Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1868-02-12
agricultural.
Bees and Honey.

Greatly Increased attention has been oiyen
10 the cultivation of bees within the last IF
teen Year,. Indeed, there has been no period
within our recollection when 50 much has
been written and said in relation u them
We are glad To see this. The cultivation of
bees, like the cultivation Of flowers. has a
cIyiiizing tendency Like flowers. they require
Il constant and tender care. and rarely fail to
enlist deep interest and sympathy in the
bee-master- They soon become acquainted
with their keeper, and will allow him to ar
range their hives, change boxes and perform
most of the necessary work about the bee
stand OF house, without moIesting him, if he
be a kind and gentle master II he is ouiet
and proceeds Iearlessly. they will alight upon
his hands and run over them, especially If he
has been prudent enough to rub them with
little liquid honey. They become greatly ex-
cited If sudden blow il struck upon tie hive
or IN their immediate vicinity. and they at
once assume an attitude of defence or def
tnce. When not disturbed, their counfenance
"a mild, their eyes soft and clear, and their
whole appearance that of gentieness and re-
pose; but when agitated, as great "A change
takes place as may DC seen Ia the eat or dog
when enraged- and every hair upon them is
trembling with excitement. Sometimes they
become absolutely ferOciOus, and will strike
blow almost sufficient to knock 4 person
down, while, at the sam9 moment the keen
II cannot be withdrawn. and is left in the
flesh of its victim. In Il hot day. and when
they were probably not treated with that def
erence which queen and her subjects Iner-
tied, We have more than once been driven
from the stand and obliged to take shelter be.
meath dense shrubbery which would prevent
their approach. But like the sharp-shooters
IN our late army, they We're the lookout.
and, instantly, when head Or hand was raised
~, h
force that could scarcely he conceived a. pro-
cecding from so small a creature
Aranother time-when handling them with
great freedom friend has been invited to
look on, but a sudden blow in the face and an
exclamation of pain would stop the further
progress Of the visitor
The of bees is always attended with
some danger, so that every person engaged in
it should protect himself by an old hat with a
calico sack tied above the rim, and piece Of
wire gauze sewed into the sack in front of the
face; then with gloves having long wrists tied
over the sleeves of the sack, he is proof against
any number of bees. The women will tai
an old dress and fit the whole thing up in an
hour.
In an article i'll tine Scottish Farmer, Dir.
James Bruce says the agricultural population
of that country cannot be too strongly i'm
pressed 49,. port. at L1a,.:..e,
In many parts of Russia, some peasants have
hundreds of bee hives, and really make more
profit of their bees than of corn. In one To-
calIty the number of hives Incredible; a
single parish forest, he informed pos
sesssd fUe hundred stearns
Honey is said to possess so great restorative
powers, that in some instances, at the point
of death, when all stimulants and tonics had
failed, a table spoonful, given every half hour,
has rallied and saved the patient.
As honey is highly esteemed by most per
sons as article of food, and as it commands
a nigh price-the supply being scarcely equal
to the demand-the culture OF bees is worthy
of attention in an economical point Of view
1t is not probable that anything like the
amount of saccharine material produced III
flowers, sap Of trees, dews or dispositions on
the leaves of plants, juices of fruits, etc IL
collected in any year All that seems neces
sary, then, to make honey abundant, is the
culture of more bees. In doing this, we woulo
caution the beginner to observe the habits o
bees in their natural condition, and learn from
them, as far possible. the hest mode o
management when brought under the care q
man. We are inclined to think that in man
cases they are managed too much, and that i
kept nearer their natural condition thew woul,
prove more profitable. The devices for hives
are exceedingly numerous some of them ex
cellent, bat many of them expensive, compli
Gated and worthless.
The two great enemies Of bees are worm
and moisture keep them free from these
and with a little attention in feeding youn.
or weak swarms, one may find their cultur
pleasant and proftablc.-N. f.. Farmer.