286 THE BEE NATION. 



to distinguish friend from foe among men, and to act 

 accordingly. This was very strikingly shown in a case 

 observed by Stedmann (" Travels in Surinam," Vol. ii., 

 p. 286). Mr. Stedmann was visited in his hut by a 

 neighbor, who had hardly entered when he rushed out again 

 as if mad, yelling with pain, and ran to the nearest river to 

 plunge his head into the water. It was soon seen that, 

 being a very tall man, he had on entering the hut struck his 

 head against a nest of wild bees which had settled in the 

 roof over the door. Stedmann, distressed at such an 

 occurrence, left the hut at once and bade the slaves destroy 

 the nest. They were just going to obey when an old negro 

 came up and declared that the bees would never sting Mr. 

 Stedmann ; he would undergo any punishment if they did. 

 " Massa," said he, " you would have been stung long ago if 

 you had been hostile to the bees. But as you are their host and 

 have allowed them to build under your roof, they know you 

 and your people, and will never do any harm either to them 

 or to you." Mr. Stedmann found that the old man was 

 right, for even when he shook the nest the bees stung 

 neither him nor his negroes. The same old man related that 

 he had once lived on a property on which there was a large 

 tree. In this tree had lived, as long as he could remember, 

 a society of birds and one of bees, both dwelling together in 

 great amity. For if strange birds molested the bees they 

 were driven away by those which were at home, while if 

 strange bees came to the birds' nests they were attacked and 

 killed by the friendly bees. The family of the owner of 

 the property took great pleasure in this remarkable friend- 

 ship and would not suffer it to be in any way disturbed. 



Bates found, in the neighborhood of Santarem and Villa 

 Nuova, no less than 140 different species of bees, which are 

 mostly quite different from the European. Many build in 

 hollow branches and boughs of trees, while others neither 

 build nor gather stores, but lay their eggs in the nests of 

 their companions. They are, therefore, among bees what 

 the cuckoo is among birds. The habits of wild bees espe- 

 cially show the most manifold varieties according to varieties 

 of circumstances, locality, etc. The wood bees of South 

 America, instead of visiting flowers, collect the excretions 

 of trees and the excrements of birds on leaves. In Abyssinia 

 they sometimes build in the deserted dwellings of white ants, 



