The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1891-11-23
BUNDLE AND HONEY-BEES.
Why the Former Are Worthless to Man
-Importation of Insects.

Up to nearly the end of the summer the
queen lays only worker eggs-that is to
say, eggs that produce females which are
undeveloped sexually. They are the
honey-gathering and comh-building class.
When autumn is coming on, however, she
produces males, called drones. At the
same period also she lays eggs which give
birth to fully-developed females, all of
which are destined TO be queens the
following year These females mate
with drones and thus are rendered
able to reproduce their species in the next
season. From six to twelve of the future
queens are turned out by each hive. When
cold weather arrives they crawl into snug
places, where they hibernate during the
winter, gathering pollen in the spring
and laying their eggs in it. Thus is COM
pleted the cycle of the species. Only the
queens survive, all the workers and drones
dying.
Thus it may be said that every humble
bee hive is wiped out each autumn. Here
is one of the reasons why this genus Of
aplda is not useful to mankind. They do
not gather in numbers sufficient to aecum-
late large stores of honey, notwithstand-
ing their industry. Ordinarily a single
colony will not number more than thirty
or forty individuals. Another cause for
their worthlessnesS is that their cells, be-
ing formed in the manner described, are
huddled together without order, so that
the honey cannot we'll be obtained from
the combs in a clear state.
The humble bee and the honey-making
bee proper are cousins. Scientifically
speaking, they are families belonging to
the same order. Four species of honey
bees are known. Three of them are indig-
enous to India, and are found nowhere
save in that part of the world. The fourth,
known as "Millifca," is distributed all
over the globe. 1t includes a number of
varieties, all of which were very likely de-
rived from one stock at the beginning.
Bees. like rats, have spread with man,
though from different cause. Thew have
accompanied the human race as servants,
not as scavengers.
There were no bees in America until the
seventeenth century, when the common
black variety was brought over from Ger
many. 1t is that kind which swarms all
over the United ates today. But within
recent years Bookkeeping has been reduced
to scientific principles, and SO it has been
sought to procure from abroad finer breeds.
Important among these is the Italian,
which was fetched to this country first
in 1859. Italian bees have many ad-
vantages from the industrial point of
view. They are docile and easily handled;
they are very prolific, and they protect
their hives better than the black ones do
from the ravages of the wax moths. These
moths lay their eggs in the combs, and the
Larvae feed upon the wax and pollen, de-
stroying the cells. In 1881 Mr.. Benton, a
well-known expert, went abroad and
brought hither other choice breeds from
Cyprus, Syria and Palestine. These, par
ticularly the Cyprian, are all very hand
some and thoroughly business bees, pos
sessing extraordinary energy in honey
gathering
Nowadays bee-keepers select their stock
as carefully as farmers do cattle. Hun
dreds of people all over the country make
profitable business of raising pure-bred
Italian or other queens for market In
each hive are engendered from dozen to
800 queen bees, depending upon the race.
If lett alone they would nearly all be
killed by being stung to death in
their cells, because bee house
hold can never have more than
one mistress. but the breeder removes
the portion of the comb which contains
these queen cells, before their occupants
are ready to emerge, and he puts one of
them, with bit of comb and honey, in
each of a number of miniature hives made
for the purpose, with few handfuls of
bees in each