The Bee-Master of Warrilow. 



went along with the expedition, the bee-master gave me 

 more details of the coming enterprise. 



" Mind you," he said, " this is not good beemanship 

 as the moderns understand it. It is nothing but bee- 

 murder, of the old-fashioned kind. But even if the bees 

 could be easily taken alive, we should not want them m the 

 apiary. Blood counts in bee-life, as in everythmg else ; 

 and these forest-bees have been too long under the old 

 natural conditions to be of any use among the domestic 

 strain. However, the honey is worth the getting, and if 

 we can land only one big stock or two it will be a profitable 



day's work." , c i i 



We had left the hot, dusty lane, and taken to the tield- 

 path leading up through a sea of white clover to the woods 



above. . , , , . 1, 



"This is the after-crop," said the bee-master, as he 

 strode on ahead with his jingling burden. " The second 

 cut of Dutch clover always gives the most honey. Listen 

 to the bees everywhere— it is just like the roar of London 

 heard from the top of St. Paul's ! And most of it here is 

 going into the woods, more's the pity. Well, well ; we 

 must try to get some of it back to-day." 



Between the verge of the clover-field and the shadowy 

 depths of the forest ran a broad green waggon-way ; and 

 here we came to a halt. In the field we had lately traversed 

 the deep note of the bees had sounded mainly underfoot ; 

 but now it was all above us, as the honeymakers sped to 

 and fro between the sunlit plane of blossom and their 

 hidden storehouses in the wood. The upper air was full of 

 their music ; but, straining the sight to its utmost, not a 

 bee could be seen. 



*' And you will never see them," said the bee-master, 

 watching me as he unpacked his kit. *' They fly too fast 

 and too high. And if you can't see them go by out here in 

 the broad sunshine, how will you track them to their ^ lair 

 through the dim light under the trees? And yet," he 

 went on, ** that is the only way to do it. It is useless to 

 search the wood for their nests ; you might travel the 

 w^hole day through and find nothing. The only plan is to 

 follow the laden bees returning to the hive. And now 

 watch how we do that in Sussex." 



From one of the boxes he produced a contrivance like 



52 



