PLINY: NATURAL HISTORY 



inponi tradunt. iuxta vero terram volant in ad- 



25 verso flatu vepribus evitatis. mira observ atio operis : 

 cessantium inertiam notant, castigant, mox et 

 puniunt morte. mira munditia : amoliuntur omnia e 

 medio, nuUaeque inter opera spurcitiae iacent ; 

 quin et excrementa operantium intus, ne longius 

 recedant, unum congesta in locum turbidis diebus 



26 et operis otio egerunt. ciun adversperascit, in alvo 

 strepunt minus ac minus, donec una circumvolet 

 eodem quo excita\it bombo ceu quietem capere 

 imperitans, et hoc castrorum more ; tunc repente 

 omnes conticescunt. 



Domos primum plebei exaedificant, deinde re- 

 gibus. si speratur largior proventus, adiciuntur 

 contubemia et fucis ; hae cellanmi minimae, sed 



27 ipsis ^ maiores apibus. XI. sunt autem fuci sine 

 aculeo, velut inperfectae apes novissimaeque, a 

 fessis et iam emeritis inchoatae. serotinus fetus 

 et quasi ser\'itia verarum apium ; quamobrem im- 

 perant is primosque expellunt in opera, tardantis sine 

 clementia puniunt. neque in opere tantum, sed in 

 fetu quoque adiuvant eas, multum ad calorem 



^ Rackham : ipsi. 



" I.e. tlie qneen-bees. 



* Fucixs, ' pretence,' ' sham bee,' was used as a name for 

 the drones because of their supposed sterility (c/. § 49), although 

 just belo-a- here Pliny seems av. are that their presence has 

 something to do with the size of the population of the hive. 

 They are in fact the males, who impreprnate the queens, and 

 are then idle consumers until, when the harvest of honey 



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