The Life of the Bee 



into the world. But this prodigious con- 

 juncture does not scatter their wits ; they 

 still contrive to reconcile the two princi- 

 ples that they appear to regard in the light 

 of divine commands. The first is that of 

 unique maternity, never infringed except 

 in the case of sterility in the reigning 

 queen, and even then only very excep- 

 tionally ,• the second is more curious still, 

 and, although never transgressed, suscepti- 

 ble of what may almost be termed a Judaic 

 evasion. It is the law that invests the 

 person of a queen, whoever she be, with a 

 sort of inviolability. It would be a simple 

 matter for the bees to pierce the intruder 

 with their myriad envenomed stings ; she 

 would die on the spot, and they would 

 merely have to remove the corpse from 

 the hive. But though this sting is always 

 held ready to strike, though they make 

 constant use of it in their fights among 

 themselves, they will never draw it against 



xoo 



