14 
tend to be clogged with it, but in many parts of Australia 
there is a deficiency of pollen-bearing plants, and in such 
districts bees rapidly die out from what the Australian Bee- 
keeper calls the “Disappearing Sickness.” 
Propolis. 
The pollen baskets are also used for the carrying home of 
a resinous material that the bees gather mainly off trees. In 
a treeless country various substitutes, such as tar, wet paint, 
and varnish, are used for the same purpose. This material is 
called “ propolis,” and is used by the bees to varnish the inside 
of the hive, to fill up any cracks in the walls, and to fasten 
down the quilt so as to prevent the escape upward of warm 
air. When collected in quantity it may be used to daub the 
honey-comb, marring its beautiful appearance. Bees vary 
greatly as regards tendency to collect and use propolis. The 
black bees of Austria, known as Carniolans, use very little 
propolis, and consequently produce section honey which is 
beautifully white. The Caucasian bees are the worst 
offenders, fastening everything firmly together with propolis 
so that the whole hive may be lifted by the top crate. The 
word “propolis” in Greek means “in front of the city,” 
and implies that certain bees build ramparts at the hive door 
to exclude robbers, and specially to exclude the death’s-head 
moth. Such ramparts are beautifully seen in a nucleus stock 
of Punic bees which has been provided with too large a door. 
The whole of such a door will be closed by a curtain of 
propolis, leaving only two small round holes at the two lower 
corners, just large enough to admit one bee at a time. The 
bee-keeper who uses plenty of quilts, and takes care that 
there are no openings near the top of the hive to permit 
the escape of warm air, will usually have little trouble with 
propolis. Vaseline is frequently used to prevent propolisation. 
It may be smeared on the runners carrying the lugs.of the 
frames, and on the bearing surfaces of section crates, 
Feet. 
Each of the six feet of the bee is furnished with sharp 
curved hooks, two large and two small, and with these the bee 
