432 
BEE. 
gun, for no man ought to enter the woods without 
one ; my blanket, some provisions, some wax, ver- 
milion, honey, and a small pocket compass. With 
these implements I proceed to such woods as are at a 
considerable distance from any settlements. I care- 
fully examine whether they abound with large trees ; 
if so, I make a small fire, on some flat stones, in a 
convenient place. On the fire I put some wax : 
close by this fire, on another stone, I drop honey in 
distinct drops, which I surround with small quan- 
tities of vermilion laid on the stone ; and then 1 
retire carefully to watch whether any bees appear. 
If there are any in that neighbourhood, I rest as- 
sured that the smell of the burnt wax will un- 
avoidably attract them. They will soon find out 
the honey ; for they are fond of preying on that 
which is not their own ; and, in their approach, 
they will necessarily tinge themselves with some 
particles of vermilion, which will adhere long to 
their bodies. I next fix my compass, to find out 
their course, which they keep invariably straight, 
when they are returning home loaded. By the 
assistance of my watch, I observe how long those 
are returning which are marked with vermilion. 
Thus possessed of the course, and, in some measure, 
of the distance, which I can easily guess at, I fol- 
low the first, and seldom fail of coming to the tree 
where those republics are lodged. I then mark it ; 
and thus, with patience, I have found out some- 
times eleven swarms in a season ; and it is incon- 
ceivable what a quantity of honey these trees will 
