Odd Notions about Bees. 161 
Probably the best bee-pastures in the 
world, to-day, are in California. A great 
deal of fine honey- is made there. 
Honey is not valued as highly as it used 
to be, because we now have sugar. But 
you can imagine that before the sugar- 
cane was cultivated, and when people had 
no sweet but honey, it was a most im- 
portant and valuable article of food. 
Honey is very good for children and 
for old people. It is more digestible than 
sugar, and most children like it better. 
You remember how “The queen was 
in the parlor eating bread and honey,” and 
I think it was a very good occupation for 
a queen or for anybody else. 
A great deal of poetry has been written 
about bees, and there is one little verse 
that everybody knows. It was written by 
Dr. Watts. 
“How doth the little busy bee 
Improve each shining hour, 
And gather honey all the day 
From every opening flower.” 
II 
