HYMENOPTEES: BEES. 129 



know which are injurious to the farm, orchard, and 

 garden, and to the granary and closets, and by know- 

 ing their habits be able to resist their attacks ; and that 

 we may know which are of use to man ; for God has 

 so made the Bee that it gives us delicious honey, and 

 some of the Beetles, so that they are of use to the sick, 

 some of the little Bark-Lice, as the Cochineal, so that 

 they yield the richest dyes, and some of the Caterpil- 

 lars, so that they may furnish all the world witli silk. 



BEES, WASPS, ICHNEUMONS, &c., OR HYMENOPTBRS. 



These insects have four wings which are more or 

 less transparent, the hind pair being the smaller, and 

 all virith a few branching veins. They have two pairs 

 of jaws, — the upper pair fitted for biting, and the lower 

 pair with the lower lip adapted for collecting honey. 

 The females have either a sting or a piercer. They 

 surpass all other insects in the number and variety of 

 their instincts. The word Hymenopter means mem- 

 hrane-winged. 



BEES. 



Bees have a hairy body, and their mouth is length- 

 ened into a sort of proboscis, which is jointed and can 

 be folded under the head, and the first joint of the 

 hind legs is often very large, and fitted for collecting 

 and carrying the pollen of flowers. 



The Hive or Honey Bee is originally from Asia, but 

 has now spread over Europe and America. It is seen 

 almost everywhere in hives, and it is also quite com- 

 mon in a wild state, and often far from human dwelh 

 ings. In a wild state. Bees of this kind have theii* 

 home in hollow trees and in clefts of rocks. In every 

 nest or hive there are three kinds, a female or queen, 



6* 1 



