33 THE BEE AS AN INSECT. [Ch. i. 



removed. His efforts were very successful, and "the 

 spring of i860 found him in possession of four Ligurian- 

 ised stocks." His subsequent experience with this new 

 variety he fully described in a communication to the 

 Bath and West of England Agricultural jfournal. 



Subsequently M. Hermann sent us a copy of his 

 pamphlet entitled " The Italian Alp Bee ; or, the Gold- 

 Mine of Husbandr}'," with the request that we should 

 have it translated from the German, and that copies of 

 it should be printed in the English language. It was 

 speedily published by us accordingly, and, although sin- 

 gular as a literary production, it may be useful for the 

 advanced apiarian. 



Certainly the bees are partially of an orange or golden 

 colour, and if one could believe the golden anticipations 

 indulged in by M. Hermann respecting them, these would 

 be sufficient to identify the Italian bee as the species 

 described by Hood in "Miss Kilmansegg'' — those which 

 dwelt in 



"A golden hWe, on a golden bank, 

 Where golden bees, by alchemical prank, 

 Gather gold instead of honey." 



In the pamphlet referred to, M. Hermann gives the 

 following description of what he insists on designating as 

 Apis helvetica : " The Yellow Italian Alp bee is a moun- 

 tain insect ; it is found between two mountain chains to 

 the right and left of Lombardy and the Rhetian Alps, 

 and comprises the whole territory of Ticino, Val Tellina, 



