NATURAL SELECTION 23 



queen they can rear another queen ; but they do not allow 

 these larvae to hatch so long as the old queen is still in 

 the hive and in good condition, unless swarming is about 

 to occur. The queens have the bitterest antipathy for one 

 another, and should a new queen be allowed to hatch 

 there would at once be a mortal duel between her and her 

 mother, the old queen. As this would not be conducive 

 to the welfare of the hive, the workers allow the old queen 

 to approach the cells of the young queens, just as these 

 are ready to hatch, and permit her to sting them to death 

 before they hatch. Now these young queens are partially 

 encased in an outer envelope which is not easily pierced 

 by the sting of their would-be destroyer ; but as it is advan- 

 tageous for the hive that these unhatched queens should 

 be put to death, we find that in forming this envelope 

 around themselves they have left the posterior part of their 

 bodies naked, so that the sting of the adult queen can 

 readily penetrate and kill them, death being certain when 

 once they are stung. In this case we see that the queen 

 larvae provide in their own structure for their own destruc- 

 tion, since this is for the advantage of the communities in 

 which they live. The welfare of the race, not of the indi- 

 vidual, is secured. 



As an example of communal forms in which the con- 

 tinued life of the individual members of the community is 

 advantageous to the community, even though these indi- 

 viduals be not active in reproduction, we can again instance 

 the bees. The worker-bees are not usually able to repro- 

 duce ; they are sterile females, generally incapable of laying 

 eggs. Yet these workers are the most valuable members 

 of the community, carrying on all the wonderful activities 



