or the Bee, in zoology, a genus of insects belonging to the order of insects hymenoptera. The mouth is furnished with two jaws, and a proboscis infolded in a double sheath; the wings are four in number, the two foremost covering those behind when at rest: In the anus or tail of the females and working bees, which are of no sex, there is a hidden sting. Linnaeus enumerates no less than 55 species of the apis, viz. 1. The longicornis, or hairy yellow bee, with thread-like feelers, about the length of its body. 2. The tumulorum, or black bee, with yellow feet and jaws, and thread-like feelers, about the length of the body. 3. The clavicornis, or black bee, with clavated feelers, about the length of its body, and two yellow belts round the belly. 4. The centuncularis, or black bee, having its belly covered with yellow down. The nests of this species are made of rose-leaves curiously plaited in the form of a matt or quilt. 5. The cineraria, or black bee, with a white hairy breast, and a greenish belt round the belly. The above five species are all natives of Europe. 6. The mexicana, is a brownish bee, with bluish wings, and very large. It is a native of America. 7. The carbonaria, or reddish bee, with darkish green wings; it is about the size of the mellefica, or common honey-bee, and is found in Africa. 8. The retula, or black bee, has its legs covered with down. 9. The rufa, or brownish bee, with a white front and dusky belly. 10. The bicornis, has two horns on its front, a black head, and a hairy belly. 11. The maxillofa, or black bee, with prominent jaws, short feelers, and a cylindrical belly, covered with a yellow down. 12. The truncorum, or black smooth bee, with a white hairy front, and a yellow belly edged with white. 13. The florifommis, or black bee, with a cylindrical incurved belly, having two tooth-like protuberances at the anus, and a kind of pricks on the hind-legs. This bee sleeps in flowers. 14. The dentata, or shining green bee, with black wings, and a kind of teeth on the hind thighs. The tongue of this bee is almost as long as its body. The nine last species are all natives of Europe. 15. The cordata, or shining green bee, with a belly shaped like a heart, and wings of a glass-colour. It is a native of the Indies. 16. The helvola, is an oblong reddish bee, with a white belly. 17. The fabriciana, or black bee, with an iron-coloured belly, and two yellow spots. 18. The succincta, has a yellow hairy breast, a black belly, and four white belts. The last three are natives of Europe. 19. The zonata, is brownish and hairy, with four bluish belts on the belly. It is a native of the Indies. 20. The ænea, is hairy, and of a copper colour. 21. The caruleacea, is brownish and hairy, with a greenish belly, margined with white indentations. 22. The mellefica, or honey-bee, is furnished with downy hairs, a dusky-coloured breast, and brownish belly; the tibiae of the hind-legs are ciliated, and tranversely streaked on the inside. Each foot of this bee terminates in two hooks, with their points opposite to each other; in the middle of these hooks there is a little thin appendix, which, when unfolded, enables the bees to fasten themselves to glass or the most polished bodies. This part they likewise employ for collecting the small particles of wax which they find upon flowers, and for transmitting them to the middlemost joint of the two hinder feet, in which there is a little cavity, in the shape of a narrow spoon, surrounded by a number of hairs. When they have loaded their thighs with wax, they immediately carry it off to the hive. hive. The queen and drones, who never collect wax in this manner, have no such cavity. The belly of the bee is divided into six rings or joints. In the inside of the belly there is a small bladder or reservoir, in which the honey is collected, after having passed through the proboscis and a narrow pipe which runs through the head and breast. This bladder, when full of honey, is about the size of a small pea. The sting is situated at the extremity of the belly: It is a horny substance, and hollow within, for transmitting the venomous liquor, which lies in a bladder near the anus, into the wound. The sting is generally left in the wound, and frequently draws after it the poison-bag.

As the melissica, or honey-bee, is both an useful insect, and endowed with peculiar instincts, we shall give a particular account of its nature and economy.

The queen is the only female in a hive; she is distinguished from the others by being taller, more of an oblong figure, and having ten joints in each feeler. She is likewise furnished with a sting. The fuci, males, or drones, are commonly about 1600 in a hive; they have no sting, and their feelers have eleven joints. The operaria, spadones, or working bees, are sometimes 20,000 in a hive; they have fifteen joints in their feelers, and are armed with stings.

After a new swarm is formed, the bees immediately begin to form their cells. They begin their work at the upper part of the hive, and continue it downwards, and from one side to the other. It is not easy to discover the particular manner of their working; for, notwithstanding the many contrivances used for this purpose, there are such numbers in continual motion, and succeed one another with such rapidity, that nothing but confusion appears to the sight. Some of them however have been observed carrying pieces of wax in their talons, and running to the places where they are at work, upon the combs. These they fasten to the work by means of the same talons. Each bee is employed but a very short time in this way; but there is so great a number of them that go on in a constant succession, that the comb increases very perceptibly. Besides these, there are others that run about beating the work with their wings and the hinder part of their body, probably with a view to make it more firm and solid.

The order they observe in the construction of their cells is this: They begin with laying the basis, which is composed of three rhombus's or lozenges. They build first one of the rhombus's, and draw faces on two of its sides; they then add a second rhombus to the first in a certain inclination, and draw two new faces on its two sides; and, last of all, they add a third rhombus to the two first, and raise on the two external sides of this rhombus two other faces; which completes the cell of an hexagonal figure.

Whilst part of the bees are occupied in forming the cells, others are employed in perfecting and polishing those that are new-modelled. This operation is performed by their talons, taking off every thing that is rough and uneven. These polishers are not so deftly in their operations as those that make the cells; they work long and diligently, never intermitting their labour, excepting to carry out of the cell the particles of wax which they take off in polishing. These particles are not allowed to be lost; others are ready to receive them from the polishers, and to employ them in some other part of the work.

Each comb has two rows of cells opposite to each other, which have their common bases. The thickness of every comb is something less than an inch, and the depth of the cells is about five lines. Almost all the combs are built with cells of this size; except a small number of a larger kind, that are destined for the worms that produce drones.

The bases of all the combs are placed at such a distance from one another, that, when the cells are finished, there is only a space left sufficient for the passage of two bees abreast. These combs are not continued from top to bottom, but are often interrupted, and have openings from one passage to another, which give a more easy and shorter communication.

The queen-bee is generally concealed in the most secret part of the hive, and is never visible but when she lays her eggs in such combs as are exposed to sight. When she does appear, she is always attended by ten or a dozen of the common sort, who form a kind of retinue, and follow her wherever she goes with a sedate and grave tread. Before she lays her eggs, she examines the cells where she designs to lay them; and if she finds that they contain neither honey, wax, nor any embryo, she introduces the posterior part of her body into a cell, and fixes to the bottom of it a small white egg, which is composed of a thin white membrane, full of a whitish liquor. In this manner she goes on, till she fills as many cells as she has eggs to lay, which are generally many thousands. After the eggs lie four days in the cells, they appear in the form of small caterpillars; and generally lie twisted round, so that the two extremities touch each other. The bees then supply them with a little honey for food, the quantity of which they increase till the eighth day from the birth of the caterpillar. After this, the bees discover no more care about their young; but stop up the mouths of the cells with wax. The embryos lie in this state twelve days, during which time they undergo surprising changes. They first change their situation in the cells, and instead of being rolled up, they extend themselves along, and place their heads towards the mouth of the cell; after this, the head of the worm begins to have a small extension, which is the rudiment of the proboscis: Upon the head there is likewise a black point, and at a little distance from this point, a black streak upon the back: The first lineaments of the feet likewise appear; but they are very small. After the head is formed, and the proboscis lengthened, all the other parts display themselves successively; so that the whole worm or embryo is changed into an aurelia or nymph, which is the fly almost perfect, except that it is yet white and soft, and wants that crust with which it is afterwards covered. By this transformation the worm is stripped of a white thin pellicle, which adheres to the sides of the cell. The young bee being stripped of this pellicle, and all the parts being unfolded by degrees, and changed through successive colours from yellow to black, arrives at perfection on the twentieth day; when she cuts, with her jaws or talons, the covering of wax upon the mouth of the cells, and issues out. When the young bees first get out of the cell, they appear drowsy, but soon acquire agility and command of their members; for they have often been observed to go to the fields, and return loaded with wax the same day that they issued from the cells.

As soon as a young bee quits its cell, one of the old ones takes off the wax-cover, and kneads and employs the wax for some other purpose: Another of them repairs and cleanses the cell, removing the pellicle and other forges which was left by the young one.

It was observed above, that bees collect their wax from the pollen or farina of flowers, and carry it to the hive. When they arrive there, they support themselves on their two fore-feet, and make a buzz with their wings, thereby warning the bees within to assist them to unload; which they instantly do, each taking a small portion of the wax from the hinder-legs of the loaded ones, till the whole be exhausted. The wax is not only employed for the original construction of the combs and cells, but is collected and laid up in considerable quantities for the purposes of repairing any damage that may happen to the works during the winter, when they have no opportunity of collecting it in the fields, and likewise to stop up the mouths of the cells when full of honey or embryos.

Bees have often been observed to dilute their wax, when too hard, by means of some liquor or saliva which they emit upon it, in order to render it soft and pliable for use.

The honey, as well as the wax, is collected from flowers. The honey, however, is extracted from a different part of the flower. In the flowers of many plants there are nectaria, or nectariferous glands, which secrete from the plant a pure transparent liquor, resembling virgin-honey both in taste and appearance, excepting that it is thinner. Perhaps all the change that this nectariferous juice undergoes, by being sucked up, and deposited in the honey-bag of the bee, is, that the more watery parts may probably be absorbed during the small time it remains there. The heat of the hive, after it is deposited in the cells, will still evaporate more of the watery parts, and bring it to the consistence of honey.

When a bee is collecting honey, she no sooner lights upon a flower than she extends her proboscis, and sucks up what she can find: If she cannot find a sufficient quantity to fill her bag in one flower, she immediately flies to another, and thus goes on till she has filled it. She then retires to the hive, goes to the cell, disgorges the honey, and again returns to the fields in quest of more. As the quantity carried home by one bee is but small, it requires the labour of many to fill a cell with honey. When the cells are full, they are immediately closed up with wax, if designed for winter-provision; if not, they are allowed to remain open for the common nourishment of the swarm.

Besides these capital instincts of bees, they are possessed of others, some of which are equally necessary for their preservation and happiness. They anxiously provide against the entrance of insects into the hive, by gluing up with wax the smallest holes in the skep. Some stand as sentinels at the mouth of the hive, to prevent insects of any kind from getting in. But if a snail, or other large insect, should get in, notwithstanding all resistance, they sting it to death, and then cover it over with a coat of wax, to prevent the bad smell or maggots which might proceed from the putrefaction of such a large animal. Bees are seldom overtaken with bad weather; they seem to be warned of its appearance by some particular feeling. Cold is a great enemy to them. To defend themselves against its effects during a cold winter, they crowd together in the middle of the hive, and buzz about, and thereby excite a warmth which is often perceptible by laying the hand upon the glass-windows of the hive. They seem to understand one another by the motions of their wings. When the queen wants to quit the hive, she gives a little buzz, and all the others immediately follow her example, and retire along with her. They expel the drones before the winter, so that, of several hundreds in a hive, not one can be seen after the month of October. This expulsion always occasions a furious battle between the drones and the working bees; but the latter being greatly superior in number, always prevail.

With regard to Hives, those made of straw are the best, on many accounts: They are not liable to be overheated by the rays of the sun; they keep out cold better than wood or any other materials; and the cheapness renders the purchase of them easy. As the ingenious Mr Wildman's hives are reckoned to be of a preferable construction to any other, we shall give an account of them in his own words.

"My hives," says he, "are seven inches in height, and ten in width. The sides are upright, so that the top and bottom are of the same diameter. A hive holds nearly a peck. In the upper row of straw, there is a hoop of about half an inch in breadth, to which are nailed five bars of deals, full a quarter of an inch in thickness, and an inch and quarter wide, and half an inch further from one another; a narrow short bar is nailed at each side, half an inch distant from the bars next them, in order to fill up the remaining parts of the circle; so that there are in all seven bars of deal, to which the bees fix their combs. The space of half an inch between the bars allows a sufficient and easy passage for the bees from one hive to another. In order to give great steadiness to the combs, so that, upon moving the hive, the combs may not fall off, or incline out of their direction, a stick should be run through the middle of the hive, in a direction directly across the bars, or at right angles with them. When the hives are made, a piece of wood should be worked into the lower row of straw, long enough to allow a door for the bees, of four inches in length, and half an inch in height.

The proprietor of the bees should provide himself with several flat covers of straw, worked of the same thickness as the hives, and a foot in diameter, that so it may be of the same width as the outside of the hives. Before the cover is applied to the hive, a piece of clean paper, of the size of the top of the hive, should be laid over it, and a coat of cow-dung, which is the least apt to crack of any cement easily to be obtained, should be laid all round the circumference of the hive.

Let the cover be laid upon this, and made fast to the hive with a packing-needle and pack-thread, so that neither cold nor vermin may enter.

Each hive should stand single on a piece of deal, or other wood, somewhat larger than the bottom of the hive: That part of the stand which is at the mouth of the hive should project some inches, for the bees to rest on when they return from the field. This stand should be supported upon a single post, two and a half feet high; to which it should be screwed very securely, that high winds, or other accidents, may not blow down both stand and hive. A quantity of foot mixed with barley-chaff should be strewed on the ground round the post, which will effectually prevent ants, slugs, and other vermin, from rising up to the hive. The foot and chaff should, from time to time, be renewed as it is blown or washed away: Though, as it is sheltered by the stand, it remains a considerable time, especially if care be taken that no weeds rise through it. Weeds, indeed, should not be permitted to rise near the hive, for they may give shelter to vermin which may be harmful to the bees.

The stands for bees should be four yards asunder; or, if the apiary will not admit of so much, as far asunder as may be, that the bees of one hive may not interfere with those of another hive, as is sometimes the case, when the hives are near one another, or on the same stand: For the bees, mistaking their own hives, light sometimes at the wrong door, and a fray ensues, in which one or more may lose their lives.

The person who intends to erect an apiary, should purchase a proper number of hives at the latter part of the year, when they are cheapest. The hives should be full of combs, and well stored with bees. The purchaser should examine the combs, in order to know the age of the hives. The combs of that season are white, those of the former year are of a darkish yellow; and where the combs are black, the hives should be rejected, because old hives are most liable to vermin and other accidents.

If the number of hives wanted were not purchased in the autumn, it will be necessary to remedy this neglect after the severity of the cold is past in the spring. At this season, bees which are in good condition will get into the fields early in the morning, return loaded, enter boldly, and do not come out of the hive in bad weather; for when they do, this indicates they are in great want of provisions. They are alert on the least disturbance, and by the loudness of their humming we judge of their strength. They preserve their hives free from all filth, and are ready to defend it against every enemy that approaches.

The summer is an improper time for buying bees, because the heat of the weather softens the wax, and thereby renders the combs liable to break, if they are not very well secured. The honey too being then thinner than at other times, is more apt to run out of the cells; which is attended with a double disadvantage, namely, the loss of the honey, and the daub-

ing of the bees, whereby many of them may be destroyed. A first and strong swarm may indeed be purchased; and, if leave can be obtained, permitted to stand in the same garden till the autumn; but if leave is not obtained, it may be carried away in the night after it has been hived.

I suppose, that in the stocks purchased, the bees are in hives of the old construction. The only direction here necessary is, that the first swarm from these stocks should be put into one of my hives; and that another of my hives should in a few days be put under the old stock, in order to prevent its swarming again.

Bees never swarm till the hive be too much crowded by the young brood. It is this circumstance that induces a part of the hive to think of finding a more commodious habitation. With this view they single out a queen from among the young, with whom they take wing; and where-ever she leads, the rest follow. They first begin to swarm in May, or in the end of April, but earlier or later according to the warmth of the season. They seldom swarm before ten in the morning, and seldom later than three in the afternoon. We may know when they are about to swarm, by clutters of them hanging on the outside of the hive, and by the drones appearing abroad more than usual: But the most certain sign is, when the bees refrain from flying into the fields, though the season be inviting. Just before they take flight, there is an uncommon silence in the hive; after this, as soon as one takes flight, they all follow. Before the subsequent swarmings, there is a great noise in the hives, which is supposed to be occasioned by a contest whether the young or the old queen should go out. When the bees of a swarm fly too high, they are made to descend lower, by throwing handfuls of sand or dust among them, which they probably mistake for rain. For the same purpose, it is usual to beat on a kettle or frying-pan; This practice may have taken its rise from observing that thunder or any great noise prompts such bees as are in the fields to return home.

When the bees settle in swarming, they collect themselves in a heap, and hang to each other by their feet. When they settle in two separate divisions, it generally proceeds from there being two queens in the swarm. In that case, each cluster of them may be hived separately; or one of the queens must be destroyed, to prevent the commotions which the bees would raise in order to destroy her. All the motions and settling of a swarm are directed by the queen. If she be weak, and fall to the ground, the whole swarm fall down along with her; if she rest upon a branch of a tree, they accompany her; and if the queen be caught into a hive, the swarm will instantly follow her. When a swarm is too few in number for a hive, another may be added, provided the queen belonging to it be destroyed. If that precaution be not taken, a battle will ensue, in which not only one of the queens is killed, but frequently a great many of the working bees.

Several methods of taking the wax and honey, without destroying the bees, have of late been practised. Mr Wildman's seems both to be the easiest and safest: "Re-

move (says he) the hive from which you would take the wax and honey into a room, into which admit but little light, that it may appear at first to the bees as if it was late in the evening. Gently invert the hive, placing it between the frames of a chair, or other steady support, and cover it with an empty hive, keeping that side of the empty hive raised a little which is next the window, to give the bees sufficient light to get up into it. While you hold the empty hive, steadily supported on the edge of the full hive, between your side and your left arm, keep striking with the other hand all round the full hive from top to bottom, in the manner of beating a drum, so that the bees may be frightened by the continued noise from all quarters; and they will in consequence mount out of the full hive into the empty one. Repeat the strokes rather quick than strong round the hive, till all the bees are got out of it, which in general will be in about five minutes. It is to be observed, that the fuller the hive is of bees, the sooner they will have left it.

As soon as a number of them have got into the empty hive, it should be raised a little from the full one, that the bees may not continue to run from the one to the other, but rather keep ascending upon one another.

So soon as all the bees are out of the full hive, the hive in which the bees are must be placed on the stand from which the other hive was taken, in order to receive the absent bees as they return from the fields.

If this is done early in the season, the operator should examine the royal cells, that any of them that have young in them may be saved, as well as the combs which have young bees in them, which should on no account be touched, though, by sparing them, a good deal of honey should be left behind. Then take out the other combs with a long, broad, and pliable knife, such as the apothecaries make use of. The combs should be cut from the sides and crown, as clean as possible, to save the further labour of the bees, who must lick up the honey spilt, and remove every remains of wax; and then the sides of the hive should be scraped with a table-spoon, to clear away what was left by the knife. During the whole of this operation, the hive should be placed inclined to the side from which the combs are taken, that the honey which is spilt may not daub the remaining combs. If some combs were unavoidably taken away, in which there are young bees, the parts of the combs in which they are should be returned into the hive, and secured by sticks, in the best manner possible. Place the hive then for some time upright, that any remaining honey may drain out. If the combs are built in a direction opposite to the entrance, or at right angles with it, the combs which are the furthest from the entrance should be preferred, because there they are best stored with honey, and have the fewest young bees in them.

Having thus finished taking the wax and honey, the next business is to return the bees to their old hive; and for this purpose place a table, covered with a clean cloth, near the stand, and giving the hive in which the bees are a sudden shake, at the same time striking it pretty forcibly, the bees will be shaken on the cloth. Put their own hive over them immediately, raised a little on one side, that the bees may more easily enter; and when all are entered, place it on the stand as before. If the hive in which the bees are, be turned bottom uppermost, and their own hive be placed over it, the bees will immediately ascend into it, especially if the lower hive is struck on the sides to alarm them.

The chief object of the bees during the spring and beginning of summer, is the propagation of their kind. Honey during that time is not collected in such quantities as it is afterwards: and on this account it is scarcely worth while to rob a hive before the latter end of June; nor is it safe to do it after the middle of July, lest rainy weather prevent their restoring the combs they have lost, and laying in a stock of honey sufficient for the winter, unless there is a chance of carrying them to a rich pasture.

Mr Wildman, by his dexterity in the management of bees, has lately surprised the whole kingdom. He can order a swarm to light where he pleases, almost instantaneously; he can order them to settle on his head, then remove them to his hand; command them to depart and settle on a window, table, &c., at pleasure. We shall subjoin his method of performing these feats, in his own words: "Spectators (says he) wonder much at my attaching bees to different parts of my body, and wish much to be possessed of the secret means by which I do it. I have unwarily promised to reveal it; and am therefore under a necessity of performing that promise: but while I declare, that their fear and the queen are the chief agents in these operations, I must warn my readers that there is an art necessary to perform it, namely practice, which I cannot convey to them, and which they cannot speedily attain; yet till this art is attained, the destruction of many hives of bees must be the consequence; as every one will find on their first attempt to perform it.

Long experience has taught me, that as soon as I turn up a hive, and give it some taps on the sides and bottom, the queen immediately appears, to know the cause of this alarm; but soon retires again among her people. Being accustomed to see her so often, I readily perceive her at first glance; and long practice has enabled me to seize her instantly, with a tenderness that does not in the least endanger her person. This is of the utmost importance; for the least injury done to her brings immediate destruction to the hive, if you have not a spare queen to put in her place, as I have too often experienced in my first attempts. When possessed of her, I can, without injury to her, or exciting that degree of resentment that may tempt her to sting me, slip her into my other hand, and, returning the hive to its place, hold her there, till the bees missing her, are all on wing, and in the utmost confusion. When the bees are thus disturbed, I place the queen wherever I would have the bees to settle. The moment a few of them discover her, they give notice to those near them, and those to the rest; the knowledge of which soon becomes so general, that in a few minutes they all collect themselves round her; and are so happy in having recovered this sole support of their state, that they will long remain quiet in their situation.

Nay, the scent of her body is so attractive of them, that the slightest touch of her, along any place or substance, will attach the bees to it, and induce them to pursue any path she takes.

My attachment to the queen, and my tender regard for her precious life, makes me most ardently wish that I might here clothe the detail of this operation, which, I am afraid, when attempted by unskillful hands, will cost many of their lives; but my love of truth forces me to declare, that, by practice, I am arrived at so much dexterity in the management of her, that I can, without hurt to her, tie a thread of silk round her body, and thus confine her to any part in which she might not naturally wish to remain; or I sometimes use the less dangerous way of clipping her wings on one side.

I shall conclude this account in the manner of C. Furius Cresinus, who being cited before the Curule Edile and an assembly of the people, to answer to a charge of sorcery, founded on his reaping much larger crops from his small spot of ground, than his neighbours did from their extensive fields, produced his strong implements of husbandry, his well-fed oxen, and a hale young woman, his daughter; and, pointing to them, said, These Romans, are my instruments of witchcraft; but I cannot shew you my toil, my sweats, and anxious cares. So may I say, These Britons, are my instruments of witchcraft; but I cannot shew you my hours of attention to this subject, my anxiety and care for these useful insects; nor can I communicate to you my experience, acquired during a course of years.

We shall conclude this history of the Honey-Bee with the following experiments for preventing a waste of honey, and preserving the lives of bees during the winter, communicated by a gentleman near the banks of the Tweed. "I have tried several experiments for preserving the lives of bees during the winter; and tho' in general with little success, yet I think I have reason to continue, and advise others to follow, what I practised last winter. The method is very simple, and not expensive, for it is no other than keeping the bees in a cold and dark place.

My reason for trying this experiment, was my having observed, that a certain degree of cold brought upon the bees a stupor; and that the same degree of cold continued, kept them in the same state, till they were brought into a warmer situation, which immediately restored their life and vigour."

* This observation is confirmed by what Mr White says, That bees which stand on the north-side of a building, whose height intercepts the sun's beams all the winter, will waste less of their provisions, almost by half, than others which stand in the sun; for, seldom coming forth, they eat little, and yet in the spring are as forward to work and swarm as those which had twice as much honey in the autumn before. See the Revd. Mr White's method of preserving bees. Third edition.

With this view I kept two hives shut up in a dark cold out-house, from the middle of September to the middle of April, without ever letting them see light: Upon their being set out in the warmer air, they recovered immediately, and showed an appearance of more strength than the hives did which had been kept out in the usual way. This appearance of strength continued during the summer, and they multiplied faster than I had ever observed them do before. They were rather later in swarming this year than in former summers; but the same was the case with many hives in this neighbourhood: and even though this should always happen, yet I think other advantages will do more than overbalance it. Could I go into the country early in the spring, to look after the bees myself, I would bring them into the open air some weeks sooner, carefully attend to the changes of the weather, and shut up the doors of the hive on a bad day: but this degree of care can scarcely be expected from servants and gardeners, who have many other things to attend to.

I intend to have four hives put up this season, in the coldest dark place I can find; and as an ice-house is the (teadiest and greatest cold we have, one or two of my friends who have ice-houses, have promised to put a hive upon the ice. By all accounts, the cold in Siberia does not kill the bees there; and in Russia, where the winters are extremely severe, bees produce much honey: so I think there is not any danger to be feared from any degree of cold we can expose the bees to.

If success continues to attend this experiment of keeping the bees asleep all the winter and spring, without consuming their honey, a great point will be gained; especially as Mr Wildman has taught us to take the honey without killing the bees: for, by what I have observed in this country, our bees are lost chiefly by being tempted to go out in a clear fun in the spring, though perhaps a frothy wind blows, and chills them, so as to prevent their being able to return to the hive; or an early warmth induces the queen to lay eggs, and a number of young bees are bred, which consume the little provision left, before the fields can afford any supply."

Explanation of Plate XXIII.

Figure 1. Is the queen bee. 2. Is the drone. 3. Is the working bee. 4. Represents the bees hanging to each other by the feet, which is the method of taking their repose. 5. The proboscis or trunk, which is one of the principal organs of the bees, wherewith they gather the honey and take their nourishment. 6. One of the hind-legs of a working-bee, loaded with wax. 7. A comb, in which the working bees are bred. The cells are the smallest of any. Two of them have the young bees inclosed. A royal cell is suspended on one side. 8. A comb in which the drones are bred, being larger than the former; the young drones being included in several of them; with two royal cells suspended on the side. 9. A similar comb, in which the royal cell is fixed in the middle of the comb; and several common cells are sacrificed to serve as a basis and and support to it. In general, the royal cells are suspended on the side of a comb, as in fig. 7, 8. To the side of fig. 9, two royal cells are begun, when they resemble pretty much the cup in which an acorn lies. The other royal cells have the young queens included in them.

The 23d species is the apis cunicularia, or hairy bee, with an iron-coloured breast, and yellow belly. This species is very like the mellefica; they build their nests in dry sandy places. 24. The variegata; the breast and belly are variegated with white and black spots; the legs are of an iron colour. It is a native of Europe. This species sleep in the geranium phæum, or spotted crane's-bill. 25. The rostrata is distinguished by the upper lip being inflected, and of a conical shape, and by the belly being inflected with bluish belts. They build their nests in high sandy grounds, and there is but one young in each nest. 26. The argillosa, or iron-coloured bee, has an inflected rostrum, and a crooked belly, with one joint. It is a native of Surinam. 27. The lago-poda is of a greyish colour, with an emarginated anus. 28. The manicata, or black bee, with hairy fore-legs; the belly is spotted with yellow; and the anus is tridentated. 29. The quatuor-dentata, is of a dusky colour, with five white belts on the belly, and the anus has four teeth-like protuberances; each intermediate tooth is forked. The last three species are natives of Europe. 30. The fasciata has a yellowish back, and a black belt round the edge of each wing; the breast is white; the belly is variegated with black and white; the legs are covered with black hair; and the feelers are green. It is a native of the Cape of Good Hope. 31. The barbara, or black bee, with a yellow edging round the breast, is about the size of an ant; the feelers are like threads. It is a native of Barbary. 32. The conica, or yellow bee, with an acute conical belly, and the margins of the joints or segments white; it dwells in cavities of the earth. 33. The annulata, or black bee, with a black front, and black rings round the legs. 34. The ruficornis has two iron-coloured spots on the breast and feelers; the belly is spotted with yellow. 35. The ferruginea, or smooth black bee, with the feelers, mouth, belly, and feet of an iron colour. This is a small bee, supposed to be of an intermediate kind between the bee and wasp. The last three are natives of Europe. 36. The ichneumonea; the rostrum or snout is an erect horn; the belly is petiolated and black; and the breast is interspersed with shining gold-coloured figures or indented lines; the antennae are green. It is a native of America. 37. The cariosa is a yellowish hairy bee; and the feet and front are of a bright yellow colour. It builds in the rotten trees of Europe. 38. The violacea is a red bee, and very hairy, with bluish wings. It is a native of Europe. The violacea is said to perforate trees, and hollow them out in a longitudinal direction; they begin to build their cells at the bottom of these holes, and deposit an egg in each cell, which is composed of the farina of plants and honey, or a kind of gluten. 39. The caffra is also red, and covered with hair; the hind part of the breast and fore-part of the belly are yellowish. 40. The carolina is a red hairy bee, with the upper part of the belly yellow. It is a native of Carolina. 41. The terrestris is black and hairy, with a white belt round the breast, and a white anus. It builds its nest very deep in the earth. 42. The horatorium is a black hairy bee, with the fore part of the breast and belly yellow. 43. The pratorum, or black hairy bee, with the fore part of the breast yellow, and a blackish anus. 44. The lapidaria, or red hairy bee, with a yellow anus. It builds in holes of rocks. 45. The sylvarum, or pale hairy bee, with a black belt on the breast, and a reddish anus. 46. The muscorum, or yellow hairy bee, with a white belly. It builds in mossy grounds. 47. The hypnorum, or yellow hairy bee, with a black belt on the belly, and a white anus. 48. The lucorum, or yellow hairy bee, with a white anus. The last eight species are all natives of Europe. 49. The brasiliarum, or pale-red hairy bee, with the basis of the thighs black. This is a very large bee, every where covered with a testaceous skin. It is a native of America. 50. The acervorum is red and hairy, and builds below ground. 51. The subterranea is red and hairy, with a dusky anus; it likewise builds below ground. 52. The surinamensis is a black hairy bee, with the whole belly, excepting the first joint or segment, yellow. It is a native of Surinam. 53. The astuans, or black hairy bee, with a yellow breast. 54. The tropica, or black hairy bee, with the hind part of the belly yellow. The two last are natives of the warm climates. 55. The alpina is a hairy bee, with a black breast, and yellow belly. It inhabits the mountains of Lapland.