194 A MANUAL OF BEE-KEEPING. 



into the cells, where it is left to evaporate. The 

 colour and flavour of honey varies much, according to 

 the floral source from which it is derived. From the 

 white clover and hawthorn it is beautifully white ; from 

 Lucerne, golden yellow; from heather, light brown, aro- 

 matic, and slightly bitter; from sycamore, very dark and 

 thick ; from ivy and laurels, it is often so strongly 

 flavoured with prussic acid as to be disagreeable, and 

 instances in foreign countries have occurred, of honey 

 being actually poisonous, from the plants it was gathered 

 from. As a general rule, however, honey is both deli- 

 cious and wholesome. As an article of diet it is held in 

 high esteem, and is not unknown in medicine — it enters 

 into the composition of several preparations recognized 

 by the Medical Council of Great Britain, and is a nice and 

 popular remedy for sore throat, cough, &e. Dr. Munro, 

 in his 'Medical and Pharmaceutical Chemistry,' states 

 that Dr. John Hume, one of the Commissioners of the 

 sick and hurt of the Royal Navy, was for many years 

 violently afflicted with asthma. Having taken many 

 medicines without receiving relief, he at last resolved to 

 try the effect of honey. Having had a great opinion of 

 its virtues as an' expectorant, for two or three years he 

 ate some ounces of it daily, and got entirely free of his 

 asthma, likewise of a gravelly complaint he had long 

 been troubled with. He also mentions another case, 

 where a very bad case of asthma was cured by the same 

 remedy. 



With the exception of an occasional gathering from 

 honey-dew (to be presently explained), Bees gather the 

 whole of their honey from flowers, and, consequently, 

 where there are no flowers they cannot thrive ; but the 

 term flowers must be taken in a broader sense than 

 meaning such as we cultivate for garden ornaments or 



