§ v.] THE ITALIAN OR LIGURIAN DEE. 41 



munism of dwellings " between the bees of neighbouring 

 hives. 



The Italian bees are more active than common bees 

 when on the wing. They are also observed to work 

 longer hours than other bees both early and late, as well 

 as in seasons when the latter will not stir abroad. Thus 

 altogether they are much more productive. In many 

 seasons we have had more honey from an Italian stock 

 than from any one of our colonies of black bees. From 

 this hive we have taken a glass super containing forty 

 pounds nett of honey, besides having drawn from it an 

 artificial swarm ; and after all it remained the strongest 

 hive in our apiary. 



In a private letter received from Mr. Langstroth he 

 informed us that in the season of 1865 he bred over 

 300 Italian queens ; these he disseminated to various' 

 bee-masters on the American continent, and the united 

 opinion of apiarians in that country was increasingly in 

 favour of the decided advantage of the cultivation of the 

 Italian bee. At the present date it is literally "all the 

 rage " with bee-keepers there. With ourselves there is 

 a quieter but not less genuine welcome accorded to it. 

 In the British Bee Journal for May 1877, the distin- 

 guished apiarian " A Renfrewshire Bee-keeper " writes : 

 " After careful study and comparison of both I found 

 the Italian superior for beauty, prolificness, power, and 

 activity, and (to my view the greatest value of all) for 

 fresh blood." 



