2 7° 



THE GUIDE TO NATURE 



If a number of wax cups, such as are 

 supplied by the manufacturers for 

 queen cell starters, are placed compact- 

 ly together and then warmed until the 

 wax is plastic, and into each one of 

 these is thrust a small circular brush, 

 so as to push out the interior, the cups 



ABOVE THE THREAD, ARTIFICIAL HEXAGONS 

 SLIGHTLY SMEARED WITH WAX. AS THE 

 SMEARING CONTINUES THEY BECOME 

 CIRCLES, BELOW THE THREAD. 



will, by the pressure of the brush, be- 

 come hexagonal in outline. 



Note carefully that whenever comb 

 is turned out on the artificial founda- 

 tion that the bee commences at the very 

 start to build circular piles of wax upon 



the hexagons. The cells of honeycomb 

 are always circular in outline on the 

 edges of the comb where there are no 

 others to press against them. We give 

 the honeybee hexagons as a foundation, 

 but when she makes comb she never 

 makes hexagons. There are no hexa- 

 gons made at the base of growing comb 

 nor at the top of the cells. There never 

 has been and there never will be, for the 

 reason that the honeybee always -works 

 in roughly circular lines. 



The optical illusion hexagons on the 

 surface of any growing honeycomb 

 disappear the moment they are ex- 

 amined with eyes wide open. Take a 

 collection of circular dots, or look at 

 the ends of a pile of lead pencils with 

 the eyes'p ar tly closed and looking 

 through the eyelashes, and immediately 

 they all become hexagonal. It is the 

 old argument about the markings of 

 the diatom called Plcurosigma angula- 

 tion. Xote the accompanying expanse of 

 circular black dots. Does any one doubt 

 for a moment that these are circular? 

 Look at them through your eyelashes 

 with the eyes half closed and see what 

 beautiful hexagons you will have. The 

 appearance is really all owing to IMPER- 

 FECT EYES. It is an optical illusion. All 

 growing honeycomb held at a distance 

 or reduced by photography will show 

 the thing dimly. Examine the comb 

 with clear strong light and under a 

 pocket lens of an inch focus, and every 

 one of those hexagons will vanish and 

 the comb will become a plane of circles. 



I have entered extensively into this 

 monographic exposition, because of the 

 many attacks that have been made up- 

 on my claims by some of the most prac- 

 tical authorities in the United States. 

 Articles on this subject, in which I have 

 asserted these facts, have been refused 

 by two important bee journals— 

 "Gleanings in Bee Culture," Medina, 

 Ohio, and "The American Bee Jour- 

 nal," Hamilton, Illinois, and I have 

 been not a little ridiculed because I be- 

 lieve and say that the bee does not 

 build hexagons. Some things are the 

 outcome of definite physical laws and 

 have nothing to do with intent nor with 

 learning. 



Perhaps this opposition is based on 

 the fact that it exposes the error of 

 making artificial comb foundation in 

 hexagons. Theoretically this is wrong. 



