57

THE HONEY-BEE IN NEW ZEALAND. 55

so irascible here as they are in England; and I account
for it in this way: They have not so many enemies to
contend with; the absence of wasps, in particular,
enables them to preserve a more equal temper. I wish
all Englishmen were as much improved in this respect as the
bees are.
Many remedies have been given for a sting; above
all, pull the sting completely out, as it is barbed like a
fish-hook, and will work into the flesh; then squeeze the
poison outwith the pipe of a small key, as you would a
thorn, and put a little honey on the place, just to keep
the air away: if this is done at first, the swelling will
generally be a mere nothing. The pain only lasts two
minutes; at worst, it is only a swelled eye for a day
or two.
Another very common nostrum for rubbing on the
place, after the poison is squeesed out of it with a key, is the
washer-woman's blue-bag. Above all, never blow on
your bees, they will try to sting directly, if you do. If
they come all about you, making the noise which you
will soon learn to know as a sign of anger, go quietly
away, and put your head into a thick scrub, if any is
near. This will brush them off. If you want to catch
any of the bees, make a bold sweep at them with your
hand, as though there was no such thing as a sting in
the world; the bee will be so astonished that she will
not sting at first. Then hold her in your closed hand,
without pressing her, and she will not sting. I have so
caught three or four at a time. If you want to do any-
thing to a single bee, catch her, "as if you loved her,"
between your finger and thumb, where the tail joins on
to the body: she thus cannot sting you.

Honey and Wax for Domestic Purposes.

Dr. Cumming says that:- It has been urged as a commer-
cial question that honey is not now of the same importance
as it was before the sugar-cane was discovered, and
that gas has superseded wax candles. I am satisfied
from many considerations, that if people would eat
honey at breakfast instead of rancid London butter and
nasty greasy bacon, not only would their health be