﻿Duration 
  of 
  Life 
  in 
  the 
  Honey 
  Bee. 
  155 
  

  

  within 
  the 
  province 
  of 
  the 
  present 
  essay, 
  and 
  the 
  only 
  point 
  in 
  

   which 
  such 
  experiment 
  can 
  assist 
  us, 
  would 
  be 
  to 
  fix 
  the 
  date 
  of 
  

   birth 
  of 
  the 
  queen 
  bee, 
  a 
  date 
  wliich 
  can 
  be 
  as 
  accurately 
  fixed 
  

   without 
  tlie 
  aid 
  and 
  risk 
  of 
  the 
  experiment. 
  So 
  much 
  doubt 
  also 
  

   has 
  been 
  thrown 
  upon 
  the 
  existence 
  of 
  the 
  power 
  of 
  the 
  worker 
  

   bees 
  thus 
  to 
  create 
  a 
  queen, 
  that 
  we 
  felt 
  any 
  argument, 
  founded 
  

   upon 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  a 
  queen 
  in 
  the 
  mode 
  detailed 
  by 
  Huber, 
  

   would 
  be 
  open 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  doubts 
  as 
  Huber's 
  experiments. 
  The 
  

   question 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  power 
  of 
  the 
  worker 
  bees 
  to 
  produce 
  drones 
  is 
  

   still 
  entirely 
  an 
  open 
  one, 
  and 
  it 
  would 
  seem 
  that 
  the 
  reproduction 
  

   of 
  a 
  queen 
  bee 
  alone 
  from 
  worker 
  eggs, 
  before 
  the 
  period 
  at 
  which 
  

   the 
  drone 
  eggs 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  hive, 
  would 
  only 
  prolong 
  

   the 
  misery 
  of 
  the 
  stock, 
  ultimately 
  to 
  die 
  from 
  the 
  barrenness 
  of 
  

   the 
  queen 
  ; 
  for 
  without 
  drones 
  how 
  could 
  the 
  young 
  queen 
  so 
  

   produced 
  become 
  fertile 
  ? 
  and 
  unless 
  the 
  worker 
  bees 
  also 
  possess 
  

   the 
  power 
  of 
  rearing 
  drones 
  from 
  worker 
  eggs, 
  the 
  mischief 
  arising 
  

   from 
  the 
  loss 
  of 
  a 
  queen 
  at 
  those 
  particular 
  seasons 
  when 
  only 
  

   worker 
  eggs 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  hive 
  would 
  inevitably 
  be 
  fatal. 
  

   It 
  would 
  therefore 
  be 
  exceedingly 
  important 
  if 
  the 
  attention 
  of 
  

   aj)iarians 
  was 
  drawn 
  particularly 
  to 
  this 
  subject, 
  that 
  experiments 
  

   might 
  be 
  instituted 
  to 
  prove 
  the 
  fact. 
  

  

  'J 
  he 
  writer 
  of 
  this 
  essay 
  is 
  free 
  to 
  confess, 
  that 
  he 
  was 
  a 
  sceptic 
  

   regarding 
  the 
  production 
  of 
  a 
  queen 
  bee 
  from 
  worker 
  brood, 
  even 
  

   up 
  to 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  some 
  portion 
  of 
  this 
  essay 
  having 
  been 
  witten, 
  

   but 
  an 
  apiarian 
  friend 
  having 
  two 
  dead 
  stocks 
  not 
  broken 
  up 
  in 
  

   his 
  apiary, 
  which 
  had 
  died 
  in 
  the 
  winter 
  of 
  1851, 
  gave 
  them 
  to 
  

   the 
  writer 
  for 
  examination, 
  and 
  in 
  one 
  (a 
  stock 
  of 
  at 
  least 
  ten 
  

   years 
  old 
  or 
  more) 
  he 
  found, 
  and 
  has 
  preserved, 
  a 
  most 
  unique 
  

   specimen 
  of 
  a 
  queen 
  cell 
  in 
  the 
  midst 
  of 
  worker 
  cells, 
  wherein 
  

   evidently 
  a 
  plebeian 
  queen 
  had 
  been 
  reared 
  ; 
  this, 
  of 
  course, 
  at 
  

   once 
  settles 
  the 
  matter 
  in 
  his 
  mind. 
  

  

  Age 
  of 
  the 
  Drone. 
  

  

  In 
  entering 
  upon 
  this 
  part 
  of 
  our 
  subject 
  we 
  do 
  not 
  labour 
  under 
  

   so 
  many 
  difficulties, 
  in 
  collecting 
  materials 
  to 
  form 
  our 
  conclusion 
  

   as 
  to 
  the 
  duration 
  of 
  life 
  in 
  this 
  insect, 
  as 
  we 
  do 
  with 
  respect 
  to 
  the 
  

   queen 
  bee. 
  When 
  drones 
  are 
  existing 
  in 
  a 
  hive 
  they 
  are 
  daily 
  

   coming 
  forth 
  for 
  an 
  aerial 
  trip, 
  should 
  the 
  weather 
  permit 
  ; 
  and 
  in 
  

   every 
  hive, 
  whatever 
  may 
  be 
  its 
  construction, 
  if 
  it 
  is 
  in 
  any 
  way 
  

   provided 
  with 
  a 
  glass 
  window, 
  the 
  drones 
  may 
  invariably 
  be 
  ob- 
  

   served 
  ; 
  still, 
  however, 
  the 
  difficulty 
  of 
  individual 
  identity 
  exists. 
  

  

  Drones, 
  or 
  male 
  bees, 
  are 
  not 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  hive 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  the 
  

   queen 
  commences 
  laying 
  eggs 
  in 
  the 
  spring. 
  Every 
  one 
  had 
  been 
  

   unmercifully 
  killed 
  or 
  disabled, 
  and 
  expelled 
  from 
  the 
  hive, 
  in 
  the 
  

  

  