204 THE HIVE AND HOJSTEY-JBEE. 



If, when two colonies are put together, the bees in the 

 one on the old stand are not gorged with honey, they will 

 often attack the others, which are loaded, and speedily sting 

 them to death, in spite of all their attempts to purchase 

 immunity, by offering their honey. Mr. Wm. "W. Gary, 

 of Coleraine, Massachusetts, who has long been an accurate 

 observer of the habits of bees, unites colonies very suc- 

 cessfully, by alarming those that are on the old stand ; as 

 soon as they show, by their notes, that they are subdued, 

 he gives them the new comers. The alarm which causes 

 them to gorge themselves with honey (p. 27), puts them, 

 doubtless, upon their good behavior, long enough to give 

 the others a fair chance. 



It has been stated already, that a queen-bee cannot be 

 induced to sting, by any kind of treatment, however 

 severe. The reason of this strange unwillingness will be 

 obvious, when we consider that the preservation of her 

 life is indispensable to the existence of. the colony, and 

 that, although the loss of her sting would be fatal to her- 

 self, it could avail no more for their defense, in case of an 

 attack, than the single sword of a Washington or a Wel- 

 lington could decide a great battle. While the common 

 bees are ready to sally forth and sacrifice their lives on 

 the slightest provocation, a queen-bee only buries herself 



Of all the old writers, Wildman appears to have made the nearest approaches to 

 the modern methods of taming and handling bees. Twenty-five years before 

 Huber's investigations on the origin of wax, this acute observer had noticed the 

 scales of wax on the abdomen of the workers ; and he was so thoroughly convinced 1 

 that wax was secreted from honey, that he recommended feeding new swarms, 

 when the weather is stormy, that they may sooner bwld comb for the eggs of the 

 queen. * 



Mr. Wagner refers me to " OKEEBECK'B Cflossariwn MelUtwgiitm " Bremen, 

 1T65, p. 89 in which the origin of wax is claimed, more then 20 years before the 

 date of that work say 1745 for a Hanoverian Pastor, named Herman C. Horn- 

 Dostel. He gave his discoveries to the world in the so-called " HAHBTTRGII 

 LIBKAKT," vol. 2, p. 45 ; and they are so particularly described as to leave no doubt 

 of their correctness. 



