344 



THE fEME^RICMF? WmW JO^RPfSIr. 



honey from one tree.'''' In 1883 the In- 

 dian Government published the result 

 of investigations that had been going 

 on for some years in all parts of India, 

 in connection with the popular treat- 

 ment of bees in that country. From 

 this source we learn that the chief 

 honey district in Southern India is 

 about Coorg and the Wynaad near the 

 Neilgherry Hills, which is about the 

 nearest part of continental India to 

 Ceylon, where Mr. Benton met the 

 Apis dorsata. 



In Coorg, it is said, "the wild bees 

 build their combs in the trees, and as 

 man}- as a hundi-ed combs are occa- 

 sionally found in a single tree. An 

 average of 8 pounds of honey is ob- 

 tained from each comb in this district, 

 and the bees are driven out by smok- 

 ing torches applied to their nests." 

 One case is mentioned of a "large 

 mango tree, some 20 feet in girth, 

 standing on the boundary between 

 Wynaad and Mysore, where the na- 

 tives in each district exercise the right 

 of collecting the honey from the 



as far as I know, without success up to 

 the present. 



Mr. A. R. Wallace, in his work en- 

 titled " The Malaj' Archipelago," pub- 

 lished in 1868, mentions bees, honey, 

 and beeswax as met with, especially 

 in the great island of Borneo, in 

 Celebes, and in Timor. They are no 

 doubt common in all, or nearly all the 

 islands of this group, though not 

 specially mentioned, the principal ob- 

 jects of Mr. Wallace's pursuit having 

 been the birds of paradise and other 

 gorgeously feathered denizens of that 

 interesting region. 



At Maros, in the Celebes islands, he 

 notes, " the flies and bees were abun- 

 dant, and of these I daily obtained new 

 and interesting species ;" but he does 

 not describe the species or varieties of 

 bees met with. However, when at 

 Timor, he speaks, as we shall see 

 further on, of the Apis dorsata, and in 

 the following extract, the manner ia 

 which the honey-bee of Borneo is de- 

 scribed, leads to the conclusion that it 

 is the same as at Timor. After de- 



The Manner in which Apis Dorsata Build their Combs. 



branches overhanging their own ter- 

 ritory." These Ijees would appear to 

 be of the same variety as those found 

 in Ceylon, but unfortunately no partic- 

 ulars are given as to their size, color, 

 the size of their combs or its separate 

 cells, nor about the separation into 

 different "nests" or coloniesof the large 

 number of combs found in one tree. 



One of the reporters, Mr. Morgan, 

 Deputy Conservator of Forests in the 

 Wynaad, comes to the conclusion that 

 _" only one kind of bee, the Apis indica, 

 is capable of domestication, and that 

 only in hilly districts, not on the 

 plains ;" but he does not say why, nor 

 give any special description of this 

 variety. A very large sort of bee, 

 which they call "large cliff bees" 

 (building in cliffs and under ledges of 

 rocks), are represented as " so fero- 

 cious in habit, and furnished with such 

 deadly stings, as to be dangerous to 

 both men and beasts coming within 

 their neighborhood." Whether these 

 dangerous insects are A. indica or A. 

 dorsata, or some other sort, does not 

 appear. Mr. Jones, of Canada, has 

 since made personal acquaintance with 

 the A. dorsata in Ceylon, and endeav- 

 ored to import some to America, but 



scribing the many uses to which the 

 bamboo cane is applied in Borneo — 

 the building of light suspension bridges 

 across rivers, etc. — he says : — 



One of the most striking nses to which 

 the bamboo is applied by the Dyaks, is to 

 assist them in climbing lofty trees, by driv- 

 ing iu pegs in the way I have already de- 

 scribed at page .5.5. This method is con- 

 stantly used in order to obtain wax, which 

 IS one of the most valuable products of the 

 country. The honey-bee of Borneo very 

 generally hangs its combs under the 

 branches of tlie Tappan, a tree which towers 

 above all others iu the forest, and whose 

 smooth cylindrical trunk often rises a hun- 

 dred feet 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 proceeds 

 buy the much-coveted brass wire, ear-rings, 

 and gold-edged handkerchiefs, with which 

 they love to decorate themselves. 



Thin, long jointed bamboos form the 

 Dyaks only water-vessels, and a dozen of 

 tliese stand in the corner of every house. 

 They are clean, light, and easily carried, 

 and are in many ways superior to earthen 

 vessels for the purpose.... Salted fruit, or 

 nsh, sugar, vinegar, and honey are pre- 

 served in them instead of jars or bottles. 

 At limor also, describing a pbotograth 

 given of two natives, he remarks, "The 

 covered bamboos probably contain honev 

 lor sale. ' 



At Timor he gives the following ac- 

 count of the manner in which the na- 

 tives climb the tall trees there and take 

 the honey-combs of the Ajns dorsata. 

 The description is so graphic and in- 

 teresting, especially to the different 

 means adopted by these natives as 

 compared with those of Borneo, climb- 

 ing the tall smooth trees, that I am in- 

 duced to give it at full length. 



The beeswax is a still more important and 

 valuable product, formed by the wild bees 

 (Apis dorsata), which build huge honey- 

 combs, suspended in the open air from the 

 underside of the lofty branches of the 

 highest trees. These are of a semi-circular 

 form, and often 3 to 4 feet in diameter. I 

 once saw the natives take a bees' nest, and 

 a very interesting sight it was. In the valley 

 where 1 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 feet 

 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, 

 1 waited to watch their operations. One of 

 them drst 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 it was 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 produc- 

 ing another cloth wrapped it around his 

 head, neck and body, and tied it firmly 

 around his neck, leaving his face, arms, and 

 legs completely bare. Slung to his girdle he 

 carried a long, thin coil of rope ; 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 the trunk, and leaning back be- 

 gan to walk up it. It was wonderful to see 

 the skill with which he took advantage of 

 the slightest irregularities of the bark or 

 obliquity of the stem to aid his assent, jerk- 

 ing the stiff creeper a few feet higher when 

 he had found a firm hold for his bare feet. 

 It almost made me giddy to look at him as 

 he rapidly got up— 30, -10. 50 feet above the 

 ground ; and 1 kept wondering how he could 

 possibly mount the next few feet of straight 

 smooth bark. Still, however, he kept on 

 with as much coolness and apparent cer- 

 tainty as if he were going up a ladder, till he 

 got within 10 or 1.5 feet of the bees. Then- 

 he stopped a moment, and took care to- 

 swing the torch (which hung just at his 

 feet) a little towards these dangerous in- 

 sects, so as to send up the stream ot smoke 

 between him and them. Still going on, in a 

 minute more he brought himself under the 

 limb, and in a manner quite unintelligible 

 to me, seeing that both hands were occupied 

 in supporting himself by the creeper, man- 

 aged to get upon it. 



By this time the bees began to be alarmed,, 

 and formed a dense buzzingswarm just over 

 him, but he brought the torch up closer t» 

 him, and cooly brushed awav those that 

 settled on his arms and legs. Then stretch- 

 ing himself along the limb, he crept towards 

 the nearest comb and swung the torch just 

 under it. The moment the smoke touched 



