A SELF-SUPPORTING HOME 



some few thousands of imperfectly developed 

 females of mature age, called "workers," a 

 few hundred males called "drones," a few 

 thousand young workers, and many thousands 

 of eggs reposing each in its own particular 

 cell. The most perfect system of govern- 

 ment prevails in the hive, each individual 

 insect having allotted duties, which are ap- 

 parently intuitively understood, accepted, 

 and conscientiously performed in unerring 

 routine, from the hour of birth. When the 

 baby breaks from its cell, it walks out into 

 the busy world of the hive, and, after a few 

 hours, dips into an unsealed cell of honey 

 and sips its first meal, not, however, to be 

 selfishly consumed by its own body, for the 

 larger portion of this honey is secreted and, 

 after a little, is converted into a predigested 

 milky food, the quality of which this wonder- 

 ful little nurse has the power of regulating 

 as it wanders from cell to cell feeding the 

 one-to-seven-days old larvae. Occupants of 

 royal cells receive the most carefully digested 



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