62 HOW TO KEEP BEES 



were in use, and was the natural outgrowth of the 

 close relations of bees and the home for many cen- 

 turies. 



The bee collects the propolis by cutting it off with 

 her mandibles and packing it in her pollen baskets; 

 and when she arrives at the hive, she never attempts 

 to unload it herself, evidently deeming it safer to let 

 the sister, whose business it is at the moment to stop 

 cracks and crevices, take it from her legs and apply 

 it at once. 



There are various uses in the hive for the bee-glue: 

 It is used as a filler to make smooth the rough places 

 of the hive; it holds the combs in place; it calks 

 every crack; it may serve as a sarcophagus for any- 

 intruder too large to be pitched out : snails and slugs 

 have been found thus encased; it is applied as a 

 varnish to the cells of the honey-comb if they remain 

 unused for a time; and it is especially useful as a 

 window shade. A nature-study teacher of our 

 acquaintance established an observation hive in her 

 school-room, which had an uncovered pane of glass 

 set in one side so that the pupils might observe the 

 interesting life of the hive. To her dismay the bees 

 straightway hung a curtain of propolis over the win- 

 dow and so shut out intrusive eyes. 



One of the chief uses of propolis is to try the tem- 

 per of the bee-keeper. If there is the least crack 

 between hive and super, or cover, the two are glued 

 together so that nothing but a knife and much muscu- 

 lar force can loosen them. Cover blankets are stuck 

 fast; the frames are welded to their places by it, 



