MANUAL OF THE APIARY. 201 



pay as we would any other debt. I should be very suspicious 

 of any man's honesty who was not willing to respect such 

 rights. 



TO SMOKE BEES. 



Approach the hive, blow a little smoke in at the entrance, 

 then open from above, and blow in smoke as required. If at 

 any time the bees seem irritable, a few puffs from the smoker 

 will ■ siibd'ue them. Thus, any person may handle his bees 

 with perfect freedom and safety. If at any time the fire- 

 chamber and escape-pipe become filled with soot, they can 

 easily be cleaned by revolving an iron or hard-wood stick in- 

 side of them. 



TO CURE STINGS. 



In case a person is stung, he should step back a little for a. 

 moment, as the pungent odor of the venom is likely to anger- 

 the bees and induce further stinging. The sting should be 

 withdrawn, and if the pain is such as to prove troublesome, 

 apply a little ammonia. The venom is an acid, and is neu- 

 tralized by the alkali. Pressing over the sting with the barrel 

 of a watch-key is also said to be of some use in staying the 

 progress of the poison in the circulation of the blood. In 

 case horses are badly stung, as sometimes happens, they 

 should be taken as speedily as possible into a barn (a man, 

 too, may escape angry bees by entering a building), where th& 

 bees will seldom follow, then wash the horses in soda water,. . 

 and cover with blankets wet in cold water. 



THE SWEAT THEORY. 



It is often stated that sweaty horses and people are 

 obnoxious to the bees, and hence, almost sure targets for their 

 barbed arrows. In warm weather I perspire most profusely, 

 yet am scarcely ever stung, since I have learned to control my 

 nerves. I once kept my bees in the front yard — they looked 

 beautiful on the green lawn — within two rods of a main 

 thoroughfare, and not infrequently let my horse, covered with 

 sweat upon my return from a drive, crop the grass, while cool- 

 ing off, right in the same yard. Of course, there was some 

 danger, but I never knew my horse to get stung. Why, then, 

 the theory ? May not the more frequent stings be consequent 



