198 AVTDJE — BEES. 



"Whcrcsoe'er they move, before them 

 Swarms the stinging fly, the Alimo, 

 Swarms the Bee, the honey-maker; 

 "NVheresoe'er they tread, beneath them 

 Springs a flower unknown among us, 

 Springs the White Mean's Foot in blossom. 



Many Apiarians contend that newly-settled countries are 

 most favorable to the Bee; and an old German adage runs 



thus: 



Bells' ding dong, But hoot of owl, 



And chora'l song, And "wolfs long howl" 



Deter the bee Incite to moil 



From industry : And steady toil.^ 



Hector St. John, in his Letters, gives the following curi- 

 ous account of the method which he employed in discovering 

 Bees in our woods in early times : Provided with a blanket, 

 some provisions, wax, vermilion, honey, and a small pocket 

 compass, he proceeded to such woods as were at a consider- 

 able distance from the settlements. Then examining if they 

 abounded with large trees, he kindled a small fire on some 

 flat stones, close by which putting some wax, and, on another 

 stone near by, dropping distinct drops of honey, which he 

 encircled with the vermilion. He then retired to carefully 

 watch if any Bees appeared. The smell of the burnt wax, 

 if there were any Bees in the neighborhood, would unavoid- 

 ably attract them ; and, finding the honey, would necessarily 

 become tinged with the vermilion, in attempting to get at 

 it. Next, fixing his compass, he found out the direction of 

 the hives by the flight of the loaded Bees, which is invariably 

 straight when they are returning home. Then timing with 

 his watch the absence of the Bee till it w^ould come back for 

 a second load, and recognizing it by the vermilion, he could 

 generally guess pretty closely to the distance traversed by it 

 in the given time. Knowing then the direction and the 

 probable distance, he seldom failed in going directly to the 

 right tree. In this way he sometimes found as many as 

 eleven swarms in one season. ^ 



The shepherds of the Alps, as we learn from Sausure quoted 

 in the Insect Miscellanies, as soon as the snows are melted 

 on the sides of the mountains, transfer their flocks from the 



1 Langstroth on the Honey-Bee, p. 236. 

 « Letters. 



