154 HODGE. [Vol. VII. 



between the evening diameters 1.02 /u., barring No. 12 (with No. 

 12 1. 4 1 /i) ; while the greatest difference between morning and 

 evening diameters is 1.71 /la. 



Did I feel that the above figures were more trustworthy, I 

 would go into their manipulation more in detail. Enough has 

 been given to make plain the following points. First, the nerve 

 cells of a number of bees' brains are in a more uniform condi- 

 tion in the morning than in the evening. Second, they differ 

 in appearance, or condition, from one another somewhat in the 

 morning and a great deal in the evening. Working bees from 

 the same hive would strike one as being as much alike as it 

 would be possible to conceive of a number of animals. Whence 

 then are these differences } 



No individual difference of size was noticed. All honey-bees 

 which are out gathering honey from the flowers must have an 

 abundance of food on hand; and the food of bees in a given 

 place and time must be the same. Hence no differences in 

 nutrition would be likely to occur. 



If six bees were exactly alike in the morning, their brain cells, 

 of course, should appear alike, if examined by the same method. 

 If all the six should fly exactly the same distance in the same 

 time, i.e. do exactly the same amount of work, we should expect 

 to find their brains in the same condition again at night. 



There are two important variables present which unfortu- 

 nately we know little about, //"the bees are alike ; if the work 

 is alike. The work may vary ; the bees may vary within indefi- 

 nite limits. 



With reference to the amount of work done by a bee, we 

 know almost nothing. Lubbock (46, p. 276) and the Peck- 

 hams (65) have counted the number of trips a bee or wasp 

 may make in a day, and this number varies ; but who has ever 

 followed a bee in one of its flights } Whether a load of honey 

 be found near or far away must cause the flights to vary. Still, 

 it is evident, these two variables, length and number of flights, 

 may be so combined as to produce a constant amount of work. 



When a boy in college, the writer owned some bees. Every 

 morning, in the busy season, a few bees could be found dragged 

 out of the hive dead. Every evening might be seen in the 

 grass near a hive, bees with the frayed wings and abraded hairs 

 betokening old age, heavily laden, but too tired to lift them- 



