80 
setting at defiance the stings of the bees which they rob. ‘a 
As the moths grow, their ravages increase. ‘The bench 
couvain falls from its demolished cradle, and the bees, — 
discouraged, abandon a dwelling, where they no longer en-_ 
joy in peace the fruit of their labours. i oe 
To prevent the attacks of the false moths, care ought to ~ 
be taken to have none but strong hives, whose wax is not — 
too old. But in the pyramidal hive, the wax has not time _ 
to grow old. Each case is removed in the second autumn: 
the honey is removed the same year that the upper boxis — 
removed. Thus, this caterpillar is not dangerous to the 
pyramidal hive, where it cannot penetrate, much less cause _ 
‘any considerable ravages. In the pyramidal hive, there 
are no lateral openings, as in the French and village hives: — 
The only opening in a pyramidal hive, for communication — 
between one case and another, has only a thread of wax, 
about the thickness of a little finger, which attaches the — 
combs of the upper box, to the next below. ‘This fixture, — 
between the combs, serves the bees as a ladder, to go and © 
come, ascend and descend, from one box or story to ano- — 
ther; but the moth cannot pass that way. ‘> a ee 
Lice are sometimes observed on bees. This kind of in 
sect indicates the antiquity of the hives, and the necessity 
to change the boxes. This vermin is never found in the 
pyramidal hive, because the boxes are changed too often for _ 
them to breed. : | 
_ Frogs, lizards, and toads, feed on all kinds of insects, 
disseminated on the herbage, and if they find dead or stu- 
pified bees, they make their profit by them, but their ravages 
are inconsiderable. Nevertheless, if these animals are 
found among the hives, or in the environs, they ought to be 
destroyed. : : 
CHAPTER XX. 
ON HYDROMEL. 
Hydromel is a beverage prepared with honey and water. 
It is made of different qualities, according to the use for 
which it is destined. There is the simple, the compound, 
and the medicinal. The manner of preparing is nearly the 
same in different factories, varying, however in different 
countries, in the greater or less quantities and qualities of 
