144 HIVING OF SWARMS. 



troduced. If twenty-four hours had elapsed after 

 the removal of the queen, the stranger was well 

 received, and at once admitted to the sovereignty 

 of the hive. If not more than eighteen hours had 

 elapsed, she was at first treated as a prisoner, but 

 after a time permitted to reign. If the stranger 

 was introduced within twelve hours, she was im- 

 mediately surrounded by an impenetrable cluster 

 of bees, and commonly died either from hunger 

 or privation of air. It appeared therefore, in the 

 course of these experiments, that from twenty- 

 four to thirty hours were required, for a colony 

 to forget its sovereign, and that if, before the 

 lapse of that period, no substitute was presented, 

 they set about constructing royal cells, as stated 

 in page 22 ; and moreover, that if, during the 

 time they were so occupied, a princess was 

 brought to them, the fabrication of royal cells 

 was instantly abandoned, and the larvae selected 

 to occupy them were destroyed. On the admis- 

 sion of a welcome stranger queen, more regard is 

 perhaps shown to her at first, than to a restored 

 natural queen, at least there are more conspicuous 

 demonstrations of it : the nearest workers touch 

 her with their antennae, and, passing their pro- 

 boscis over every part of her body, give her 

 honey. In the cases above related, the bees all 

 vibrated their wings at once, as if experiencing 

 some agreeable sensations, and ranged themselves 



