95 



Know thai they merely collect it. Many flowers af- 

 ford it, but beside this, there are two kinds of honey 

 dews. The one does not fall, but is a mild sweet 

 juice, which having circulated in the vessels of plants, 

 is separated by proper strainers, and exsudes on the 

 leaves, though sometimes it is deposited on the pith, 

 or in the sugar can s. 



So the leaves of the holm. oak are frequently co- 

 vered with thousands of small drops, which point 

 mt the several pores from which they proceeded, 

 and are no other than pure honey. But it is found 

 only in the old leaves, which are strong and firm, 

 not on the tender ones, which are newly come forth, 

 although the old are covered by the new ones, and 

 so sheltered from any thing that could fail from above. 

 Mean time the leaves of the neighbouring trees, have 

 no moisture upon them, whereas, if it falls as a dew, 

 it would necessarily wet all the leaves without dis- 

 tinction. 



The other kind of honey-dew, springs from a 

 small insect called a Vine-fretter, the excrement of 

 which is the most delicate honey in nature. They 

 settle on branches of trees that are a year old ; the 

 juice of which, however htrsh at first, becomes in the 

 bowels of the insect equal iu sweetness to any honey 

 whatever. 



There are two species of these flies, the smaller is 

 green ; the other twice as lar^e, is blackish. Hear- 

 ing many bees buzzing in a tuft of a holm. oak, upon 

 observing, I found the tuft of leaves and branches 

 covered with drops which the bees collected. Each 

 of the drops was not round, but of a longish oval. 

 1 soon perceived from whence they proceeded. The 

 leaves covered with them, were just beneath a swarm 

 of the larger vine fretters, which from time to time 

 raised their belies, and ejected small drops of an 

 amber colour. I catched some of them on my hand, 

 and found they had the very same flavour, with what 

 had before fallen on the 'leaves. I afterwards saw 

 the smaller vine^fretters eject their drops in the same 



