THE AMERICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



15 



the latter appeared somewhat more oompoiuid, 

 having probably received some additional in- 

 gredient, -while employed as the niiileiial for 

 build'ng. The secreling funcitiou of the mem- 

 brane on (he inner surface ol' ihe^e cavities, was 

 lurther ■yiuced by a more minu'e examination 

 of its strucluie, which (!xhib.ced a number of 

 lo'd ., forming an hexagonal nei work, analogous 

 to the inner coat of the pecond stomach of ru- 

 minating quadrupeds. Iluber does not appear 

 to have known theobservations eilherof Dmhet 

 01 of Wildman on this subject, although they 

 were made long prior to Mr. Hunter's ; for he 

 quotes only from the latter. 



Whenever combs arc wanted, bees fill Iheir 

 crops with honey, and retaining it in them, 

 hang together in a cluster from the top of the 

 hive, and remain apparently in a state of pro- 

 found inactivity, about twenty-four hours. Du- 

 ring this time, the Avax is secreted, and may be 

 Been in lam.nse, under the abdominal scales, 

 whence it is removed by the hind legs of the 

 bee, and transferred to the lore legs ; fiom them 

 it is taken by the jaws, and after being masti- 

 cated, the faijrication of comb commences. In 

 swarms it may, and sometimes does, commence 

 immediately after hiving, tlius affording evi- 

 dence of preparation, and consequently of in- 

 tention to swarm. 



" To see the wax-pockets in the hive bee, 

 you must press the abdomen, so as to cause its 

 distention ; you Avill then find, on each of the 

 four intermediate ventral segments, separated 

 by the carina or elevated central part, two tra- 

 pezilorm whitish pockets, of a soft membrana- 

 ceous texture ; on these the laminae of wax are 

 formed indiflferent states, more or less percepti- 

 ble."* Eight scalesare thus produced at ouce, 

 a pair under each ring, except the first and last, 

 which are cojistituled differently from the rest. 

 The size of the scale varies with the diameter of 

 the rings, on which they are moulded ; the larg- 

 est being beneath the third, the smallest under 

 the fifth ring. 



" Non labor omnibus idem," says Vaniere.- 

 Messrs. Huber and son have affirmed that the 

 ofiice of collecting honey, lor tlie elaboration of 

 wax, is filled by a particular description of bees 

 or laborers, to which they have given the name 

 of icax-iDo-rk'TS. These bees are susceptible of 

 an increase in size, as is evident from ihe state 

 of their stomachs, when quite full of honey 

 Dissection has shown that their stomachs are 

 more capacious than those of the bees that are 

 differently occupied. Bees not possessed of this 

 expanding stomach, gather no more honey than 

 is necessary to supply the immediate wants of 

 themselves and their companions, with whom 

 they readily share it ; th?y seem formed for re- 

 tirement, and are called nursivgbees,] theirduty 

 being to rear the young, and attend to the in- 

 ternal economy of the hive. The task of stor- 

 ing with piovisions devolves upon the wax- 

 workers, who, when not occupied in the con- 

 struction of comb, disgorge the honey into those 



*Kirby and Spence. 

 •fLater observations have sliuwn tliere is really no such 

 rigid divii<iou as wax-workers and nursing-bees, the differeut 

 duties being performed by the same bees in different stages 

 of their existence. 



calls which are intended for its reception. By 

 marking the bees, it was lound that ihey never 

 encroac bed upon eaeh other'.-, employment ; this 

 strict adjustment of duly is the more remarka- 

 ble, since the power of producing wax is com- 

 mon both to the nursing and wax working bei'S, 

 a small quantity of wax having been aciually 

 found in the receptacles of the nursing bees. 

 The difference between these bees had probably 

 been observed both by Aristotle and Pliny. 

 That such difference actually exists, is confirmed 

 by the observations of Mr. ISewport on liumble 

 bees ; he witnessed their mode of raising the 

 temperature of their domicile some hours before 

 the perfect maturation of the brood, and found 

 there was a successive change of nurses, as soon 

 as the heat of those in attendance became low- 

 ered by perspiration. 



In the foregoing experiments for ascertaining 

 the sources of wax, the bees had borne their 

 confinement without evincing the least impa- 

 tience ; but on another occasion, when shut up 

 with a brood of eggs and larvae, and without 

 pollen, though honey was copiously supplied, 

 they manifested uneasiness and rage at their 

 imprisonment. Fearing the consequence of this 

 state of tumult being prolonged, Huber allowed 

 them to escape in the evening, when too late to 

 collect provisions ; the bees soon returned home. 

 At the end of five days, during which this ex- 

 periment was tried, the hive was examined : 

 the larvaj had perished, and the jelly that sur- 

 rounded them on their introduction into the 

 hive had disappeared. The same bees were 

 then supplied with fresh brood, together with 

 some comb containing pollen ; very different 

 indeed was their behaviour with this outfit ; they 

 eagerly seized the pollen and conveyed it to the 

 young; order and prosperity were re-established 

 in the colony ; the larvae underwent the usual 

 transformations ; royal cells were completed and 

 closed with wax, and the bees showed no de- 

 sire to quit their habitation. These experi- 

 ments aflord indisputable evidence of the ori- 

 gin of wax, and the destination of pollen. But- 

 ler observed that there was a great increase in 

 the members of the hive, after pollen was car- 

 ried m, which he supposed rendered the queen 

 prolific. 



Though the wax of honey and brood-comb is 

 an original secretion fiom the body of the bee, 

 wax is also considered by some as a vegetable 

 substance existing abundantly in nature. Ac- 

 cording to Proust, it tonus the silvery down ou 

 the leaves, flowers and fruit of many plants, and 

 resides likewise in the feculae of others. 



Dr. Darwin, in his Plujtologia, supposes that 

 wax is secreted to glaze ovi r the lecundating 

 dust of the anthers, and prevent its premature 

 explosion from excessive moisture : to an un- 

 seasonable dispersionof anther-dust he ascribes 

 the failure of orchard and corn crops in sum- 

 mers of extreme humidity. The wax tree of 

 Louisiana. Myrica cerifcra^ contains iminen-e 

 quantities of wax. In this respect theie ap- 

 pears an identity betwixt animal and vigeta- 

 ble secretion, which may be viewed as indica- 

 tive of simplicity in the structure of the bee : 

 a still simpler organization exists in the aphis, 

 which extracts the saccharine juices from the 



