THE BEE. 95 



leisure. Every bee, when it leaves the hive to 

 collect this precious store, enters into the cup of 

 the flower, particularly such as seem charged 

 with the greatest quantities of this yellow farina. 

 As the animal's body is covered over with hair, it 

 rolls itself within the flower, and soon becomes 

 quite covered with the dust, which it soon after 

 brushes off with its two hind legs, and kneads into 

 two little balls. In the thighs of the hind legs 

 there are two cavities, edged with hair ; and into 

 these, as into a basket, the animal sticks its pel- 

 lets. Thus employed, the bee flies from flower 

 to flower, increasing its store, and adding to its 

 stock of wax, until the ball upon each thigh be- 

 comes as big as a grain of pepper ; by this time, 

 having got a sufficient load, it returns, making 

 the best of its way to the hive. 



The belly of the bee is divided into six rings, 

 which sometimes shorten the body, by slipping 

 one over the other. It contains within it, beside 

 the intestines, the honey-bag, the venom-bag, and 

 the sting. The honey-bag is as transparent as 

 crystal, containing the honey that the bee has 

 brushed from the flowers, of which the greater 

 part is carried to the hive, and poured into the 

 cells of the honey-comb, while the remainder 

 serves for the bee's own nourishment ; for during 

 summer it never touches what has been laid up 

 for the winter. The sting, which serves to de- 

 fend this little animal from its enemies, is com- 

 posed of three parts ; the sheath, and two darts, 

 which are extremely small and penetrating. Both 

 the darts have several small points or barbs, like 



