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Bee-Culture at Present: Padus

Pliny says: -. "There is a village, called Hostilia, on the banks of the river Padus: the inhabitants of it, when food fails the bees in their vicinity, place the hives in boats and convey them some five miles up the river in the night. In the morning the bees go forth to feed and then return to the boats, their locality being changed from day to day, until at last, as the boats sink deeper and deeper in the water, it is ascertained that the hives are full, upon which they are taken home and the honey is withdrawn."

This method of supplying the bees with nectar is still employed on the river Po, the present name of the ancient Padus. The people mark a water line about the boat at starting and to it attach a scale by which they can tell how deep the boat sinks, and so judge when the hives are full and the time has come for returning home.