ALFALFA AND BEES. 81 



they alternately penetrate deeper and deeper, till they acquire a firm 

 hold of the flesh with their barbed hooks. 



" The muscles, though invisible to the eye, are yet strong enough 

 to force the sting to the depth of one-twelfth of an inch through the 

 thick skin of a man's hand."* 



Various remedies are recommended. It is important to scrape away 

 with the finger nail the inserted sting ; it should not be taken away by 

 pinching it between the thumb and forefinger, for this act will force 

 all the poison in the gland down into the wound. The place stung 

 should not be rubbed, since this increases circulation and diffuses the 

 poison over larger surface, consequently making the pain greater. 

 This poison will mix freely with water, so that if the affected parts 

 are placed in cold water the pain will be greatly allayed. Ammonia 

 will neutralize the acid, and its use is recommended. 



While attending the National Beekeepers' Association, at Omaha, 

 the writer was much interested in the discussion upon the medicinal 

 properties of the sting. It was strongly advocated by some that the 

 sting of the bee, directed toward the seat of rheumatic pains, would 

 give permanent relief. It was the observation of others, based upon 

 experiments, that no permanent value could be attached to the me- 

 dicinal properties of the sting. In each case the speakers spoke from 

 experience, the speaker being the subject of the experimentation. 



METHOD OF FERTILIZATION OF THE ALFALFA BLOSSOM. 



The location of the coveted nectar at the base of the flower, the 

 action of the tongue of the bee and the work of the hairs under the 

 head and upon the breast in placing the pollen upon the stigma are 



shown in figure 3, and also in figure 4 at 

 ~b 4-. The flower gives material aid, by 

 causing the stamens and pistils to spring 

 up and strike the insect. 



A part of Miiller's observations upon 

 this point are : If in a young flower we 

 cut through the claw of the carina. the 

 column springs upward to some extent, 

 FIG. 3. (Original.) Pollination carrying with it the carina and ala3. If in 



another unexploded flower, we carefully 



cut through one of the digitiform processes of* the alre, the parts re- 

 main motionless ; but on cutting the processes of the other side, ex- 

 plosion at once follows. The pouched processes of the carina ( fig. 

 4, b 3 and c3) are thus sufficient to hold the column down without 



* Langstroth. 

 6 



