INTRODUCTION 



THE OLDEST CRAFT UNDER THE SUN 



ONE of the oldest and prettiest fables in 

 ancient mythology is that which deals with 

 the origin of the honey-bee. It was to Melissa 

 and her sister Amalthea, the beautiful daughters 

 of the King of Crete, that the god Jupiter was 

 entrusted by his mother Ops, when Saturn, his 

 father — following his custom of devouring his 

 children at birth — sought to make the usual meal 

 of this, his latest offspring. 



The story is variously rendered by ancient 

 writers. Some say that bees already existed in 

 the world, and that Amalthea was only a goat, 

 whose milk served to nourish the baby-god, in 

 addition to the honey that Melissa obtained from 

 the wild bees in the cave where Jupiter lay hidden. 

 Another account has it that the bees themselves 

 were drawn to his place of concealment by the 

 noise made by his nurses, who beat continually 



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