96 THE HONEY-BEE. 



marching eagerly about the entrances of their abodes, 

 and vigorously moving their antennae, to ascertain 

 whether moths, or other unwelcome intruders, are 

 trying to get inside the hives. The presence of an 

 enemy being detected, he is soon chased away. 



By some naturalists the feelers have been thought 

 to afford the capacity of smell. It is, however, more 

 probable that this sense resides in the mouth itself, 

 or in its immediate neighbourhood. 



Whether or not bees appreciate sound, is another 

 moot point. It is, indeed, doubted by many observers 

 whether hearing is possessed at all by insects. Sir 

 John Lubbock records a series of experiments which 

 he conducted on this point, to which we shall make 

 reference a little later on. Those writers, who credit 

 bees with the ability to distinguish sound waves, 

 incline to the belief that the power resides in the 

 antennas. As modern science has shown that all 

 our physical impressions are modifications of vibra- 

 tion, variously interpreted, according to the means 

 by which they are conveyed to the sensorium, we 

 may readily imagine that more than one faculty may 

 reside in these jointed organs of which we have been 

 speaking, and that each separate part may possibly 

 have its own specific function; while, by combined 

 action, such differences may be made as are analo- 

 gous to chords, and harmonies, or discords in music, 

 as compared with the striking of single notes. 



We have dwelt at considerable length on the 

 subject of the antennae, not simply because what is 

 known of them is so remarkable, but because we 

 wish to draw attention to the fact that there is here 

 a most interesting field for further investigation. 



