our towns, the hives of bees are put into boats, and carried up against the stream of the river, in the night, in fearch of better pafture. The bees go out in the morning in queft of provisions, and return regularly to their hives in the boats, with the ftores they have collected. This method is continued, till the finking of the boats to a certain depth in the water fhows that the hives are fufficiently full; and they are then carried back to their former homes, where their honey is taken out of them." And this is ftill the practice of the Italians who live near the banks of the Po, (the river which Pliny inftanced particularly in the abovequoted paffage).

M. Maillet relates, in his curious Description of Egypt, that, "fpite of the ignorance and rufticity which have got peffeffion of that country, there yet remain in it feveral footsteps of the industry and fkill of the ancient Egyptians. One of their most admirable contrivances is, their fending their bees annually into diftant countries, in order to procure them fuftenance there, at a time when they could not find any at home; and their afterwards bringing them back, like shepherds who should travel with their flocks, and make them feed as they go. It was obferved by the ancient inhabitants of Lower Egypt, that all plants bloffomed, and the fruits of the earth ripened, above fix weeks earlier in Upper Egypt than with them. They applied this remark to their bees; and the means then made ufe of by them, to enable these usefully induftrious infects to reap advantage from the more forward ftate of nature there, were exactly the fame as are now practifed, for the like purpose, in that country. About the end of October, all fuch inhabitants of the Lower Egypt as have hives of bees, embark them on the Nile, and convey them up that river quite into Upper Egypt; obferving to time it so that they arrive there juft when the inundation is withdrawn, the lands have been fown, and the flowers begin to bud. The hives thus fent are marked and numbered by their respective owners, and placed pyramidically in boats prepared for the purpose. After they have remained fome days at their fartheft ftation, and are fuppofed to have gathered all the wax and honey they could find in the fields within two or three leagues around; their conductors convey them in the fame boats two or three leagues lower down, and there leave the laborious infects fo long time as is neceffary for them to collect all the riches of this spot. Thus, the nearer they come to the place of their more permanent abode, they find the productions of the earth, and the plants which afford them food, forward in proportion. In fine, about the beginning of February, after having travelled through the whole length of Egypt, gathering all the rich produce of the delightful banks of the Nile, they arrive at the mouth of that river, towards the ocean; from whence they fet out, and from whence they are now returned to their feveral homes: for care is taken to keep an exact register of every diftrict from whence the hives were fent in the beginning of the season, of their numbers, of the names of the perfons who fent them, and likewife of the mark or number of the boat in which they were placed."

In many parts of France, floating bee-houfea are very common. They have on board one barge, threefcore or an hundred bee-hives, well defended from the inclemency of an accidental form. With these the

owners fuffer themselves to float gently down the river, the bees continually choofing their flowery pasture along the banks of the ftream; and thus a fingle-floating bee-house yields the proprietor a confiderable in

come.

They have also a method of transporting their bees by land, well worth our imitation in many parts of this kingdom. Their firft care is, to examine thofe hives, fome of whofe honey-combs might be broken or feparated by the jolting of the vehicle; they are made fast one to the other, and against the fides of the hive, by means of small sticks, which may be difpofed differently as occafion will point out. This being done, every hive is fet upon a packing-cloth, or fomething like it, the threads of which are very wide; the fides of this cloth are then turned up and laid on the outside of each hive, in which ftate they are tied together with a piece of fmall pack-tread wound several times round the hive. As many hives as a cart built for that purpofe will hold, are afterwards placed in this vehicle. The hives are fet two and two, the whole length of the cart. Over thefe are placed others; which make, as it were, a fecond story or bed of hives. Those which are ftored with combs fhould always be turned topfyturvy. It is for the fake of their combs, and to fix them the better, that they are difpofed in this manner; for fuch as have but a small quantity of combs in them. are placed in their natural fituation. Care is taken in this ftowage not to let one hive ftop up another, it being effentially neceffary for the bees to have air; and it is for this reason they are wrapped up in a coarse cloth, the threads of which were wove very wide, in order that the air may have a free paffage, and leffen the heat which these infects raise in their hives, especially when they move about very tumultuously, as often happens in these carts. Thofe used for this purpose in Yevre, hold from 30 to 48 hives. As foon as all are thus flowed, the caravan sets out. If the seafon is fultry, they travel only in the night; but a proper advantage is made of cool days. Thefe caravans do not go faft. The horfes mult not be permitted even to trot: they are led flowly, and through the smootheft roads. When there are not combs in the hives fufficient to fupport the bees during their journey, the owner takes the earliest opportunity of refting them wherever they can collect wax. The hives are taken out of the cart, then fet upon the ground, and after removing the cloth from over them, the bees go forth in fearch of food. The firft field they come to ferves them as an inn. In the evening, as foon as they are all returned, the hives are fhut up; and being placed again in the cart, they proceed in their journey. When the caravan is arrived at the journey's end, the hives are diftributed in the gardens, or in the fields adjacent to the houses of different peasants, who, for a very small reward, undertake to look after them. Thus it is that, in such spots as do not abound in flowers at all seasons, means are found to fupply the bees with food during the whole year.

Thefe inftances of the great advantages which attend fhifting of bees in fearch of pafture, afford an excellent leffon to many places in this kingdom: they direct particularly the inhabitants of the rich vales, where the harveft for bees ends early, to remove their ftocks to places which abound in heath, this plant continuing

in

Bee.

Greek me

bees

mur and Du Hamel, in the Memoirs of the Royal Academy for that year, p. 331.

Wheeler's

Greece,

p. 411.

"The hives they keep their bees in are made of willows or ofiers, fashioned like our common duft-baskets, wide at top and narrow at the bottom, and plastered with clay or loam within and without. They are fet Pl. XCVII as in fig... with the wide end uppermoft. The tops are covered with broad flat ticks, which are alfo plaftered over with clay; and, to fecure them from the weather, they cover them with a tuft of ftraw, as we do. Along each of these sticks, the bees faften their combs; fo that a comb may be taken out whole, with out the least bruifing, and with the greatest case imaginable.. To increase them in fpring-time, that is in March or April, until the beginning of May, they divide them; firft separating the fticks on which the combs and bees are faftened, from one another, with a knife fo, taking out the firft comb and bees together on each fide, they put them into another basket, in the fame order as they were taken out, until they have equally divided them. After this, when they are both again accommodated with fticks and plafter, they fet the new basket in the place of the old one, and the old one in fome new place. And all this they do in the middle of the day, at such time as the greatest part of the bees are abroad; who at their coming home, without much difficulty, by this means divide themselves equally. This device hinders them from fwarming and flying away. In Auguft, they take out their honey. This they do in the day-time alfo, while they are a broad; the bees being thereby, fay they, difturbed leaft at which time they take out the combs laden with honey, as before; that is, beginning at each outfide, and fo taking away, until they have left only fuch a quantity of combs, in the middle, as they judge will be fufficient to maintain the bees in winter; fweeping those bees that are on the combs into the basket again, and then covering it with new fticks and plafter."

:

Attempts have been made in our own country, to attain the defirable end of getting the honey and wax without deftroying the bees; the most approved of which we fhall now relate as concifely as poffible.

Bee.

32

vations, &c.

Mr Thorley, in his Inquiry into the Nature, Order, Mr Thor and Government of Bees, thinks colonies preferable to ley's obfer hives, for the following reafons: First, The more certain prefervation of very many thousands of these useful creatures; fecondly, Their greater ftrength (which confifts in numbers), and confequently their greater fafety from robbers; thirdly, Their greater wealth, arifing from the united labours of the greater number. He tells us, that he has in fome fummers taken two boxes filled with honey from one colony; and yet fufficient store has been left for their maintenance during the winter; each box weighing 40 pounds. Add to thefe advantages, the pleasure of viewing them, with the greateft fafety, at all feafons, even in their bufieft time of gathering, and their requiring a much lefs attendance in fwarming time. The bees thus managed are alfo more effectually fecured from wet and cold, from mice and other vermin.

His boxes are made of deal, which, being spongy, fucks up the breath of the bees fooner than a more folid wood would do. Yellow dram-deal thoroughly feafoned is the beft.

An octagon, being nearer to a sphere, is better than a fquare form; for as the bees, in winter, lie in a round body near the centre of the hive, a due heat is then conveyed to all the out-parts, and the honey is kept from candying.

The dimenfions which Mr Thorley, after many years experience, recommends for the boxes, are ten inches depth, and 12 or 14 inches breadth in the infide. He has tried boxes containing a bufhel or more, but found them not to answer the defign like those of a leffer size. The larger are much longer in filling; fo that it is later ere you come to reap the fruits of the labour of the bees: nor is the honey there fo good and fine, the ef fluvia even of their own bodies tainting it.

The best and pureft honey is that which is gathered in the first five or fix weeks: and in boxes of less dimenfions you may take in a month or little more, provided the feason be favourable, a box full of the finest honey.

The top of the box should be made of an entire board a full inch thick after it has been planed; and it fhould project on all fides at least an inch beyond the dimenfions of the box. In the middle of this top there must be a hole five inches fquare, for a communication between the boxes; aad this hole should be covered with a fliding fhutter, of deal or elm, running easily in a groove over the back window. The eight pannels, nine inches deep, and three quarters of an inch thick when planed, are to be let into the top fo far as to keep them in their proper places; to be fecured at the corners with plates of brafs, and to be cramped with wires at the bottom to keep them firm; for the heat in fummer will try their ftrength. There fhould be a glafs-window behind, fixed in a frame, with a thin deal-cover, two fmall brafs hinges, and a button to faften it. This window will be fufficient for infpecting the progress of the bees. Two brafs handles, one on 5

each