122 HISTORY OF 



Each cell is, like that of the bee, hexagonal ; 

 but they are of two sorts, the one larger, for the 

 production of the male and female wasps, the 

 other less, for the reception of the working part 

 of the community. When the females are im- 

 pregnated by the males, they lay their eggs, one 

 in each cell, and stick it in with a kind of gummy 

 matter to prevent its falling out. From this egg 

 proceeds the insect in its worm state, of which 

 the old ones are extremely careful, feeding it 

 from time to time till it becomes large, and en- 

 tirely fills up its cell. But the wasp community 

 differs from that of the bee in this, that among 

 the latter the working bees take the parental 

 duties upon them, whereas among the wasps 

 the females alone are permitted to feed their 

 young, and to nurse their rising progeny. For 

 this purpose, the female waits with great pa- 

 tience till the working wasps have brought in 

 their provisions, which she takes from them, and 

 cuts into pieces. She then goes with great com- 

 posure from cell to cell, and feeds every young 

 one with her mouth. When the young worms 

 have come to a certain size, they leave off eating, 

 and begin to spin a very fine silk, fixing the first 

 end to the entrance of the cell ; then turning 

 their heads first on one side, then on the other, 

 they fix the thread to different parts, and thus 

 they make a sort of a door which serves to close 

 up the mouth of the cell. After this they divest 

 themselves of their skins after the usual mode of 

 transformation ; the aurelia by degrees begins to 

 emancipate itself from its shell ; by little and little 



