weak; the remainiuo; 40 were in tolerable 

 good condition. Tliese we run for extracted 

 honey, averajiino; 150 lbs. per iiive; making 

 in all about 6,000 lbs. Our lioney was a little 

 dark, but of good quality. We sold lyost 

 of it at retail, getting 15 cts. per lb. We 

 increased our bees to 80 colonies, and tliey 

 have plenty of honey, and so far in good 

 condition for winter. I will close by wish- 

 ing you a " a happy and prosperous new 

 year." Wm. Bence. 



Newbery, Jefferson Co., Ky. 



For the American Bee Journal. 



New Races of Bees. 



Some years ago an article appeared either 

 in The Ameiucan Bee Jouknal or in one 

 of our agricultural papers, giving an account 

 of a bee on the Amoor river, that was 

 thought would prove of value in this country. 

 Has anything further been heard of it? 



Correspondence has been opened by sev- 

 eral American bee-keepers, to obtain int'or- 

 niation about Apis dorsdtd, of Java, and 1 

 liope soon to have something to communi- 

 cate respecting it. 



I received a letter to-day from a gentleman 

 who is skillful in handling bees. Rethinks 

 of going to Europe in the spring, to import 

 the Cyprian bee for himself and to till several 

 orders from friends; and 1 know of several 

 who have ordered them from German breed- 

 ers. So there is a fair prospect of having 

 them tested here the coming season. 



Honey is now init upon the market in 

 such attractive form by our best apiarists, 

 and sucli skill has been attaiiunl by a large 

 number in the practical work of the apiary, 

 and that number more rapidly increasing 

 every year through the knowledge spread 

 by ourjournals, that we must look in new 

 directions for advance in our persuit. Sci- 

 ence must come to our aid and suggest new 

 metho<1s of culture. New races must be 

 tried. Much remains to be done before we 

 can feel assured that we have reached the 

 best results. 



I would here return my thanks to Mr. 

 Benton for the interest he has shown by 

 translating Mr. Eilward Cori's article on 

 Apis dorsata for the Ameuican Bee 



JOUKNAL. 



Shortly after the publication by the Har- 

 pers of Alfred Kussel Wallace's Malay 

 Arcliipelago, 1869, I sent seme extracts to 

 the JouRNAiv on Apis dorsata. As an 

 interest is springing up in this bee, both 

 here and in Europe, I think it desirable to 

 publisli them again, that a greater number 

 of readers may enjoy the promising facts 

 given, which 1 consider even more encour- 

 aging than the statements given by Mr. 

 Cori. 



Wallace found this bee on the Island of 

 Timor, and mentions bees or their products 

 in Borneo Celebes, Gilolo, and the Aru 

 Islands. Possibly Apis dorsata exists on 

 many of the Islands, as well as in Java and 

 Timor. Mr. Woodbury, of England, received 

 specimens of this bee and comb from 

 Ceylon, but failed to import it. 



In visiting a house in Borneo, Mr. W. 

 writes: " Almost all the people, however, 

 were away on some excursion after bird- 

 nests or bees-wax." The honey bee of 



Borneo very generally hangs its combs 

 under the branches of the tappau, a tree 

 which towers above all others in the forest, 



and whose smooth cylindrical trunk often 

 rises 100 ft. without a branch. The Dyaks 

 climb these lofty trees at night, building up 

 their bamboo ladder as they go, and bring- 

 ing down gigantic honey-combs. These 

 furnish them with a delicious feast of honey 

 and young bees, besides the wax which 

 they sell to traders, and with the pi'oceeds 

 buy the much-coveted brass wire, ear rings 

 and gold-edged handkerchiefs, with which 

 they love to decorote themselves, lu 

 ascending durion and other fruit trees 

 which branch at from SO to 50 ft. from the 

 ground, I have seen them use the bamboo 

 pegs only, without the upright bamboo, 

 which renders them so much more secure." 

 Mr.. W. describes very minutely how the 

 pegs are driven in the tree, and the bamboo 

 ladder formed as they ascend these gigantic 

 trees. One of the illustrations, (p. 204), 

 copied from a photograph, represents a 

 Timorese with a small water bucket in one 

 hand, made of an entire unopened palm 

 leaf, and in the other a covered bamboo, 

 which "possibly contains honey for sale" 



Besides ponies, almost the only exports 



of Timor are sandal wood and bees-wax. — 

 The sandal wood is chietly exported to 

 China, where It is largely used to burn in 

 the temples and in the houses of the 

 wealthy. The bees-wax is a still more im- 

 portant and valuable product, formed by 

 the wild bees, {Apis dorsata), which build 

 huge honey-combs, suspendecl in the open 

 air from the under side of the lofty branches 

 of the highest trees. These are of a semi- 

 circular form, and often3or4ft. indiameter. 

 I once saw the natives take a bees' nest, 

 and a very interesting sight it was. In the 

 valley, where I used to collect insects, I 

 one day saw three or four Timorese men 

 and boys under a high tree, and, looking up, 

 saw on a very lofty horizontal branch three 

 large bees' combs. The tree was straight 

 and smooth barked, and without a branch, 

 till at 70 or 80 ft. from the ground it gave 

 out the limb which the bees had chosen for 

 their home. As the men were evidently 

 looking after the bees, I waited to watcli 

 their operations. Oueof them first produced 

 a long piece of wood, apparently the stem 

 of a small tree or creeper, which he had 

 brought with him, and began splitting it 

 through in several directions, which showed 

 that it was very tough and stringy. He 

 then wrapped it in palm leaves, which were 

 secured by twisting a slender creeper 

 around them. He then fastened his cloth 

 tightly around his loins, and producing 

 another cloth, wrapxied it around his head, 

 neck, and body, and tied it tirmly around 

 his neck, leaving his face, arms and legs 

 comparatively bare. Slung to this girdle he 

 carried a long thin coil of cord; and while 

 he had been making these preparations one 

 of his companions had cut a strong creeper, 

 or bush-rope 8 or 10 yards long, to one end 

 of which the wood torch was fastened, and 

 lighted at the bottom, emitting a steady 

 stream of smoke. Just above the torch a 

 chopping-knife was fastened by a short cord. 

 The bee-hunter now took hold of the 

 bush-rope just above the torch and passed 

 the other end around the trunk of the tree, 

 holding one end in each hand. Jerking it 

 up the tree a little above his head, he set his 

 foot against tlie trunk, and, leaning back 

 began walking up it. It was wonderful to 

 see the skill with which he took advantage 

 of the slightest irregularities of the bark or 



