THE BEE. 113 



without fire from the honeycombs: The yellow 

 is extracted by heat, and squeezed through bags 

 in a press. The best honey is new, thick, and 

 granulated, of a clear transparent white colour, 

 of a soft and aromatic smell, and of a sweet and 

 lively taste. Honey made in mountainous coun- 

 tries is preferable to that of the valley. The 

 honey made in the spring is more highly esteem- 

 ed than that gathered in summer ; which last is 

 still more valuable than that of autumn, when 

 the flowers begin to fade and lose their fragrance. 

 The bees are nearly alike in all parts of the 

 world, yet there are differences worthy our no- 

 tice. In Guadajoupe, the bee is less by one-half 

 than the European, and more black and round. 

 They have no sting, and make their cells in hol- 

 low trees, where, if the hole they meet with is 

 too large, they form a sort of waxen house, of the 

 shape of a pear, and in this they lodge and store 

 their honey, and lay their eggs. They lay up 

 their honey in waxen vessels, of the size of a 

 pigeon's egg, of a black or deep violet colour ; 

 and these are so joined together, that there is no 

 space left between them. The honey never con- 

 geals, but is fluid, of the consistence of oil, and 

 the colour of amber. Resembling these, there are 

 found little black bees, without a sting, in all the 

 tropical climates ; and though these countries are 

 replete with bees like our own, yet those form 

 the most useful and laborious tribe in that part of 

 the world. The honey they produce is neither 

 so unpalatable nor so surfeiting as ours, and the 

 wax is so soft, that it is only used for medicinal 



VOL. VI. H 



