Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1874-02-26
Farm ann AousrboIO.
About Bees.

The king is stingless; EARNED only with
his majestic port Modern science re-
cards this so-called king a. mother and
monarch of the hive. II Is found that sIse
lives four years. and is hatched from the
egg in fourteen days; while the workers
require twenty-one days, and the drones
twenty-four. These strange figures are
part Of the mystery attaching to bees; but
still more curious fact connected with
this point *, that the bees have the power
at will of developing common eggs into
queen bees. This is done by removing an
cgg into 4 royal cell. and feeding the little
grub with substance of a milky gelatin
Gus appearance. known as royal jelly"
These facts have been ascertained by Mr..
PeitsreW. one of the most successful bee
keepers Of the day; though what the exact
analysis OF this royal jelly NAV be is ut
terry unknown. The chief furction of the
queen in the hive is 10 lay eggs. from
which the future population will spring
healthy queen during her life is estimat-
ed TO lay the enormous number Of 500. 900
eggs Often in the heat Of summer for
months together. she will lay 1000 a day.
Whether these eggs are all alike, or wheth-
er some are distinctly worker-eggs, and
Others as distinctly drone-eggs, is one of
the numerous questions on which all bee
keepers are at issue. The working bees
form the life and prosperity of the hive.
To them belong industry, labor, patience,
ingenuity-in short. all the virtues of the
race; and while each knows his own duty,
and does it. the efforts of all are directed
towards the veal OF the community. The
working bee never lives longer than nine
months; they labor so necessarily, that il
i supposed they never sleep. The daily
consumption and waste of large hive of
bees in summer may be taken at two
pounds of honey; it will show the industry
OF the working bees to bear in mind that.
beyond this, such a hive in favorable
weather will often accumulate honey to
the amount OF four to six pounds daily.
Indeed. il Is upon record that a hive once
gained twenty pounds weight in two days
1t is curious that wild hive of bees can
soon be taught TO recognize and refrain
from attacking people who approach
them. No wonder that the ancients es-
teemed them divine; that their poet laure-
ate, according to the Platonic philosophy,
assigns them IA participation in the Su-
preme Mind and in heavenly influences"
and that another speaks of their powers of
presaging wind and fine weather
Modern science points out that the frun-
flying of many flowers is due TO the la
bors of bees in mingling the pollen; and
most gardeners must have noticed the diff
ficulty of preserving pure strain OF any
when these active workmen have access
TO other varieties of it. Within the necta-
ries OF many flowers the bee finds the thin.
sweet juice which we know as honey; but
when this is carried home and deposited
in wax cells, it requires to be swallowed
again by the bees. when it undergoes a
thickening process, and becomes honey
proper. Honey gathered almost exclu-
sively from one kind Of plant or flower ac-
quires its special flavor. Thus clover-hon-
ey is clear and pleasant both to the eve
and palate, but that made from sycamore
and gooseberry flowers far exceeds it,
Heather-honey is much darker than other
kinds B elgrdria.