BEE-spoke-data/bees-v0 huggingface dataset:
Longfellow, in his "Song of Hiawatha." in describing the advent of the European to the New World, makes his Indian warrior say of the bee and the white elover:--
"Wheresoe'er they move, before them
Swarms the stinging fly; the Ahmo,
Swarms the bee, the honey-makcr;
**5 16**. According to the quotations of the A. B. J., common bees were imported into Florida, by the Spaniards previous to 1763, for they were first noticed in West Florida in that year. They appeared in Kentucky in 1780, in New York in 1793, and West of the Mississippi in 1797.
**547. ''It is surprising in what countless swarms the bees have overspread the far West within but a moderate number of years. The Indians consider them the harbingers of the white man, as the buffalo is of the red man, and say that, in proportion as the bee advances, the Indian and the buffalo retire.... They have been the heralds of civilization, steadily preceding it as it advances from the Atlantic borders; and some of the ancient settlers of the West pretend to give the very year when the honey-114, first crossed the Mississippi. At present it swarms in myrials in the noble groves and forests that skirt and intersect the prairies, and extend along the alluvial bottoms of the rivers. It seems to me as if these beautifulregions answer literally to the description of the land of promise--'a land flowing with milk and honey;' for the rich pasturage of the prauries is calculated to sustain herds of cattle as countless as the sands upon the sea-shore, while the flowcrs with which they are enamelled render them a very paradise for the nectar-seeking bee.''--Washington Irving, ''Tour on the Prairies,'' Chap. IX. (1832).
Many Apiarists contend that newly-settled countries are most favorable to the bee; and an old German adage runs thus:--
''Bells' ding dong, And choral song, Deter the bee From industry: But hoot of owl, And 'wolf's long howl,' Incite to moil And steady toil.''
It is evident that the bees spread Westward very rapidly, and to this day, many old bee-men can be found, who positively assert that a swarm never goes Eastward, even after it is proven to them that they usually go to the _nearest timber_. Our United States are now oeeupied by the honey-bee, from Maine to California, from Texas to Montana, wherever man and moisture may be found. The irrigated portions of the arid West, in Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Nevada, have proven an eldorado for them.
At the National Convention of Bee-Keepers held at Los Angeles, California, in August, 1903, Mr. J. S. Harbison, gave an interesting account of his first introduction of bees to the Pacific Coast. He took 116 colonies, in 1857, from Newcastle, Penna., to Sacramento, by way of Panama and the Panama railroad, with the loss of only six colonies and when he reached California with them, he sold readily those that he wished to dispose of, at $100 per colony. The reader knows how successful bee-culture has become in California since that early date.
**548.** Bees, like all other insects, are divided scientifically into genera, species, and varieties.
**Aristotle speaks of three different varieties of the honeybee, as well known in his time. The** _best variety_ **he describes as small, and round in size and shape, and variegated in color.**
**Virgil (Georgia, lib. IV., 48) speaks of two kinds as flourishing in his time; the better of the two he thus describes:**
\({}^{\ast}\)**Elucent alie, et fulgore coruseant,**
**Ardentes auro, et paribus lita corpora guttis.**
**Hae potier soboles; hinc celi tempore certo**
**Duleia mella premos.**\({}^{\ast}\)**
**\({}^{\ast}\)**The others glitter, and their variegated bodies shiny like drops of** _siriralling yold. This better breck! Thanks to them, if the weather of the sky is certain, you will have honey combs to press._**
**This better variety, it will be seen, he characterizes as spotted or variegated, and of a beautiful golden color.**
**519.** **The first bee introduced into America, was the common bee of Europe, Western Asia, and Western Africa, Apis mellifiea, now cailed Apis mellifera, by many. "Mellifiea" means "honey maker," while "Mellifera" means "loney bearer." It is usually designated under the name of blaek, or gray bee. Both names are appropriate, since the race varies in shade, according to localities. In the greater part of Africa, as well as in the European provinces of Turkey, the common lays are dark, nearly black. In other places, their color is grayish. They vary in size, as well. Acerding to some French writers, the bees of Holland are small, and denominated "_la petite Hollundits._" (the little Hollander); on the other hand, the Carnional\({}^{\ast}\) bees are quite large. We have never seen queens as large as some Carnialans which we imported some thirty years ago. But, in spite of the prolifienessand general good reputation of this race, we did not attempt to propagate it, owing to the difficulty of detecting their mating with the common bees, since they are almost alike in color.
These bees have since been bred largely in the U. S., and are praised for their prolifeness and peaceable disposition.
**550**. Besides the common bee, there are a great many varieties. The best known are : _1st_, the _Ligurian, Apis Ligustica,_ so named by Spinola, because he found it first, in the part of Italy called Liguria. The Rev. E. W. Gilman, of Bangor, Maine, directed the writer's attention to Spinola's _"Insectorum Liguriae species norac aut rariores,"_ from which it appears, that Spinola accurately described all the peculiarities of this bee, which he found in Piedmont, in 1805. He fully identified it with the bee described by Aristotle.
_2nd._ The _Apis fasciata_ (banded bee). This bee, related to the Italian, or Ligurian, which has yellow: bands also, is found in Egypt, in Arabia, along both sides of the Red Sea, in Syria, in Cyprus and in Caueasus.
_3d._ We shall mention also the large _Apis dorsata_ of Southern Asia, and the _melijones_ of Brazil and Mexico.
**551**. The Italian bee, _Alnis Ligustica,_ spoken of by Aristotle and Virgil as the best kind, still exists distinct and pure from the common kind, after the lapse of more than two thousand years.
The great superiority of this race, over any other race known, is now universally aeknowledged; for it has victoriously stood the test of practied bee-keepers, side by side with the common bee. The ultimate superseding of the common bee by the Italian in this country is but a matter of time. Already, in many parts of Colorado, no other race is to be found.
**552**. The following facts are evident:
_1st._ The Italian bees are less sensitive to cold than the common kind. _2nd._ Their queens are more prolific. _3d._ They defend their lives better against insects. Moths (**S02**)are hardly ever found in their combs, while they are occasionally found in the combs of even the strongest colonies of common bees. Their great vigilance is due to the mildness of the climate of Italy, whose Winters never destroy the moth. Having to defend themselves against a more numerous enemy, they are more watchful than the bees of eqlder regions. _4th_. They are less apt to sting. Not only are they less apt, but scarcely are they inclined to sting, though they will do so if intentionally annoyed, or irritated, or improperly treated.
Spinola speaks of the more peaceable disposition of this bee; and Columella, 1800 years ago, has noticed the same peculiarity, describing it as "_mitior moribus,_" (milder in habits). When onee irritated, however, they become very cross.
_5th_. They are more industrious. Of this fact, all the results go to confirm Dzierzon's statements, and satisfy us of the superiority of this kind _in cerely point of view. 6th_. They are more disposed to rob than common bees, and more courageous and active in self-defense. They strive on all hands to force their way into colonies of common bees; but when strange bees attack their hives, they fight with great fiereness, and with an incredible adroitness.
Spinola speaks of these bees as "_velocicores motu_"-quicker in their motions than the common bees.
They however sooner grow tired of hunting, where nothing can be gained; and if all the plunder is put out of their reach, they will give up the attempt at robbing (**664**) more promptly than common bees.
_7th_. Aside from their peaceableness, they are more easily handled than the common bees, as they eling to their combs and do not rush about, or cluster here and there, or fall to the ground, as the common bees do.
It is hardly necessary to add, that this speies of the honeybee, so much more productive than the common kind, is of very great value in all sections of our country. Its superior docility makes it worthy of high regard, even if in other respects it had no peculiar merits. Its introduction into this country, has helped to constitute the new era in bee-keeping, and has imparted much interest to its pursuit. It is one of the causes which have enabled America to surpass the world in the production of honey.
**553.** Their appearance can be described as follows: "The first three abdominal rings (fig. 113) of the worker bee are transparent, and vary from a dark straw or golden color to the deep yellow of ochre. These rings have a narrow dark edge or border, so that the yellow, which is sometimes called _leather color_, constitutes the ground, and is seemingly barred over by these black edges..This is most distinctly perceptible when a brood-comb, on which bees are densely crowded, is taken out of a hive, or when a bee is put on a window. When the bee is full of honey these rings extend and slide out of one another, and the yellow bands show to better advantage, especially if the honey eaten is of a light color. On the contrary, during a dearth of honey, the rings are drawn up, or telescoped in one another, and the bee hardly looks like the same insect. This peculiarity has annoyed many bee-keepers, who imagined their beautiful bees had suddenly become hybrids.
In doubtful cases, as the purity of Italian bees is very important, it is well to follow the advice of A. I. Root: "If you are undecided in regard to your bees' purity, get some of the bees and feed them all the honey they can take; now put them on a window, and if the band C (fig. 113) is not plainly visible, call them _hybrids._"
**554.** Aside from this test, their tenacity and quietness on the comb, while handled, are infallible signs of purity. We have repeatedly carried a frame of brood covered with pure Italian bees, from a hive to the house, and passed the comb from hand to hand among visitors, some of whom were ladies, without a single bee dropping off, or attempting to sting.
**555.** The drones and the queens are very irregular in markings, some being of a very bright yellow color, others almost as dark as drones or queens of common bees.
"It is a remarkable faet that an Italian queen, impregnated by a common drone, and a common queen impregnated by an Italian drone, do not produce workers of a uniform intermediate cast, or hybrids; but some of the workers bred from the eggs of each queen will be purely of the Italian, and others as purely of the common race, only a few of them, indeed, being apparently hybrids. Berlepsch also had several mismatched queens, which at first produced Italian workers exclusively, and afterwards common workers as exclusively. Some such queens produced fully three-fourths Italian workers; others, common workers in the same proportion. Nay, he states that he had one beautiful orange-yellow mismated Italian queen which did not produce a single Italian worker, but only common workers, perhaps a shade lighter in color. The drones, however, produced by a mismated Italian queen are uniformly of the Italian race, and this faet, besides demonstrating the truth of Dzierzon's theory, (133 ) renders the preservation and perpetuation of the Italian race, in its purity, entirely feasible in any country where they may be introduced.'--S. Wagner.
**556.** The Italian bees from different parts of Italy are of different shades, but otherwise, preserve about the same characteristics all over the peninsula. But how can they keep pure, since there are common bees in Europe? A glance at the map will answer the question. Italy is surrounded on all sides by water or snow-covered mountains, which offer an insuperable barrier to any insects. This is further evidenced by the fact that the bees of the eanton of Tessin (Italian Switzerland) are Italians, being on the South side of the Alps, while those of the canton of Uri (German Switzerland), on the other side of the mountains and only a few miles off, are common bees.*
Footnote *: The idea that select Italian bees raised in America, may be purer than any Italians ever imported, has been gravely discussed by some persons.
**557.** The importation of Italian bees to another country was first attempted by Capt. Baldenstein.
"Being- stationed in Italy, during part of the Napoleonie wars, he noticed that the bees, in the Lombardo-Venitian district of Valtelin, and on the borders of Lake Como, differed in color from the common kind, and seemed to be more industrious. At the close of the war, he retired from the army, and returned to his ancestral castle, on the Rhatian Alps, in Switzerland; and to occupy his leisure, had recourse to bee-culture, which had been his favorite hobby in earlier years. While studying the natural history, habits, and instincts of these insects, he remembered what he had observed in Italy, and resolved to procure a colony from that country. Accordingly, he sent two men thither, who purchased one, carried it over the mountains, to his residence, in September, 1843.
"His observations and inferences impelled Dzieron--who had previously ascertained that the cells of the Italian and common bees were of the same size--to make an effort to procure the Italian bee; and, by the aid of the Austrian Agricultural Society at Vienna he succeeded in obtaining, late in February, 1853, a colony from Mira, near Venice."--S. Wagner.
Some of the Governments of Europe have long ago taken great interest in disseminating among their people a knowledge of bee culture.
The United States also recognized the importance of our pursuit. An apiarian department has been established and Mr. Frank Benton was sent for a trip around the world, in 1905, to investigate the value of the bees and honey producing plants of other countries.
**558.** An attempt was made in 1856, by Mr. Wagner, to import the Italian bees into America; but, unfortunately, the * colonies perished on the voyage. The first living Italian bees lended on this continent were imported in the Fall of 1859 by Mr. Wagner and Mr. Richard Colvin, of Baltimore, from Dzierzon's apiary. Mr. P. G. Mahan, of Philadelphia, brought over at the same time a few colonies. In the Spring of 1860, Mr. S. B. Parsons, of Flushing, L. I., imported a number of colonies from Italy. Mr. William G. Rose, of New York, in 1861, imported also from Italy. Mr. Colvin made a number of importations from Dzierzon's apiary; and in the Fall of 1863 and 1864 Mr. Langstroth also imported queens from the same apiary, but the first large suecessful importations were made by Adam Grimm of Wisconsin, in 1867, from the apiary of Prof. Mona of Belinzona, and by us in 1874, from the apiary of Signor Guiseppe Fiorini of Monselice, Italy. Since then, Mr. A. I. Root, and others, have suceeeeded well nearly every season.
This valuable variety of the honey-bee is now extensively disseminated in North America.
**539**. The Egyptian bees (Apis fasciata) are smaller and brighter than the Italian bee. The hairs of their body are more whitish, and their motions are quick and fly-like. Their prolifeness is great, but their ill-disposition has caused many who have tried them to abandon them.
The Cyprian bees (a sub-race of Apis fasciata) were imported from Cyprus to Europe in 1872, and they were so much praised that, in 1880, two enterprising American Apiarists, Messrs. D. A. Jones and Frank Benton made a trip to Cyprus and the Holy Land, and brought bees from both countries to America.
The Cyprian bees resemble the Italian bees. The main difference between them, in appearance, is a bright yellow shield on the thorax of the Cyprians not to be seen in the Italians, and the yellow rings of the former are brighter, of a _copper color,_ especially under the abdomen. Their drones are beautiful.
Their behavior is like that of the Egyptians; quick and ready, they promptly assail those who dare handle them.
Smoke astonishes but does not subdue them. At each puff of the smoker they emit a sharp, trilling sound, not easily forgotten, resembling that of "_meat in the frying pan,_" and as soon as the smoke disappears, they are again on the watch, ready to pounee on any enemy, whether man or beast, bee or moth. Their courage and great proliferess would make them a very desirable race, if they could be handled safely.
A _slight_ mixture of this race with the Italian improves the latter wonderfully in color and working qualities.
**560**. The Holy Land or Syrian bees are almost similar in looks to the Egyptian, these two countries being contiguous. Those who have tried them do not agree as to their behavior; some holding them to be very peaceable, others describing them as very cross. We have never tried them.
Among the different races of Eastern bees, the Caucasian are cited by Vogel, a German, as of such mild disposition, that it is hard to get them to sting. Yet it is said that these bees defend themselves well against robber bees. This is confirmed by Mr. Benton, who has imported them into the U. S. under the auspices of the Department of Agrienlture.
Aecording to Vogel, they resemble the Syrian bees, having also the shield of the Cyprians. It would seem that these bees exist in the temperate zone of Asia, from the shores of the Mediterranean to the Himalayas, for Dr. Dubini, in his book, writes that they were found at the foot of these mountains.*
Footnote *: Some apiarists assert that there are two varieties of this bee, which they name Apis caucasia aurea and Apis nigra argentea. So it would seem from the quotation of a catalog of a Russian apiarist and queen breeder mentioned by Giraud Freres in A. B. J. of February 1st, 1906.
**561**. Aecording to an article in the "_Scientific Review_" of England, although bees have been sent from this country and Europe, to Australia, there is au Australian native bee, which builds its nest on the Euealyptus. These bees gather immense quantities of a kind of honey which, although very sweet, can be used as medicine, to replace the eod-liver oil, used with so much repugnance by consumptives.
**562**.: _Apis dorsata,_ the largest bee known, lives in the jungles of India. Mr. Benton attempted to import this bee at great expense and danger, but only succeeded in bringing one colony to Syria, where it died. Mr. Vogel tried also to bring some of them to Germany without suecess. At all events further attempts at importting or domesticating these bees would be so expensive, that private enterprise will be balked by the task. Besides _\(\lambda\)pis dorsata,_ two other kinds exist in India, _\(\lambda\)pis florea_ and _\(\lambda\)pis Indica_. The latter is cultivated by the natives with good results. Both are smaller than our common bee.
**563**.: Another race of bees,' the Melipone, is found in Brazil and Mexico. More than twelve varieties of these have been described, all without stings.
Huber, in the beginning of the nineteenth century, received a nest of them, but the bees died before reaching Geneva. Mr. Drory, while at Bordeaux, France, was more successful. One of his friends sent him a colony of Melipones, and he published in the "_Rucher du Sud-Ouest_" some very curious facts concerning them. The cells containing the stores of honey and pollen are not placed near those intended for brood, but higher in the hive; they are as large as pigeon eggs, and attached in clusters to the walls of the hive. The brood cells are placed horizontally in rows of several stories. The workers do not nurse the brood, but fill the cells with food, on which the queen lays. The cells are then closed till the young bees emerge from them.
## Chapter X The Aplary.
_Location_.
**564**. Any one can keep bees, successfully, if he has a liking for this pursuit and is not too timid to follow the directions given in this treatise. Even ladies can manage a large apiary successfully, with but little help. Miss Enma Wilson, sister-in-law of Dr. C. C. Miller, is an expert apiarist and does a great portion of the work in two large apiaries of several hundred colonies.
Almost any locality will yield a surplus of honey in average seasons. The late Mr. Chas. F. Muth of Cineinnati, with 22 colonies of bees, on the roof of his house, in the heart of this large city, harvested a surplus honey yield of 198 lbs. per colony in one season. Mr. Muth informed us that this surplus was collected from white elover blossoms in 26 days.
**565**. But an intimate acquaintannee with the honey resources of the country is highly important to those desirous of engaging largely in bee-culture. While, in some localities, bees will accumulate large stores, in others, only a mile or two distant, they may yield but a small profit.
"While Huber resided at Cour, and afterwards at Vevey, his bees suffered so much from senaty pasturage, that he could only preserve them by feeding, although stocks that were but two miles from him were, in each ease, storing their hives abundantly."--Bevan.
Those desirous of becoming specialists will find the subject of loeation and yield further treated in the chapter on Pasturage and Overstooking (**69S**).
**566**. Inexperienced persons will seldom find it profitable to begin bee-keeping on a large scale. By using movableframe (**2S6**) hives, they can rapidly increase their stock after they have acquired skill, and have ascertained, not simply that money can be made by keeping bees, but that _the:_ can make it.
While large profits can be realized by careful and experienced bee-keepers, those who are otherwise will be almost sure to find their outlay result only in vexatious losses. An apiary neglected or mismanaged is worse than a farm overgrown with weeds or exhausted by ignorant- tillage; for the land, by prudent management, may again be made fertile, but the bees, when once destroyed, are a total loss. Of all farm pursuits bee-culture requires the greatest skill, and it may well be called _a business of details_.
**567**. Wherever the apiary is established, great pains should be taken to protect the bees against high winds. Their hives should be placed where they will not be annoyed by foot passengers or cattle, and should never be very near where horses must stand or pass. If managed on the swarming plan, it is very desirable that they should be in full sight of the rooms most occupied, or at least where the sound of their swarming will be easily heard.
In the Northern and Middle States, the hives should have a. South-Eastern, Southern, or South-Western exposure, to give the bees the benefit of the sun, when it will be most conducive to their welfare.
**56S**. The plot occupied by the Apiary should be grassy, moved frequently, and kept free from weeds.
Sand, gravel, saw-dust* or coal einders, spread in front of the hive, will prevent the growing of grass in their (**313**) immediate vicinity, and be a great help to those overladen bees, that fall to the ground before reaching the entrance.
Footnote *: Sawdust is perhaps not very safe, owing to danger of fire from the smokers, in very dry weather.
Hives are too often placed where many bees perish by falling into dirt, or among the tall weeds and grass, where spiders and toads find their choice l
**569.** They should be placed on separate stands, entirely independent of one another, and, whenever practicable, room should be left for the Apiarist to pass around each hive. We