The Honey-Makers

Half natural history, half literature: how the honey-bee actually works — tongue, wings, sting, swarm — and then three thousand years of what people have believed about her, from the Vedas to mead.

This site is the complete 1899 book The Honey-Makers, page by page as originally printed — period spelling, remedies and opinions included. About this edition →

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Introduction

The Honey-Makers By Margaret Warner Morley Author of "A Song of Life," "Life and Love," "The Bee People" Illustrated by the Author Chicago…

In Greece and Italy

36 pages

The Honey-Bee

3 pages

The Bee's Tongue

2 pages

Eyes, Antenne, and Brain

8 pages

The Wings

2 pages

The Legs

ALTHOUGH less airy and poetical than the wings, the legs of the bee have an interest of their own. In fact, when properly understood, they…

Honey-Sac and Wax-Pockets

2 pages

The Sting

7 pages

The Family

7 pages

The Drone

2 pages

The Worker

3 pages

See the full table of contents →

Highlights

The Legs

ALTHOUGH less airy and poetical than the wings, the legs of the bee have an interest of their own. In fact, when properly…

The Bee's Tongue

BOTH ends of the honey-bee have always been of singular interest to us, and this for exactly opposite reasons. It is the "tongue"…

Curious Facts

16 genuinely curious things this book actually says, each linked to its page.

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32Chapters
1899Year
202Pages
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Rights & ReuseThe complete text of The Honey-Makers (1899) is in the public domain in the United States — like all works published before 1928 — and is free to read, download, quote, teach from, and reuse. This digital edition (its transcription, restored images, and site design) is © 2026 PhotoOpAI, and any editorial commentary we add is clearly marked as ours; the underlying public-domain text carries no such restriction.