New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1910-05-18
The Wonder World of Ants, Bees
and Other Insects.

rated from nature. SVc, PIP NNii, go
,gc,w TO KEEP BEEs FOR PROFIT by
y. Everett Broa. Phi. -. ILLUSTRATED.
1eTao. pp. xii. 500 The Macmillan
Company.
oCR INSECT FRIENDS AID ENEMIES.
Svo, PIP ga The J. Is. AAppihco''
Company.
INSECT WONDERLAND. BY Constance g
NJ Foot With illustrations by y: ~.
Allan. I2me, PIP. II, le6- Inc john
Lane Company.
Mir McCook, a well known authority
on insect life. gives us in his latest book,
ANT Communities" study that fol-
lows. within reason and fact, the wise
kings advice. He does not force the
note Of comparison with human society,
the result being that when he turns from
the one 10 the other his observations
have greater weight and appeal more
strongly 10 the attention. Much has
been written about the ant, but in vain,
one fears, so far as the human sluggard
IS concerned. This book is a welcome
addition TO the literature on the sub
5ect, especially in the simplicity Of its
descriptions. Here are chapters on the
BUILDING and engineering Of ant COM
rnunities, an commissariat and public
end private sanitation; on all the Won
ders Of this form Of life, which pre-
serves its great secret Of the presence or
the absence CT a central directing power:
Jlst ar every citizen IS warrior with
ouI q bnsrd OF W.T., and policeman with
ont 2 police department, and a worker
zffhout 2 hoard Of public works. SO with
cut Z board Of health every citizen or these
nFnrle- republics is Eanitar16n. No
street commissioner arc needed 70 purge
tlle public highways for every citizen feels
COMMITS Toner Literally, every ant looks
out for her "-gn premises: and not only 60,
In fact, there rs no distinction in this re
card. for every part Of every street is
held 20 be equally the charge Of every ant
Patriotisnl--loyslty to the interest Of
the commonwealth without consideration
o. self-is the quality which Mr. Nc
cook places first among the civic viz
sues cf these insects, which appear to
have reached that state of which Her
bert Spencer speaks, in which altruism
has become the ultimate form of selfish
ness, the condition of continued exist
encc How ants make war. how they
take prisoners. primarily for food, but
also tc- use ss slaves; how they raise
their own mushrooms, manage their
queens. and take care Of eggs and lar
VI. their means of communication, the
alien insects TO which they give hospi-
tality all this. and much more, is de
scribed at length. and with unyarying
Interest The Illustrations are numerous
and clear
The busy bee shares with the indus
trieus ant our interest IN the wonders of
its organized existence Nav. il ap-
reals even more potentlv to US. fer does
s. not fistter and stimulate cur gusta-
tory nerve and brain centre? It labors
Tor us thing the ant refuses TO de-
however instructive SIS modVS opeToRdi
The bee. furthermore, holds place Of
SIS own as being with the silkwcr1n, the
only insect which man keeps in 3 semi
domestic state Of practical service.
M Lyons How TO Keep Bees Is 2
severely businesslike piece of work,
though he does not entirely overlook the
beauty and romance Of this form of ia
sect iife II is rather disappointing TO
learn from him that Maeterlincks Life
al the Bee-,-ss mighty coed literature.
but very POOR natural history; and to
read his sober chapter on How 30 Win
ter Bees Successfully" after the imag-
NATIVE flight with which the Belgian
closes his book. is like coming back TO
earth with a thud after a fine frenzy.
How TO Keep Bees is intended for the
professional beekceper. fer the farmer
who oontenlplaIes keeping q few hives,
e-so
genuine suburbanite. 1t is astonishing
IL learn from Mr. Lyon. who viii profit
ably entertain the layInan, how much
has been done, and how ingeniously, to
facilitate and direct and increase the
work Of bees, the improved methods of
housing and handling them, and hun
bred other matters. In an age of many
authorizations il is pleasant TO. learn. teo,
that the popular notion that it is pos
sible TO make artificial combs. I'll them
with glucose, cap them and sell them
as pure honey" has no foundation in
fact:
II might he said here that there never
Set has been produced a pound Of artificial
comb honey, and determined are the
heekeepers 10 stop the lie that the Ma
uOnal Beekeepers' Association offers a
Of artificial comb honey that shall be
produced.
Beginning very properly with an en-
genealogical chapter. dealing with the
structure and habits Of insects and their
place ia the animal world. DR.. Smith
proceeds 20 deal IN an orderly manner
with his subject, which has of late years
acquired 2 popular Importance never
given to il before, thanks, chiefly, to the
dissemination Of a knowledge of the
relation OF insects to health and dis
ease as well as TO crops. He discusses
their activities as plant destroyers. but
also as the protectors Of vegetation and
its friendly Intermediates in propaga-
ton He deals with their relations
toward each other, largely predatory;
their parasitism On other animals in
Guiding man. but in this connection laws
stress upon their insufficientIy recog-
nized services To him as scavengers
one learns from DR.. Smith. by the way,
that tiac silk Of the siikworm has few
advantages over other caterpillar silks:
II is not nearly so strong as some pro-
duccc by other varieties, IL IS not more
lustroUs, snc = IS not nearly so great in
use Is mat II can be more easily Teeled
Than any ether known variety The silk
worm SPINS with "a continuous
thread, unless interrupted. until the entire
cocoon IL completed. a thread nearly a
nsiie long. which under favorable condi-
IN Ia .r,-r