xu.] GENERAL REMARKS. 343 



if it were possible to ascertain as fully all the facts con- 

 nected with them ! " Only a short time since an English 

 clergyman informed us of a severe contest going on in his 

 garden between Church and Dissent, for he had a hive of 

 bees from a Nonconformist in his parish, and these dis- 

 senting bees persistently attacked his hives to such an 

 extent that he really must get rid of them , and thus 

 liberate his episcopal apiary from such discordant dis- 

 turbers of the peace.* Another infatuation is, that you 

 should on no account part with your bees for silve?- 

 money — only for gold. This is so far sensible that it 

 ensures a respectable price. Certain credulous bee- 

 keepers cannot, on any account, be induced to part 

 with their bees for money ; they will barter, but not sell 

 — to sell bees is, in their view, to lay themselves open 

 to evil fortune. If these apprehensions are correct, our 

 punishment will be a severe one, for we have been 

 great offenders in that way, and seem likely to go on 

 sinning. 



The culture of bees would be greatly promoted if a 

 knowledge of it were considered necessary as one of the 

 regular qualifications of a gardener. So little time is 

 needed to gain the skill requisite for the tendance of an 

 apiary, that it seems only reasonable to expect it of a- 

 well-taught gardener, and he should feel a pleasure in 

 the circumstance of its forming a part of his duties. In 



* The explanation may probably be that a strong hive was 

 brought close to weak or queenles'5 ones. 



