Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1873-10-22
CuriOSitjeS of Bees.

Wonderful stories concerning the pro-
duction of bees, were current In ancient
times. Some thought that bees gathered
their young off the leaves of trees, or from
the flowers of the honey-wort, the reed, or
the olive. PIiny speaks of them as sit
ting on their eggs like hens. 1t was a
very general opinion that bees were pro-
duced from the putrid bodies of cattle.
Virgil gives recipe for the purpose with
the greatest gravity. All will remember
the story of Samson and the honey that he
took from the sain lion in the vineyards
of Timnath. Naturally Shakespeare re-
membered this fact:
"'Tis seldom when the bee doth leave her comb
In the dead carrIon."-Henry ".
The truth of such stories is that occasion
ally the bee lays its eggs in such carcasses.
trusting that the warmth engendered by
decomposition will hatch them. There
were enthusiastic bee keepers in old times,
as at present. Aristomachus did nothing
else but attend to bees for fifty y-eight years.
Another amateur was surEamed 1.-THE
Wild" from dwelling in the desert in or
der to superintend his favorites. The hab-
We refuse to credit the ancient legends of
their taking up stones to ballast them
selves in their fight during high winds, or
lying on their backs when belated to pro-
tect their wings from the dew. We have
ourselves seen pair of bees employed at
the entrance to the hive in creating a Wig
orous draught by perpetually moving their
wings, in order to ventiate the hive. Few
people are aware how heated the atmos-
phere of hive becomes in hot weather.
Besides honey. wax is regular constit-
uent of beehive. This is secretion
from the bodies of the bees, thoug ID it is
hard to explode the ancient and modern
fables concerning it by one stroke of the
pen. A substance termed propolis,' is
also found in hives. 1t is kind of resin
used by the little artisans to fasten up any
chlnks in their combs or hives. Bee-bread
tthe pollen of howers,) is also carried in,
to serve as food for the maggots when the
eggs are hatched. Comb, according to an
old tradition, has been seen in Germany
eight feet long. Other articles of popu
lar belief respecting bees in ancient days
were that, morning and evening. like a
camp in time of war, sentinels were fixed
over the commonwealth, who hummed IL
apecular manner at change of guard, like
trumpet-sound, as Pliny observes. Th'
same veraclous authority, states that on.
clean persons, physically and morally
could take the honey from hive; THE
is specially hated by bees. A swarm
bees, it was said, had settled upon tn
mouth of the infant Plato, as an omen G
the enhancing sweetness of his languag
and philosophic speculatlons; much in tn
same way, we suppose. as Byron said tha
anightingale must have sung on the hea
OF the bed when Moore was born. Bee
were by the ancients supposed to dete'
strong scents. The smell of a crab. If
were cooked near hive. would half ki
the inmates. Ii winter killed your bee
ancient Latin folklore directed you to e.
pose them in spring to the sunshine, al
to put hot ashes of the 6g-tree near theI
when they would come to life again. II
bee Stunp "A person IL WAS thought that