313 THE ITALIAN OE LIGUEIAN BEE. 



black hybrids.* I discovered some on a little ball of 

 wax, made by the squeezing together by the hand, of bits 

 of old, dry comb, that had been accidentally left in the 

 sun. It was packed on their legs like pollen, and carried 

 to the hive. I had never seen the native bees thus en- 

 gaged. Here was another item to their credit, which, 

 although of little account in itself, suggested that if they 

 could turn to good account one stone rejected by the 

 builders, they might also other and greater ones. 



LONGER LIVED. 



But more important than this, it soon became evident 

 that they were longer-lived. Some time in October I de- 

 prived three ordinary-sized colonies of their queens and 

 united them, giving them brood from an Italian queen. 

 This brood occupied both sides of a comb some five or six 

 inches square. It matured and a queen was produced. At 

 this time there was about one Italian to fifty or one hun- 

 dred natives. There being no increase except of drones, 

 the queen proving barren of workers, the colony was 

 pretty well reduced by the last of May. But the propor- 

 tion of the Italians to the natives had been steadily on the 

 increase. I now introduced a moderate family of natives, 

 in order to continue the production of Italian drones. In 

 a few weeks more, they again became reduced, worms ap- 

 peared, and the colony was broken up. Not far from one- 

 third of the remnant was Italians. Evidence of the 

 strongest kind was here fm-nished, showing that they live 

 longer than the natives.f 



* This was important to me. If the hoiiey from white clover would suslain 

 60 or 80 colonies, that from the red would sustain nearly ns many more, and I 

 could keep double the number in each year. 



t It explains how a greater proportion of very weak colonies of Italians are 

 increased into strong ones, than there are of the natives. Also how they retain 

 their strength when all their combs are so nearly hlled with honey, that but few 

 cells arc left for breeding. 



