Thomas Hill

“ But if neither of those fashioned Hiues like you, then may you make the Hiues of the woodde of a hollowe tree, or of light bourdes made square, and stowpyng somewhat afore. The worste Hiues be those, which be made of turfes of earth, bycause they be ouer hote in the Sommer, and ouer colde in the Winter. ”

“ Varro writeth, ye it is thē time to gelde hiues, when as you see within, ye the Bees hāg clustring round, & ye the holes of the hony combes be couered ouer, as it were with thin caules, for then be they full of honny. Now the day of gelding the hiues ought to be done timely in the morning, when as the Bees are astonied throughe the colde aire, and not done in the heate of the day, when they be procured to fly forth of ye hiues, and being then very angry, to sting those persons which come to the hiues. ”

“ And if the Moone runne then in the signe Uirgo, at the first appearance of the dogge star, it after signifieth the plentie of showers, and the greate store of fruites of the earth, and the cheapenesse also of cattell. And yet to be feared, that women shal be deliuered before their time in that yeare. ”

“ If the Bees happen to scatter in their flying abroade, then do they call and gather them togither into a swarme, by the helpe of making a shrill sounde, eyther with pā or bason, or other loude cymball. They also followe their king whether soeuer he taketh his flight, who beyng wearie, and not further able to flie, they carrye hym betweene them. ”

“ Whereby is to be vnderstanded, that the kings ruling in power, thorough the lacke of their stings maye be by that meanes the slower to hurt, and offer reuengemente. Yet some affirme the kings to haue stings, but they suppose them not to vse their stings. And of this Plinie maketh a doubt whether the king be armed as the other bees, or lacketh a sting. Which Columella putteth out of doubt, writing of the king he hath no sting, vnlesse any perhappes thinketh that big head as it were, whiche the the king carrieth in his belly, to be his sting, with which at no time they vse to sting or hurt anye. ”

“ And if the beginning of Ianuarie happen on Saterdaye, then the Winter shall be windie and vnstable, the Spring windie, and vnconstant of weather, the sommer vnstable with manye tempeses, and the Haruest drie: So that victualls shall be deare, small store of corne, and little fruite that yeare. Also sheepe shall not well prosper that yeare, and a likelihoode then of the death of swine, and that woode shall be deare.
Also there shall be manye tertian agues, and diuers other diseases rayning among men, so that olde men shall then die, and a likelyhoode of the death of many men, by the plague. ”

“ And if when the North wind bloweth the Ram doth then couer the Ewe, doth after beget a hee lambe. And of what colour also the vaines shal be vnder the tongue of the Ewe, suche shal the colour of the skinne of the lambe be, for if she hath black vaines vnder the tong, then the Lambe shall be blacke of skin, and if white vaines vnder the tong, then shall she haue a white lambe: and if of diuerse colours, then the lambe shal be of diuerse colours on the skin. ”

“ Some wil to put fresh birdes cleane drawne, or the fleshe of a Henne finely shred into hiues, for the Bees to feede and sucke vpon in the deepe of Winter, & the fine feathers also they will to put into ye Hiue, that they may giue them a warmth to the Bees lying in them. And others also will to put the meate of rosted Chickens into their Hiues, to feede and sucke vppon, and not the boanes withall, least annoy the bees by lying still in the hiues, in that they so greatly abhorre all sowre and stinking sauors. ”

“ And the snowe increaseth the corne and other growing things on earth, in that by his coldnesse it so doth shut the poures of the earth, that the heate with the whiche the seedes of the earth be cherished, cannot then breath forth. ”

“ Also such persons, as taste somewhat thereof, doe couet to lie or fall hastily on the earth, seeking for coldenesse, and be all on a sweate, so that in sodaine daungers, muste some speedy helpes or remedies be ministred, like as the older Mulse of the best hony, and herb Grace, or other like confections, be often ministred to suche persons. ”

“ MOst men in Italy prepare and make their medicines whiche they purpose to keepe long, with honny, so that honny preserueth euery thing from putrifying, which you would haue in safety, and to continue for a seasō, through his clamminesse. And of this, auntient men did embalme bodyes of the deade, which they would haue preserued, and to continue sound without corrupting many yeres, with hony only, and the same they also smeared within the tombes or sepulchres of the deade, for the longer keeping of bodyes. ”

“ For heerin may you see, first the maruellous gouernement of the Bees, through the onely instincte of nature, as in theyr obedience to their King, and other officers, in punishing the ydle loyterers, in cherishing the true labourers in theyr manner of fighting, with suche like a greate many, as it is wonderfull to reade, and almost vncredible to beleeue: secondly, the liuely effectes and commodities that arise of theyr Honie and Waxe. ”

“ The honny is rightly ministred to such as haue the impostume in the lungs and the pluresie. And the hony is which dead Bees are, is applyed to the venemous honny. The honny drunke with wine helpeth the corruptiōs which are engendred of the meate fishes. But to colde and moyste bodies the honny is more profitable, therfore verie fitte for olde persons, as}} Galen affirmeth. And to persons being twentie yeares of age, and of an vntemperate botenesse, or others hote of qualitie, the honny to them is hurtefull, bycause it is soone conuerted into choller in them. ”

“ And when after a colde Winter, and that South windes and raynie in the Spring, and that the Sommer be drie then in the Haruest following doe agues ensue, paines also of the bowels thoroughe the greate scouring of the bodie, and Sicknesses, with the whiche olde men, diseased persons, and childrē be then more pained.
And when the Southwest winde doth long blowe aboute the end of Haruest, thē those persons diseased with a long sicknesse, do shortly after die. ”

“ This set ouer a softe fire, vntill the same what it be, is throughly heated and molten in the panne, and in the melting continually sturre the same aboute, with a bigge splatter or some staffe, leaste the Waxe cleaue to the panne sides, throughe the flame or heate of fire, and appeare burned: after poure the whole substaunce into a course hairen bagge, pressing it forth into a troughe or other like vessell, made for the only purpose, on which poure twoo or three kettles full of hote water, that no dregs hang after on the Waxe, and by that means shall you haue the Waxe both pure and cleane. ”

“ Yet it often happeneth, that they doe not wholy cleaue on a heape to the braunch of a tree, but to the sticke or body of the tree, whych by that meanes muste needes be cutte by a greater force, so that not able to be recouered by this meanes, the swarme muste be quickly sweepte off, either with the hand, or with a Gose wing, that they may so fall togither into the hiue. ”

“ By what signes men may know, when the hony Bees are diseased, and how men may cure them. Cap. xij.
THis is a spetiall argument and note, that the Bees, are diseased, if that they fly scattering in the swarme, if they keep not their proper colour, but be (as it were) of a strange and cōtrarie colour: if they also are ouer leane, if they appeare dustie and hairy, and that out of their cottages bee dead Bees carryed thence. When al these notes and signes are espied in the Bees, it is then highe time to seeke remedye for them, leaste helpe (by longer running) be sought too late. ”

“ The selfe-same healeth places grieuously burned, without appearaunce on anye scarre afterwarde, by often applying lynnen cloutes dropped in it. And the seconde water being of a golden coloure dipped into the eyes, doeth not onely helpe swollen and bleared eyes, but the pinne and webbe in them, by the dayly and often dropping of the same into the eyes. ”

“ Palladius writeth, that the swarmes be increased in the moneth of May, and that in the outmost sides of the combes be the drone Bees bred, which ought to be killed, in that those do muche disquiet the rest of the swarme. The Butterflies also do abounde, which he willeth diligently to kill, for their greate annoyaunce to the honny Bees. ”

“ Here note, that in the Spring and Sōmer time, the bee-hiues ought to be loked vnto thrice in the moneth, gently smoking the Bees, to clense the Hiues of al maner filth, and to sweepe forth the wormes. Also}} Menecrates willeth the keeper of Bees, to kill the king blacke of colour, whiche by hys malice disquieteth the other king, and corrupteth the Hiue, in that he flieth out alone, or with a company of ye bees folowing. ”

“ Now theyr readinesse to fight is knowen, when in the ayre is heard a greate sounde and noyse among the Bees lyke to the manner of Trumpets, whiles they fiercely and cruelly fighte togither among thēselues, & in this battell they glitter with the wings, sharpen the stings with their beakes, beare forth their breastes, and about the king they gather and swarme. ”

“ Throughe which it so commeth to passe, that the searcher after Bas knoweth nor then howe neare, or far off, the swarm is from the spring or running water. Some take the iuyce of the hearb Baulme in the Spring time, and annoint the same round about the hiue, whereby the sauour of the iuyce maye cleaue and abide on the vessell, whiche afterwarde being fayre within, sprinckle aboute with a littl honny, setting the same hiue downe neare to the woodde or groue of trees fast by that spring or water rūning by it, and after the same be filled with a swarme, carry it gently home. ”

“ Democritus was on a time asked, by what meanes men might both continue in perfite health, and liue vnto very old yeares, to which he thus answered: if so be men annoint their bodies outwarde with Oyle, and apply their bodies inwarde with honny. Further honny profiteth weake persons, being applyed as the Mulse water, of which shal after be taught in the next chapter. ”

“ Bycause that if you shoulde distill it so often ouer, vntil it will congeale or stiffen no more in the receiuer, then shall you make it ouer hotte, and so quicke in the mouth, that it is not possible by anye meanes to drinke it downe. But being once distilled, you maye either giue it in Wine to drinke, or annoint with the Oyle on any place of the bodye where you will, whiche will always doe good, and hurte in no manner. ”

“ Wherefore that the king may not often attempte forth with the swarme, for feare of loosing them, the skilful practisers wil, the wings of the kings be broken off. Whiche feeling himselfe thus depriued of his wings, will not after attempt to flye forth of his boundes, but remayning still within, will so cause the other Bees to abide continually with him, not leauing the Hiue at any time after. ”

“ Nowe if the same place be deepe in the earthe, then with a smoake make eyther of drye flare or Brimstone, driue ye Bees out, and when the swarme is come forthe, then ring on a bason or shrill panne, for being by and by feared with the shryll sounde of the same, the swarme eyther lighteth on a yong tree, or on the opener bowe of a bigge tree, which so founde out, couer ouer with a hiue prepared for the nonce. ”

“ Besides these, the Bees haue a maruelous order among them, if their king happen to die, for then thay shal bitterly mourne for their king deade, and for the lacke of another, as such whiche cannot be guided and ruled without a king among them, and of this they be in continuall mourning. So that for the time, they carry no foode into theyr Hyues, nor flye not forth, but with a sadde bewailyng and humming, after theyr King, they heape thicke togyther aboute the deade body, and vnlesse another King increaseth by little and lyttle among them, they dye for hunger. ”