THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



11 



exrellonce of cliampagnc would bo dcsfroycd if 

 its fermentation were condiu^ted upon a large 

 scale : it ni;iy be made successfully in a gallon 

 measure. This wine is so managed by the ma- 

 kers as to ferment after bottling. 



Dri/ wines and fine wines arc much more 

 durable than any others ; and those that would 

 perish in cask, may be preserved many years by 

 bottlinfj. 



These hints will, I hope, enable the makers 

 of home-made wines to conduct the process 

 seientificallv, and to secure generally a success- 

 ful issue. Cookery books and good housewives 

 abound in receipts for wine-making, which are 

 very often fanciful and absurd, recommending 

 the introduction of articles which, in their very 

 natures, counteract the production of good wine. 

 Hence we are sometimes presented with such 

 miserable mawkish stuff, as disgraces the name 

 of wine, being only rendered tolerable by the 

 brandy which has been added to it, and which 

 in some degree covers the crudeness and insi- 

 piditjr of the compound, and moderates its hos- 

 tility to the peace of our stomachs. 



Ancient Testimonies in favor of Mead. 

 Mead of the finest ciuality was called Metheg- 

 ]in, a name derived from two Greek words, 

 signifying vinum splendidum : it was the pro- 

 duce of finer honey than Mead, and contained 

 a greater proportion of it to the quantity of 

 wdter. Methcglin was to Mead what Vinum 

 was to Lora ; what prime cider fit for bottling 

 is to common draught cider. 



So much was Mead esteemed in Transylvania 

 that Mercaior speaks thus of it: "Qui etiam 

 rerum peritis, Vinum Creticumceu Malvaticum 

 opinantibus facile imponat. " 



"Lautiorum tantum mensarum sit, et pri- 

 mates solum bibant," says Ulysses Aldro- 

 vandus. 



" Mulsum est vinum utilissimum et stomacho 

 conven entissimum," Lobel and Pictorius. 



Mulsum is stated by Dr. Henderson to have 

 been a mixture of wine and honey. 



Age was considered as necessary to its ex- 

 cellence : "Vetus sit et rite confectum," says 

 Andreas Mathiolus. 



Queen Elizabeth'' s Recipe for Mead. 

 Take of sweet-briar leaves and thyme each 

 one bushel, rosemary half a bushel, bay -leaves 

 one peck. Seethe these ingredients in a fur- 

 nace full of water ; (containing probably not 

 less than 12e gallons) boil for half an hour; 

 pour the whole into a vat, and when cooled to 

 a proper temperature, (about 75° Fahr. ) strain. 

 Add to every six gallons of the strained liquor, 

 a gallon of fine honey, and work the mixture 

 together lor half an hour. Repeat the stirring 

 occasionally for two days ; then boil the liquor 

 afresh, skim it till it becomes clear, and return 

 it to the vat to cool : when redu*ed to a proper 

 temperature (about 80° !) pour it into a vessel 

 from which fresh ale or beer has just been emp- 

 tied : work it for three daj-s, and tun. 



When fit to be stopped down, tie up a bag of 

 beaten cloves and mace, (about half an ounce 

 of each) and suspend it in the liquor from the 

 bung-hole. When it has stood for half a year 

 it will be fit for use. — Bevan on Bees. 



[From the Bienenzeitung.] 



Another Exception. 



Mr. Rothe stated in a recent communication 

 to the Bienenzeilunq, that he has observed an 

 instance where a normal queen issued from a 

 side-opening in a royal cell. Permit me to say 

 that a similar exceptional case came under my 

 notice last summer. I placed a queen cell near- 

 ly mature in a queen cage, intending that its 

 inmate should there complete her development. 

 On examining it a few days after, I found a 

 young and apparently perfect queen moving 

 about in the cage. The apex of the cell did not 

 present the circular o])ening usually seen when 

 the newly-hatched queen has emerged. It was 

 still entire, and closed, but there was an open- 

 ing on the side of the cells as if it had been 

 made by workers in the usual manner, though 

 none such could have had access to it, and 

 through this side-opening the queen must have 

 emerged. She subsequently, when liberated, 

 made her hymenial excursion, and was duly fer- 

 tilized. 



DISTANT BEE PASTURAGE. 



In the course of last summer I had an oppor- 

 tunity to observe the influence which the greater 

 or less distance at Avhich bee pasturage is found, 

 exerts on the population of a hive. "One of my 

 apiaries was located at a place in the immediate 

 vicinity of which there was literally nothing for 

 the bees to gather. The apiary was completely 

 surrounded with grain fields, encompassed by 

 mulberry hedges, neither of which yielded 

 honey. The few and small patches of meadow 

 land in the neighborhood, were poor and 

 marshy, with few flowers furnishing nectar. 

 To obtain supplies sufficient for their subsist- 

 ence, the bees were consequently constrained 

 to fly to a considerable distance. Thus, for in- 

 stance, I noticed about the middle of June that 

 they were passing to and from a chestnut grove 

 then in full blossom, and which was about three 

 miles distant. The weather was warm and 

 somewhat sultry. The queens laid an abund- 

 ance of eggs, and the hives were full of brood. 

 Nevertheless, when examining the hives at eve, 

 after the day's toil was ended, I found only 

 small supplies of honey and a scant population. 

 At first, I was unable to account for this, be- 

 cause judging from the masses of brood seen in. 

 the hives, large numbers of young bees must 

 have been issuing dailj% and the stocks should 

 consequently have been well filled with bees. 

 On reflection, I became convinced that it was 

 the distance to which the bees were constrained 

 to fly to reach their pasturage, that caused the 

 striking paucity of population — a large propor 

 tion of those which went forth in eager quest of 

 honey perished on the way from various mis- 

 haps, and never returned to their native home. 

 I remember that when formerly expressing 

 to older bee-keepers, my apprehensions that 

 bees placed in certain localities would be una- 

 ble to gather stores enough for their own sub- 

 sistence, I was assured that I need give mj'self 

 no concern about the result, because the bees 



