90 BEE PASTURAGE. 



into grain. The best reasons that I have obtained for such 

 an opinion, are these : " I believe it, and have thought so 

 for a long time." " It is reasonable, that if a portion of 

 the plant is taken away by the bees, there must be less 

 material left for the formation of seed, etc." Most of us 

 have learned that a person's opinion is not the strongest 

 kind of proof Are the above reasons satisfactory ? How 

 are the facts? The flowers open, and honey is secreted. 

 If the bee does not lick it up, it dries up and is wasted. 

 'Now, what is the difference to the plant, whether the 

 honey is lost in this way, or is collected by the bees ? 

 If there is any difference, the advantage appears to be in 

 favor of collection by the bees, for the reason that it thus 

 answers an important end in the economy of nature, con- 

 sistent with her provisions in ten thousand different ways 

 of adapting means to ends. Most breeders of domestic 

 animals are aware of the degeneration induced by in-and-in. 

 Breeding, and that a change of breed is necessary for im- 

 provement, etc. Vegetable physiology seems to indicate a 

 similar necessity among plants. The stamens and pistils 

 of flowers answer for the two sexes in animals. The pistil 

 is connected with the ovaries, and the stamens furnish 

 the pollen that must come in contact with the pistil ; in 

 other words, it must be impregnated by this dust from the 

 stamens, or no fruit will be produced. Now, if it be ne- 

 cessary to change the breed, or essential that the pollen 

 produced by the stamens of one flower shall fertilize the 

 pistils of another, to prevent barrenness, what could we 

 contrive better than the arrangement already made by 

 Him who knew the necessity, and planned it accordingly ! 

 And it works so admirably that we can hardly avoid the 

 conclusion that this was an important part of the design 

 in creating bees. Their food consists of honey and pollen ; 

 each flower secretes but a little, just enough to attract the 

 bee, for nothing like a full load is obtained froin one ; 



