INTRODUCTION. 
* 1 1 ; j « 
Democritus, who died 36 J years before Christ, aged 
lOSjears, 13 the first Apiarian whose works have comedown 
•‘nowledge of (tie Bee at that age, was con- 
ined to the speculative knowledge of Natural History, ra- 
iier tliim a practical knowledge of the economy and va- 
lue of this most useful Aiiiinal. 
Alepnder De Montfort wrote the two first modern 
1 reatises upon the Bee, about the middle of the 17th cen- 
tury, entitled “ the Portrait of the Honey Fly, its virtues 
torn, &c. Also, “ the spring of the Honey Fly,” divided’ 
into two parts ; in which will be found a curious, true and 
new history of the admirable and natural conduct of the 
Bee, &c. De Montfort notices a long catalogue of ancient 
writers upon Bees, particularly, Aristotle, Columella, Var- 
ro, &c. and adds the first practical touch to their visionary 
speculation. Virgil says, that a Bee is a ray of the Divinity : 
Plutarch that it 18 a mag^ine of the Virtues ; Quintilian, 
that It IS the chief of the Geometricians ; and De iMontfort 
the Bee surpasses, in architecture, the skill of Archi’ 
medes. Plato, who flourished about forty years before 
Uemoiwitus, ascribes to the Bee a certain portion of that 
angry Divinity which inspires Poets, and cautions his Dis- 
ciples against disturbing either of them. 
a century, appeared Swammer- 
dam, MaraldiandFerchault, all men of science, whoopen- 
ed to our view the natural history of the Bee : but Hodi- 
erna, of Totna, first disclosed the fact, that all young 
swarms spring from the eggs of the Queen Mother. These 
men laid the Joundation of the true Apiarian science, and 
were translated into every language. 
This interesting subject engrossed the attention of a 
host of writers through the 18th century, .and at the close 
them all^*'^’ most visionary of 
Bonne*, a Scotchman, is the first good practical Apiarian 
that has and his valuable conversation has great- 
ly assisted the labour? of this work ; with whnt surce« the 
public must judge. 
