HAPPY 



back to my home cell, tired, but greatly pleased with 

 my experiences. 



I suppose I must have slept, for with startling sud- 

 denness it dawned on me that the night had passed. 

 The faintest light was coming into our hive, and over 

 the whole colony there was ringing the early summons 

 to the field. The cry caught me and unconsciously 

 I moved forward with the workers, a solid stream of 

 them making way to the entrance. I, too, passed out, 

 and once more now the full dawn upon me stopped 

 upon the alighting-board and flapped my wings, essay- 

 ing flight, only to find that I could not lift myself. 



I was distressed and sick at heart. I wanted to go 

 I knew not where; but instead, there I was, an obstruc- 

 tion; and I could not immediately re-enter the hive 

 on account of the outward press of workers. The 

 growing light, and then the sudden burst of the sun, 

 quite fascinated me. Besides this, the flight of a thou- 

 sand of my brothers, each taking the note of the field- 

 worker when about to embark, filled me with longing 

 to go into the wide world that spread around and that 

 called me with infinitely tender phrases. 



I suppose I was acting strangely, as well as blockading 

 the entrance, when one of the guards mildly remon- 

 strated with me and suggested my re-entering the hive. 

 By this time practically all the veteran honey-gatherers 

 had gone, and indeed those first out were beginning 

 to return, chanting the song that tells of a successful 

 foray into the fields. So, following the mandate of the 

 guard, I seized the opportunity of falling in the wake 

 of a laden bee. Instinctively I followed him. 



He rushed along like mad, darting into the hive, 

 30 



