(From honey). Honey; aercmili, acoitus. Aristaeus, a pupil of Chiron, is said to • have first gathered this sweet vegetable juice, collected by the bee from the flowers of various plants, and deposited in the cells of its comb. The little animal which furnishes this rich juice is the apis mel-lifica, Lin., and the honey which separates without expression contains a less proportion of wax, and is of a thick consistence, a whitish colour inclined to yellow, a granulated appearance, an agreeable smell, and pleasant taste; both the colour and flavour differ in some degree, according to the plants which the bees prefer; but that wrought by young bees, and permitted to run from the comb without heat or pressure, is called virgin honey. The honey of old bees, pressed from the wax, is yellow. Honey produced where the air is clear and hot is better than that where the air is variable and cold. Where the bee hives are fixed; aromatic plants, particularly thyme, lavender, violets, primroses, baum, sage, and borage, should abound. Honey seems to be merely collected from the flowers, and not elaborated by the internal economy of the insect, for it derives, apparently from its source, many qualities not peculiarly its own. New honey to many proves disagreeably and powerfully laxative; and it sometimes, particularly in America, proves poisonous. Boston (American) Transactions. Each inconvenience is often removed by age, but more certainly by boiling. The animal which collects it is an exclusive inhabitant of the old continent, imported by America, where the natives call it the white mens' fly. Honey contains a large portion of a purely saccharine matter, mixed with an acid partly uncom-bined, though concealed by the sugar. With this, however, there is certainly a proportion of mucilage, since oxalic acid is the result of its treatment with the nitric.

If M. Seguin's late experiments are correct, honey must also contain albumen, since substances which arc susceptible of fermentation without yeast, seem, in his opinion, to owe it to their albumen. When deprived of it they lose this property; and when it is again added in the form of the white of an egg, they regain it. Yeast certainly contains albumen, but M. Seguin has lately shown so much fancy in his experiments on gelatine, with which intermittents he thinks may be cured, because the bark appeared to contain this substance, that we distrust his present conclusions.

Honey is highly nutritious, though when long continued as a diet, is said to occasion a dissolution of the blood. As a medicine it is supposed to be aperient, antiseptic, and expectorant: but it is perhaps only slightly-laxative, and a pleasing demulcent. It seems to possess some stimulus, since it is forbidden where heat and inflammation are considerable. If given in a large quantity it has been said to relieve asthma, and dissolve a calculus in the bladder (see Calculus); but there is much reason to doubt its efficacy in these complaints. It is only a sugar with a larger proportion of mucilage, for its acid is inconsiderable in quantity, and highly volatile.

Mel aerium. See Manna.

Mel despumatum. Clarified honey.

Liquefy the* honey in a water bath, separating the scum as it arises. On continuing the heat, a considerable quantity of an aqueous fluid, impregnated with the finest smell of the honey arises: the inspissated residuum dissolves in water and in spirit, If treated with moist clay, as practised by sugar bakers for purifying sugar from its treacle, the unctuous parts of the honey may be separated, and its saccharine matter obtained in the form of a solid, saline, white concrete.

Oxymel simplex. Simple Oxymel. Take of clarified honey, two pounds; of distilled vinegar, a pint. Boil them in a glass vessel, with a gentle fire, to the consistence of a syrup. Pharm. Lond. 1788.

Cehatum mellis, (from cera, wax, and mel, honey). Cerate of honey. Olei olivae; mellis despumati aa lb ss. Cerae flavae. Emplastri lithargyri aa iv. m. Melt the oil, wax, and plaster together, and afterward add the honey. This cerate is said to be well calculated for scrofulous ulcers, as it is slightly stimulant.

Mel boracis. Honey of borax, consisting of an ounce of honey to a drachm of borax, is applied to the mouth in cases of aphthae.

In every instance where honey is thus employed, it should not be new, and it should be ascertained previous to its use whether honey commonly disagrees with the bowels.

Of many compositions honey forms the basis, as the mel scillae, oxymel scillae. See Scilla. Mel Rosa. See Rosa. Oxymel Colchlci. See Colchicum. Mel hydrurgyri, and Mel AEgyptiacum. See .AEgyptiacum Unguentum.