. American bee journal. Bee culture; Bees. Dec. 21, 1899. AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 809 The fact that it was not found in the interior is good evi- dence that the insect was not a native of America. Other- wise, natural swarming- would have distributed it thruout tlie land long- before the arrival of the white man. Jonathan Carver, an Englishman, explored Wisconsin and the adjacent territory in 1766-67, and in his book pub- lisht soon after he mentions the common insects. The honey-bee is not among them, but the bumble-bee is re- ferred to as follows : " The bees of America principall)' lodge
. American bee journal. Bee culture; Bees. Dec. 21, 1899. AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL 809 The fact that it was not found in the interior is good evi- dence that the insect was not a native of America. Other- wise, natural swarming- would have distributed it thruout tlie land long- before the arrival of the white man. Jonathan Carver, an Englishman, explored Wisconsin and the adjacent territory in 1766-67, and in his book pub- lisht soon after he mentions the common insects. The honey-bee is not among them, but the bumble-bee is re- ferred to as follows : " The bees of America principall)' lodge their honey in the earth, to secure it from the ravages of the bears, who are remarkably fond of ; The honey-bee was first noticed by white men in Ken- tucky in 1780, in New York in 1793, and west of the Miss- issippi in 1787. Again the " Sting=Trowel ;—Mr. J. J. Ochs- ner, of Sauk Co., Wis., when renewing his subscription for 1900, enclosed the following which he dipt from the Octo- ber number of the Normal Instructor—a teacher's paper publisht in the State of New York : THB STING IS USBFUL. What seems to us only harmful and disagreeable may sometimes prove to have uses of which we know nothing. It will be a surprise to many to learn that, after all, the most important function of the bee's sting is not its sting- ing. I have long been convinced that the bees put the finishing touches on their cell-work by the dextrous use of their stings ; and during this final finishing stage of the process of honey-making the bees inject a minute portion of formic acid into the honey. This is in reality the poison of their sting. This formic acid gives to the honey its peculiar flavor, and also imparts to it its keeping qualities. The sting is really an exquisitely-contrived little trowel, with which the bee finishes off and caps the cells when they are filled brimful with honey. While doing this the formic acid passes from the poison-bag, exudes, drop by drop,
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Keywords: ., bo, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, booksubjectbees, bookyear1861
