PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION. xiii 



duction embodies the most recent and reliable information 

 respecting them that is possessed by English apiarians.* 

 We are under many obligations for the advice and 

 assistance that we have on many occasions received 

 from Mr. T. W. Woodbury, of Exeter, whose apiarian 

 skill is unrivalled in this country. Our acknowledg- 

 ments are also due to Mr. Henry Taylor, author of an 

 excellent "Bee-keeper's Manual," for his help and 

 counsel during the earlier years of our apiarian expe- 

 rience. Both these gentlemen have frequently com- 

 municated to us their contrivances and suggestions, 

 without thought of fee or reward for them. In common 

 with most recent writers on bee- culture, we are neces- 

 sarily largely indebted to the standard works of Huber 

 and succeeding apiarians. From the more recent 

 volume of the Rev. L. L. Langstroth we have also 

 obtained useful information. But having ourselves, of 

 later years, had considerable experience in the mani- 

 pulation and practical managemennt of bees, we are 

 enabled to confirm or qualify the statements of others, 

 as well as to summarise information gleaned from various 

 sources. 



* -Some of our apiarian friends may be inclined to be discouraged 

 from cultivating the Ligurian bees in consequence of the liability of 

 their becoming hybridised when located in proximity to the black 

 bees. We can dispel these fears by stating that we have not un- 

 frequently found that hybrid queens possess the surprising fecundity 

 of the genuine Italian ones, whilst the English stocks in course of 

 time become strengthened by the infusion of foreign blood. 



