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.

The Bee's Tongue

2 pages in this part of The Honey-Makers.

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" that…

The Bee's Tongue: Connecticut

As many of the flowers in the Connecticut woods set no seeds, it is probable that they are not greatly favored by insect visitors in this…

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.