BEE PRODDOTS, ETC. 89 



had disappeared from the neighbourhood. When pollen arrives 

 at the hive, it is packed in cells, is often covered with honey, 

 and is sealed over with wax. 



" Having gone to visit the bees of a lady friend living within six 

 miles of Dublin, we first went to look at her fine peach house. She 

 pointed out to me how badly the blooms had set on a tree that was 

 not easy to fertilize, and said that the gardener had been complaining 

 that the bees had not helped him as much as usual this spring by 

 visiting and fertilizing the blooms. A look at the hive soon explained 

 this, all the combs, except the outside ones, being a compact mass of 

 rotten foul brood, a very few live bees being left in one hive." — M. H. 

 Read in Iriah Bee Journal. 



75. Propolis. — Propolis is a resinous, sticky substance, 

 gathered from pine, horse chestnut, and other trees, and 

 carried by the bees, as they carry pollen, on their hind legs. 

 It is used for filling up cracks, to exclude draughts, and to 

 make the hive watertight. It is applied also, much to the bee- 

 keeper's regret, to fasten together the frames, and other parts 

 of the hive furniture (174). When hives are situated under 

 high trees, the vibration, caused by the roots as 



" Through woods and mountain passes 

 The winds, like anthems roll," 



is felt at once by the bees, who endeavour to modify it as far as 

 possible, by fixing their combs and frames in the hive with 

 propolis (9). Occasionally bees will use propolis to defeat 

 their natural enemies, or to fix and render harmless unwel- 

 come intruders. The term, " Propolis," signifies " before the 

 city " ; the use of the substance in the defence of the hive 

 having been observed. Huber describes the construction of 

 barricades of wax and propolis in the hive entrance, to exclude 

 the Death's Head Moth (Sphinx Atropos), while giving pas- 

 sage to the workers. Reaumur observes that a snail having 

 gained admission to one of his hives, the bees, being unable 

 to remove it, promptly arrested its progress by fastening it 

 down with propolis. Maraldi relates a somewhat similar 

 occurrence, his bees having covered all over with propolis a 

 large slug which they had been unable to dislodge. It is quite 

 a common practice with bees in modern hives to attach pieces 

 of Naphthaline (352) to the floorboard, and even to enclose 

 them in a case of propolis to overcome the objectionable smell. 



75b. Adulteration of Honey — ^When honey has been adul- 

 terated with glucose, the presence of glucose may be recognized 

 if a little of the mixture be slowly poured into a glass contain- 

 ing absolute alcohol, and if the alcohol then shows turbid, or 

 milky, having a gummy substance at the bottom. 



