Eric Doolittle, F. R. Gorton, H. L. Wells

“ It is not necessary to hold your breath or wet your fingers, as is commonly supposed; the above classic charm will work quite as well without. After holding the insect in the hollow of your hand for a moment, take him boldly between your fingers, roll him, pull him, squeeze him, and twirl him as you will; no amount of abuse will induce him to sting. Perfect faith in the above will enable any one to handle a wasp with impunity. ”

“ A bee can sting a person whether that person is holding his breath or is not, although there are some, even those with extended experience, who will tell you the contrary. The error is deeply imbedded in the human mind. Some go so far as to say that various spells, such as repeating collections of strange words, will have this effect. I have even seen it seriously maintained in print. It is an interesting fact that all these false and absurd notions are based on jokes. The secret is this: drone honey-bees and drone wasps may be picked up without risk, because the drone has no sting. ”

“ Many a boy has waved his hand over a collection of wasps, and many a bee-keeper over a cluster of honey-bees, just to play a little joke upon his friends, and to say, “See, I can pick them up in safety if I hold my breath, or say these magic words.” Then he picks up a drone, and calls on the beholder to repeat the trick. And that bystander, not having noticed the difference between the insects, may pick up a drone. Then the experimenter says, “Why, you can do it as well as I can,” but he keeps that person trying until, finally, he gets the wrong bee. ”