 

 and the joints are stopped with peat. In the front 

 of the cylinder, at the height of about eight inches, 

 is a small aperture, at which the bees go in and out. 

 The interior is divided into three equal parts, se- 

 parated by cross sticks. Here the bees form their 

 combs and cells, and deposit their honey. When 

 the bees swarm, which is usually in May or June, 

 the hives are placed to receive them where they 

 alight. If they descend on a tree they are shaken 

 off. The person who does this sometimes defends 

 his face with a wire mask and his hands with 

 gloves ; but in general this precaution is not. con- 

 sidered necessary, as it is known that bees only 

 sting when much irritated. Sometimes the bees 

 are so wild that they fly away when it is attempted 

 to collect them. When this happens, they may 

 still be recovered. A sheet is, during the night, 

 spread out upon the ground near the swarm. They 

 alight on this, when a hive with the entrance 

 closed is placed upon them, and the whole is then 

 carried home in the sheet. When the time arrives 

 for collecting the honey, the business is usually 

 performed during the heat of the day, when most 

 of the bees are absent. The operator, whose head 

 and hands are guarded in the manner before men- 

 tioned, is attended by a person with a small chafing 

 dish, containing a coal fire, which is covered with 

 damp peat, to make the greater smoke. This 

 smoke is introduced into the hive from the top of 

 the cylinder, when the bees which happen to be 

 there either fly away or remain stupified at the 

 bottom. The hive is then taken to pieces by draw- 

 ing out the pegs, and the comb is cut out, except 

 a small portion which is left to induce the bees to 

 adopt it as the nucleus of a new comb. After this 

 work has been performed, the hive is put together 

 again, and replaced in its former situation. The 

 apiarian often visits the ground to repair any 

 accident that may have happened. He is care- 

 ful not to destroy any snakes which may fre- 

 quent the place, as they never molest the bees, 

 but destroy the toads and lizards which are ob- 

 noxious to them. When a hive is decayed, it 

 is taken asunder and fumigated, and then the 

 bees forsake it and seek shelter in an adjoining 

 hive which has been previously prepared for the 

 purpose. This operation is commonly performed 



