PRO
PRO
the colour of Wax. It very readily diflhlves in fpirit of wine or oil of turpentine, and this foJution is of a fine gold colour, and will ferve extremely well as a varnifh to colour filvered pi6hire-fram.es, or other the like work, into the appearance of gold. It gives a fine gold-like appearance, indeed, to any white metal of a polifhed furface ; all that it wants is a little more brilliancy, which is enfily given it by mixing a fmail quantity of maltich, or of fandarach in the folution. Reaumur's Hift. Inf. Vol. X. p 77-
The bees having much lels frequent occafion for this fubftance than for wax, are very feldom to be met loaded with it j they never bring any of it home, except when they are eftablifhed in a new hive, or when there happens fome crack or flaw in an old one. The morning is the time of their gathering the matter of which they make their wax ; but the evening is the time of their going out for the propolis. When there is occafion for this fubftance in the hive, the bees will be found to return loaded with it in lumps placed upon the third joint of their hinder legs, in the very fame manner in which they carrv their wax. It differs greatly from the rough wax which they carry, as that is made up of fmall round or oval gra- nules; and this is one uniform fubftance of the nature of a foft refin or gum. Tin's fubftance is not to be eaten firft, in the manner of the rough wax, in order to its being rendered fit for ufe ; but is of immediate readinefs for fcrvice. It is one of the molt troubleibme offices of the bees, to bring it home and apply it to the places where it is wanted. It is fo tough and vifcous, that it muft be with infinite difficulty that the poor bee gets it upon her leg; but the getting it off again, is a talk left to others. As foon as one of the fwarm enters the hive loaded with (his, feveral others immediately gather about her, and bite out pieces of a very minute fize from the lumps fhe is leaded with This is a work of great trouble and difficulty for them ; for their teeth are fo fattened in by the tenacity of the matter, that it is with the utmoft labour that they get off the little portion they have thus feized upon. This piece draws out, in the pulling it away, into a long thread, as any of the foft gum-refins would do. Often the matter is fo tenacious, that the bee which feizes on it, in order to feparate a piece, is not able to do it; but remains hung faff by the teeth to the leg of the other Often two ' bees are at work at a time, one at the lump of propolis at- tached to each leg of the bee that brought it in : as foon as they have any of them diflodged a piece, tho' ever fo fmall, they immediately fly with it to fome place where there is a crack to be flopped, and the moment thefe are gone, other* fupply their place at the lumps; fo that both legs of the bee who brought in the load are very foon perfectly cleared of it, when the whole is employed to the proper purpofe. The great trouble of working and feparating this matter, and the fmall quantity that one bee is able to bring at a time, might feem to prove, that it would be an endlefs work to flop the large holes fometimes found in the hives with it : but the great number of bees employed in this work at the fame time, are what makes it go off tolerably well, tho' each has unqueftionably a very hard talk to perform in it It is the general opinion of thofe who have ftudied bees, that the willow and the poplar are the trees which principally fur- nifh them with this refin, which,when it has patted through their management, we call propolis. It is very certain, however, that thefe are not the only trees which afford it, fince the bees are not found to want this necefiary material for their work, in places where there are no trees of that kind in the neighbourhood of the hives. Reaumur's Hift. Inf. Vol. X. p. bo.
Mr. Reaumur was very defirous of feeing the manner in which the bees collected this tenacious matter; but Watched them in vain in the fields and upon the trees : although an accident gave him an opportunity of obferving them at their work on this occafion. He had taken off" the cover of one of his glafs hives on fome occafion, and as there was much of the propolis flicking to its edges, which the bees had ufed to flop the cre- vices when it was fixed in, the bees of a neighbouring hive foon found that here was this fubftance ready for them in large quantities together, and that they could have it at a very eafy rate : they therefore immediately detached a party to bring it off; and in confequence of this, it was eafy to obferve any one of them, during the whole courfe of his work. The manner of feparating it from the fubftance it lay upon, was by detaching very fmall pieces at a time with the teeth ; thefe, when they had been with great labour loofened from the reft, were delivered to the foot of one of the fore-legs : they were here moulded into a round ifli lump, and. after a little work- ing, delivered to the foot of a fecond leg ; and finally, by this to the flat triangular piece which makes the third joint of the hinder legs, the part deftined in their common labours to receive the lumps of rough wax. It is here preffed down with fome violence, and afterwards fixed in its place by three or four ftrokes from the fame foot ; and then another is fepa- rated by the teeth in the fame manner, and by the fame means carried to the fame place, and added to the firft piece ; and fo on till the whole work is finifhed. The bees which found this treafure loaded themfelves to an immenfe degree, carrying of a lump Larger than a pea on each leg, and the
time to take iip thefe large parcels was at leaft half an hour : after carrying this load to the hive, and being relieved from it by the joint labours of feveral others, the bee which has been at all the pains of collecting it, joins a clutter of others in fome quiet part of the hive, where it refts for the remainder of that day.
The propohs is not b'nly ufed by thefe animals for flopping up holes and cracks in the fides of their hives; they often cover with it the furface of thofe crofs pieces which fupport the combs, and when they can find it in fufEcient plenty, they cover over the whole inner furface of the hive with it, td defend it from the entrance of enemies of any kind which might eat their way through the fhell of the hive. The an- tients. who obferved this lining of the hives fuppofed that the bees ufed the propolis to faftcn their combs to the hive; but later obfervation has proved this to be an erroneous "pi- nion, the combs being always fattened with lumps of wax only. Befides the ufes of the propolis already mentioned, there is another very fingular one, which muft by no means be pa/Ted over in ftlence : this is the embalming and preferring} by means of it, certain bodies which they know not to difpofe of otherwife. Notwithstanding the care that the bees take to guard the entrances of their hives, enemies of one kind or other will often get in : thefe ufually fare very ill ; for the bees fting is a weapon very capable of puniihing fuch an in- trufion, and the fwarm is fo numerous, that it is not eafy for the intruder to efcape repeated wounds- When a creature of fmall fize has thus entered, and thus been killed for it, the bees with great care and pains carry him out ; for they will bear no fort of foulnefs in the hive. It fometimes happens, however, that an unlucky fnail, particularly of the large naked kind, crawls into the hive; in this cafe He never ceafes craw- ling over the combs fo long as he lives. It is no wonder that fo cleanly creatures as the bees are highly enraged at this nafty vifiter; they foon furround and kill him with their flings; but then as he is a load too heavy to allow a poffibility of their carrying him out, they prevent the mifebiefs attending the ftinking of the carcafe, by covering it over with a thick coat of this propolis, which perfectly well pr'eferves it from pu- trefaction. Reaumur's Hift. Inf. Vol. X. p. 84. The common garden fnail, with the fhell, fometimes alfo vifit thefe induftrious and cleanly animals , and this creature they fecure in a different manner, and that at the expence of only a very fmall quantity of the propolis : but Reaumur had an opportunity of obferving their method of deftrovin^ this enemy in a very accurate and eafy manner, in one of his glafs hives. The fnail had entered the hive early in the morning, and after crawling about for fome time, had fixed itfelf to one of the glafs fquares by the fame glutinous matter by means of which it is frequently found fixed to old walls and trees - when the bees found their enemy thus fixed, they funounded him, and in a few minutes formed a border of propolis round the verge of the mouth of the fhell : this they continually added more and more to, tiil they had formed fo thick a coat round it, that the fnail could never move from the place again.
The fnail is eafily able to loofen the fattening which it gives itfelf to any place, becaufe this is done by means of a gum,- which water will diflblve; therefore the firft fhower of rain, or the moifture which the animal is able to fecrete from its own body, releafes it in this cafe ; but the fattening which the bees ufe to fix the fhell to the glafs being a refin, this re- mains untouched by water, and muft keep the animal fixed in its place till death, and even long afterwards. It feems probable, that the bees are not over curious in the choice of the matter of the propolis \ but that many vegetable refins indifferently ferve for this purpofe: it has been tried, however, whether they would u(e common turpentine, and fome other of the refins in ufe among us, by laying them be- fore their hives; but without fuccefs. This is an experiment,- however, that requires frequent repetition; fince there are many feafons at which the bee has no occafion for this matter. Reaumur's Hift. Inf. Vol. X. p 80. PROPOMA, a name given by the antients to a potion prepar- ed of honey and wine boiled together: the proportions were four parts of wine to one of honey. PROPTOSIS, in furgery, a name by which fome authors have called that diftemperature of the eye commonly called a pro- lapfus oculi. Heijler's Surg. p. 427, See Prolapsus oculz. PROSCH.£RETERIA, npxTxcuffafi*, in antiquity, a day of rejoicing, kept when a new-married wife went to cohabit with herbufhand. Potter, Archseol. Grec. T. i.p. 427. PROSCLYSMA, a word ufed to exprefs an irroration, or fprink- ling of any part with a fluid, as the throwing water in the face in cafes of fainting, &c. PROSECUTION. To make men liable to criminal profecu- tims by the law of England, it is required that they have the ufeof reafon, and that thcybefui juris. On the firft account the law indulges infants under the age of difcretion, ideots, and lunatics, whatever the nature of the fact may be ; and even againft the perfon of the king, as it has been held of late : neither will it fuffer one who becomes non compos, after he has committed a capital offence, to be either arraigned or executed. See Lunatic and Infant, Cysl,
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