158 ON BEES AND HONEY. 



der their precious ribs, was accidentally doubled up; men^ 

 these, (pardon us, O other men, for calling them men,) fellows, 

 who, for fear of cold mornings and foggy evenings, never saw 

 the sun rise nor set ; who prohibited all such troublesome and 

 pestilent " murderers of sleep" as Black and White-Smiths, 

 Brass or Tin-workers, Fish-venders with horrible Tin-Horns, 

 or puffy Conch-Shells ; who suffered no crowing Cocks, Shan- 

 hae nor Chittagong ; no cackling Hen?^ Dorking nor Domini- 

 que ; no barking Dogs, nor "curs of low degree" ; no cater- 

 wauling, miauling cats, nor any other animal nor thing that 

 could perpetrate a noise, to dwell within their night-hushed 

 walls, that neither their early vesperal sleep might be prevent- 

 ed^ nor their late matutinal doz.ings be disturbed ; whose laws 

 even took cognizance of the offence of a man's own snorings, 

 whereby he waked his own self from his ov/n slumber. These 

 were all fat, fair, full-fed fellows, such as Will Shakspeare,. 

 speaks of, by the mouth of Julius Caesar, when he says to 

 Mark Antony, 



" Let rae have men about me that are fat, 

 Sleek-headed men and such as sleep o'nights." 



So of the drones ; saving certain natural lu-nctions, it is all 

 ^'Buzz," with them. They are an idle, cowardly, inactive, 

 lazy and clum,sy set of fellows, and it is well that they are 

 stingless, for it is serious matter of doubt, whether, if they had 

 one, they could get up spunk enough to use it. Their life is 

 a short and m;erry one, scarcely reaching beyond the brief pe- 

 riod of three months, by v/?iich time, being of no further use 

 in their peculiar vocation^ they are all cast out, and killed off 

 by the workers. Behold the picture of the life and death of 

 youi lazy,^ pottle-bellied, eo^e-loving drones. 

 -*Their short proboa'cis sips 

 No luscious nectar from the wild thyme's lips ; 

 From the lime's leaf, no amber-drops they steal, 

 Nor bear their grooveless thighs the foodful meal \ 

 On others' toils in pamper'd leisure thrive, 

 The lazy fathers of the industrious Hive. 



Such being the drones, the Committee dismiss them from- 



*From. aa uniinished poem, called "The BhES,"' by Dr. Evacs> of Eng_ 



fend.. 



