The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1884-07-25


As regularly as the seasons come
around this question of honey bees and
fruits arises for discussion Tho apia-
rists are almost unanimous In insisting
that bees never attack such fruits a.
grapes and peaches unless the skin has
been first broken by wssps, or perhaps
some other species of insect or birds.
Bus The fruit growers, on the contrary,
claim-and we think have abundant
'proof-that bees. when their tastes de-
mand or necessities force them to OBJ
tam such food, do puncture the skins
of grapes, peaches and similar fruits.
and then consume the pulp or juices
within. During droughts, when flowers
are scarce, bees are far more likely to
attack fruit than at other times, and
they have often proved SO destructive
that fruit growers, who have been bee
keepers themselves, have been obliged
to dispose of their bees in order to save
their fruit.
Mr.. Z. Satterthwait, of Pennsylvania.
an extensive cultivator of fruits, recent
" stated at meeting of the Pennsyl-
vania Horticultural Association that,
although he had kept bees for several
years, he was glad to get rid of them,
and that by so doing he saved at
least five hundred dollars on his
crop the first year. At tins
same meeting another gentleman read
long essay, in which he insisted that
bees never eat fruit except that which
has been punctured or damaged in ad-
vance of their attacks. Prof. Meehan.
on the contrary, declared that positive
evidence of their destructiveness could
be found by any one who would visit
Germantown. Pa. where there was
scarcely q home with out grapevines.
which in some seasons were stripped OF
their fruit by bees.
We think it is too late in the day for
beekeepers tn deny the destruction OF
fruits By bees, for the latter have been
caught in the very act by hundreds OF
close observers, who could scarcely be
mistaken in matter SO easily demon
strated as that of bee puncturing
sound and ripe fruit During the at
tack of swarm upon grapes, punches
have been cut from the vines. every
berry carefully examined to see that
none were left upon it with a punctured
or broken skin, and then the bunch
placed under cover, but where the bees
could find it, which they did, and were
soon sucking the juice of the berries.
Bees will often make an assault upon a
certain variety of fruit, and appear to
become intoxicated with the feast, and
will not cease their depredations so long
as specimen can be found. We have
been personally cogaizant of more than
one such assault upon grapes. peaches,
and similar fruits, and perhaps the very
next season not a specimen Of the fruit
would he injured by the bees. We can
not account for such variations IF habit
or taste in bees, unless we attribute 1t
to,variations in seasons, the flowers not
supplying the requisite food: or 1t may
he that something occurs in the storage
capacity of the hives, or some change
in temperature interferes with the max
ing Of comb out of the honey gath
cred, and the bees, for diversion or to
satisfy an abnormal appetite, seek fruit
and gorge themselves with its juices.
1t is scarcely to be supposed that they
ob'an or store any amount OF honey
from such sources; consequently we
are compelled to believe'that they make
their raids upon fruits for the mert
graft flea ton of a suddenly acquires
taste.
Bees have been known to make s
furious attack upon an inoffensive ami
NAL, or even upon the person havins
them in charge and with whom they
were supposed to be well acquainted
During such attacks they appear to be
carried away with an ungovcrnable pas
sion, and their natural instinct, which
under ordinary circumstances. makes
them cautious. is entirely obliterateC
by the madness of the moment. The
hony-bee is credited with being very
intelligent insect, having its likes and
dislikes. I: loves and it hates, and il
also has good memory. and Ian
guage, enabling it to communicate free
" with its own kind: consequently il il
not at all strange that an,entire swarm
or dozen of them should join in max
ing raid upon fruits whenever condi
lions are favorable and the taste of the
ices leads them to seek such food.
Admitting that the accusations made
against bees in regard to their destruct-
iveness to fruits have been fully estab.
lisaed the question naturally arises as
to the rights of the See-keepers in this
matter. Has any man right to raise
and keep an insect that is likely to an
noy his neighbors in various ways, In
addition to destroying his fruits? We be-
lieve this question has already been
taken into the courts, and decided
against the bees, and it will, no doubt,
be taken there many times in the future.
if the bee-keepers continue to increase
their stocks of bees as rapidly in the
next few years as they have in the past
two or three decades. Honey il no
doubt very desirable luxury, but
scarcely so important or Of SO much
value to man as fruit: and while we ad.
mire the 'busy bee" and its stores OF
nectar, there must be limit even to
the multiplication of an ordinarily use.
full insect.-N. Y. Sul.