94 miner's AMERICAN 



to keep the bees confined to their hives, that took place 

 on a windy day ; even when every plant and leaf was 

 studded with rain-drops. I was somewhat surprised, 

 that the bees should take the water from the pan, when 

 it could be obtained in a thousand other places with the 

 same facility. The same reason that caused the greater 

 use of water in windy weather, led to the use of it more 

 abundantly in wet weather ; and the reason why the 

 bees preferred the pan to other places, in obtaining it in 

 wet weather, I presume is, that the liability to get wet 

 IS more when alighting in promiscuous places, when 

 everything is wet, than when alighting on the stones in 

 the pan. 



DECREASE AND FINAL TERMINATION OP THE USE OF 

 WATER. 



The use of the water from the pan continued through 

 the months of April, May, and a part of June, when a 

 great decrease took place in the use of it ; and this de- 

 crease in the use of water was coeval with the decrease 

 in the production of larvm. Finally, in July the bees 

 frequented the water-pan so little, that I considered it 

 useless to fill it daily, and omitted to pay any further 

 attention to it. 



That the bees use water in preparin^;he food, (fa- 

 rina, or bee-bread,) for their young, is apparent, from 

 the fact, that when breeding declines, the use of water 

 diminishes. 



Now, from the foregoing remarks, it appears that 

 water is a much more important article in the economy 



