liEE. 
317 
more curiosity than all the others, altliough much 
more belongs to the labourers. From the number 
of these, and from their exposing themselves, they 
have their history much better made out: but as 
there is only one c|ueen, and she scarcely ev'er 
seen, it being only the effects of her labour we 
can come at, an opportunity has been given to 
the ingenuity of conjecture, and more has been 
said than can well be proved. She is allowed to 
be bred in the common way, only tliat there is 
a peculiar cell for her in her first stage; and 
Reaumur says, ‘ her food is different when in the 
‘ maggot state but as there is probably but 
one queen, that the whole might not depend on 
one life, it is asserted that the labourers have a 
power of forming a common maggot into a queen. 
If authors had given us this as an opinion only, 
we might have passed it over as improbable, but 
they have endeavoured to prove it by experi- 
ments, which require to be examined: and for 
that purpose, I shall give what they say on that 
head, with my remarks upon it. 
“ Abstracts from Mr. Schihach. 
“ The following experiments were made to 
ascertain the origin of the queen bee: — ‘In 
‘ twelve wooden boxes were placed twelve pieces 
‘ of comb, four inches square, each contain- 
‘ ing both eggs and maggots, so suspended 
‘ that the bees could come round every part of 
