180 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER, 



DECFMBER 18. 1«- S. 



BEES. 



Amon^all the difTercnt classes of winged insects, 

 the most beneficial to man, and one of the most 

 wonderful, are bees. Bees are common in most 

 countries ; but although naturalists have for ages 

 considered them an important subject of inquiry, 

 their history as yet is but imperfectly known. In 

 some countries, bees are an object of great atten- 

 tion, and their honey and wax are considerable ar- 

 ticles of commerce. 



In every hive, bees are of lliree kinds ; viz : — 1st, 

 the working bee.s, or uiules ; 2d, males, or drones. 

 which are less numerous, aiul 3d, the female bee, 

 which is called the mother, or queen. The work- 

 era are the smallest, the males the largest, and the 

 females are of the middle size. 



The males are nearly double the size of the 

 workers, but want stings. The females, or the 

 queens have a sting, and are linger than the males, 

 or the workers ; in other res^jjcls they are exactly 

 like them. 



Bees usually collect togetTier In hives. A hive 

 generally contains from 15 to 20 thousand ; in oth- 

 ers fr^i 30 to GO thousand. In all these there is 

 but one queen mother, or female ; and the number 

 of males does not exceed two or three hundred ; 

 the remainder is composed of working bees, which 

 labor for the others, to support them. Neither the 

 males nor females go abroad in quest of wax or 

 honey. All the working bees are furnished with a 

 trunk for their labors, and a sling for their defence. 



These little animals, whom we behold so soci- 

 able in their community, are ever industrious to 

 assist each other, and prevent their mutual neces- 

 sities with surprising generosity ; and shall we 

 leave our fellow-creatures in distress ? On the 

 contrary, we are convinced that the finest of all 

 pleasures consist in preserving persons from calam- 

 ity, and it is a pleasure capable of increasing in 

 proportion to our abilities to give. 



The bees when they begin to form the different 

 cells in the hive, commence at the top, where they 

 lay a bed of glue, to which they fix the first cells 

 of the comb, which they continue downwards, till 

 they have no room left. The comb they divide 

 into three cantons ; one where they rear their 

 young, another where they store their wax for fu- 

 ture occasions, and the third where they preserve 

 their honey for the winter. The wax is a provis- 

 ion altogether as necessary for the bees, in one 

 sense, as the honey, for it is with the wax they 

 build their apartments, and also Vhere they trea- 

 sure up their honey. 



A bee is first an egg ; -^lis egg, which in time 

 becomes a bee, is exceedingly while. The eggs 

 of bees are cast into the empty ceJIs, not careless- 

 ly into any cells, but only the middle cells, which 

 always are appointed for the breeding cells, whilst 

 those all around are reserved for tlie honey Bel- 

 lows Falls Guzelte. 



on the approach or attack of an enerny, exhibiting are all destructive poisons. Its twigs and branclie 

 eveiy symptom of extreme rage, and displaying all 1 operate as a slow, malignant and incurable poison 

 those beauties for which its species are so remark- j of a peculiar quality, destructive of animals am 

 able when under the influimce of passion. No | man. It has been recently discovered, and satis 

 cause for its disorder was at first visible; but in a j factorily tested, that the browsing upon the sprou 

 short time a ulaok snake darted from the surround- about its root, it the cause of that mysterious dis 

 ing bushes across the folds of his antagonist, and j ease, called the milk sickecss. 

 disappeared on the other side. The rattle-snake | The fruit, when fully ripe, has an inviting ap 

 did not fail to strike at its darting assailant; but; ptarance, but it soon takes a dry rot, and the insidi 

 with wliat success the rapidity of their motion pre- j becomes a poisonous and disagreeable dust, in ap 

 vented me from determininj. The rattle-snake pearance resembling Scotch Snuff. Notwithslaud 



remained in his coil, prepared for another assault, 

 which was accordingly odered by his black foe re- 

 turning, and again gliding over him with almost 

 inconceivable rapidity, while the same attempt as 

 formerly was made to punish the aggression. 

 These movements were several times repeated with 

 no apparent advantage to either party. Tlie black 

 snake seemed once or twice struck with the fangs 

 of his enemy and yet returned with undiminished 

 celerity to his subtle assault. 



The density of the wood did not pennit me to 

 follow with my eyes his retreat; and however great 

 my curiosity to ascertain how he employed the 

 time of his absence, I could not prevail upon my- 

 self to indulge it by entering on so fatal a battle 

 ground. At length tlie rattle-snake in one of his 

 a^ttempts to revenge the insolence of his assailant, 

 struck his fangs deep into his own body ; he extri- 

 cated them, stretched himself with every appear- 

 ance of agony on the ground ; and turning on his 

 back, in a short time expired. The crafty victor 

 once more appeared, and seizing the lifeless body 

 in his mouth, dragged it from the scene of action. 



WAR AMONG THE SNAKES. 

 [Tfa7iscribed from a «Vc«i York paper, of October 

 12M, 1835.] 

 Travelling through one of the southern States, 

 my attention was attracted by a singular rustlino- 

 in the thickets which bordered on the road. I 

 stopped my horse to learn the cause ; and soon dis- 

 covered, at a few paces from the track, a rattle- 

 snake of rather more than ordinary size, in a coil 

 such as these reptiles always throw themselves into 



iiig its noxious qualities, cattle and various olliei 

 animals are fond of frequenting it and feedinn 

 its leaves, and they freciuently die in its vicinity 

 Numerous skeletons of animals may be found 

 the bottom, within a mile round, but when taken 

 small quantities, it terminates in lingering and un- 

 controllable milk sickness. Since the tree has 

 been fenced in, no milk sickness has existed. The 

 wood of the tree is as solid and heavy as lin-num- 

 vitee or ebony, and from its similarity, some intel- 

 ligent persons have conjectured that it is the cele- 

 brated tree called the Bohan Upas in the EasI 

 Indies. When any part of the green tree is lace- 

 rated, a peculiar gum e.vudes from the wound like 

 white native turpentine, which is esteemed one o) 

 the strongest poisons, and will blister and seriously 

 injure and ulcerate the human body if applied ex- 

 ternally. 



It is thought by some persons that this tree might 

 be advantageously used in the practice of medicine 

 if its powerful medical qualities were properly un- 

 derstood, but its poison is so destructive that every 

 person here is afraid to make any experiment with 

 it. If the citizens of those parts of Illinois, Ohio 



BOHAN UPAS OF THE WEST. '"l^''"f"''^-^', *'''' '"'' '*^"^"^'^ '"'f '^' "?'"' «''='^- 



ness. Will n;ake proper examination, I have no 



The Milk Sickness. — The mysterious disease doubt that they will find somewhere in the sick 

 which bears this name, is peculiar to the region ! district a solitary tree similar to the one I have 

 west of the mountains, and prevails only in certain j described above, and if they will destroy or enclose 

 districts of that region. Many parts of Kentucky, ' the tree they will effectually prevent the disease. 

 Indiana, Illinois and Missouri iiave been greatly j Many marvellous stories are told in the neighbor- 

 afflicted by it, hundreds have died its victims, and hood, but respecting manv of them I am verylncre- 

 sonie districts of country are almost uninhabitable I dulous, but the foregoing' statement I have prepared 



on its account. The Kentucky Legislature ha; 

 long since offered a re vard to any one who could 

 ascertain the cause of this terrible disease, but all 

 inquiries upon the subject have been hitherto un- 

 successful. The St Louis Bulletin, however, con. 

 tains a letter on the subject, said to be from the 

 ■pen of an intelligert gentleman, in which the cause 

 of the disease is referred to a tree, the properties 

 of which are described to be very similar to those 

 attributed to the Bohan Upas of the East Indies. 

 The letter, which will be found interesting, is sub- 

 joined : 



Femme Osage Township, ) 



St Charles Co. Mo. Xov. 9, 1838. / 

 Mk Koch, — 



Dear Sir — I herewith transmit to you one of 



from personal observation, and from information in 

 which I could place implicit confidence. 



(From the Bellows Falls Gazette.) 

 THE INCLINATION OF THE WHEAT-EAR. 



How admirable are the expedients of Providence, 

 exclaimed I, as I observed in the bending down of 

 tiie full-giown wheat ear the accomplishuient of an 

 important purpose ; namely, that of shedding off 

 the rain, which otherwise must settle into the colls 

 of the ear and do material injury to the ripeDing 

 grain. . While the ear is green and growing, moist- 

 ure does it no harm ; but when it comes to consol- 

 idate and ripen, moisture would be extremely inju- 

 the genuine apples of Sodom. It grew on a large i rious, if not ruinous. 

 Sodomite tree in Femme Osage bottom, in St I The inclining wheat ear is often alluded to as 

 Charles county. The tree is nine feet thick, one , denoting the modestv and humility of real worth 

 hundred and forty feet high, and straight in the If we consider the reason whv providence in its 

 body, there being no limbs for forty-six feet above wise arrangei„ents provided for its inclination I' 

 the ground. In a fruitful year it is estimated that fancy we shall find in it an illustration of prudence 

 It bears one thousand bushels of fruit. The leaves in taking measures to preserve our resources raen- 

 resemble those of a pear tree, but are much larger tal, moral, or material, from beino- frittered and 

 and evergreen ; the blossoms are similar to the wasted away by adverse causes oT by influences 

 tuhp, and when in full bloom, it is considered the that do not belong to our present means of improve- 

 most grand, beautiful and imposing object in Uie ment and maturitv ; and whose impact on us we 

 vegetable kingdom. But it is of the most poison- should therefore he seasonablv prepared for easing 

 ous nature ; its roots, bark, sap, leaves and fruit, off. " B F 



