Year: 1865

1t is pecnlaritv Of bees that they will


suffer some men to handle them with i'm
punltv. Wildman was man who seems
TO have had an unusual attraction for
them, or command over them as he termed
It, though it is not easy to COMPREHEND


how man could have command over four
or five thousand insects. On one occasion


he paid a visit to Dr Templeton, the then


secretary Of the society for the encourage
ment OF arts to prove to him how bees


submitted to his influence He was


brought through the city in a sedan chair,
and 1t Is to be presumed, into the doctors
room for when he presented himself his
head and face was covered with bees, and
a huge cluster Of them hung down like
beard from his chin. NOtwithstand-
ing this novel appearance, he conversed
with the ladies' and gentlemen who were
present for considerable time without
disturbing the insects. and finally dismis-
Sed them to their hives without ANYBODY
being stung. The fame Of his perform
ance having reached Lord Spencer, he in
vited him to Wimb edon to meet a large
party OF his friends. The countess had
provided three stocks for the occasion -
He first took one of the hives and emptied
the living occupants into his hat to show
that 1T was not necessary to destroy the
bees IN order to deprive them Of their
honey. He next presented himself with
q colony hanging about his head from


has chin, and then stepping out Of wins
dow onto the lawn, where he had directed
a table covered with clean cloth to be
placed, he put them back into the hive
lie then made them come back again and
swarm in the air, after which he caused
IN II Al


thence he took them up by handluls, and
poured them out of his hands as if they


had no more feeling than pebbles, and


finally concluded this portion Of the enter
tainment by causing them to re~enter
their hive. His lordship was too unwen
to be present at these experiments, so


later in the afternoon, he was taken into
his lordships room with all three Of the
stocks hanging about hiIa at one time, one
on his head, one On his breast and the
other on his arm, from which place he af


forwards transferred them to his head and
face SO he was quite blinded. and was led
in this position to the lawn in front of his


Iordshlps window. lie next requested
that horse might be brought around.
which was done, the horse, having first
been well clothed to guard against acci~
dents First taking the bees out of his
eyes that he might see what he was about
he mounted the horse with the bees hang-
Ing about him and rode backwards and
forwards repeatedly, until the company
had seen enough of his performance. when
he diSmounted and placed the bees on the
table, from whence lie dismissed them to
their respective hives 1t is worthy Of re
mark that though there were n great many
persons persent on this, as on the previ-
ous occasion, vet nobody was stung. Itis
IN reality impossible to explain why they
should favor one individual more than
another, Int they constantly do so: it is
related of duchess Of Rutland that a
swarm followed her all the way from the
country to a house in Berklev square.
where they wers hived Accident has
sometimes led to what Wildman did not
deign. A woman named Bonnets, living
near Birmingham was heating q irwin
pan with a KEY, to keep the swarm from
going away, when they all at once settled
upon her head, neck and shoulders
Lucki for her shc was woman of nerve.
and instead Of making efforts to brush
them off, which would hive probably
caused her to be sturg TO Death she kept
quiet. notwithstanding an occasional stinr
from bees which had clawled underneath
her clothes and which were probably ir-
rjtated from being unable to get out
When the evening came thev were hivcd
in the usual way AL the Year R0u7sd