44 SIR JOHN LTTBBOCK ON ANTS, BEES, AND WASPS. 



on the first floor, and set the musical box playing as usual by 

 its side. I waited half an hour, but not a bee came. I need 

 hardly say that the music was quite audible on the lawn. I 

 then again put the musical box and the honey on the lawn, and 

 the bees very soon again began work. After the lapse of an 

 hour I brought the honey and musical box into the house, and 

 placed them at an open drawing-room window less than 15 yards 

 from where they had stood on the lawn. The music was kept 

 going for an hour, but not a bee came. 



The following day was again extremely fine. The bees came 

 as usual to the honey. I let them feed till 10 a.m., when I 

 removed the honey as before to the drawing-room. After the 

 lapse of half an hour I set the box playing and waited half an 

 hour, but not a bee came. 



I then put the houey and musical box again out on a chau' on 

 the lawn 5 yards in front of the drawing-room window. The 

 first bee found the honey in 5| minutes. I left it so for three 

 quarters of an hour, and then brought the honey and the musical 

 box into the house and put them just inside the window but out 

 of sight. The box was kept playing for three quarters of an 

 hour, during the whole of which a few bees kept hovering round 

 the chair ; but not a single bee found the honey, or even was 

 attracted by the music into the room. I then took the honey 

 and put it again on the chair outside. In less than 5 minutes 

 nine bees had settled on it. I then brought it back into the 

 room and put it, with the bees on it, where it had stood pre- 

 viously. The bees fed, returned to the hive, and came back 

 again to the honey as usual, showing that they had not the 

 slightest objection to enter the house. 



I then took the honey and the musical box down to the hives. 

 Immediately (^. e. about a yard) in front of my hives is a low wall ; 

 and I put the box and the honey on the far side of the wall, so 

 that they were something less than 4 yards distant from the hive, 

 but of course not directly visible. I then kept the music going 

 for two hours, from 1.30 to 3.30 p.m., but not a bee came to the 

 honey. 



Erom these experiments we are, I think, justified in concluding 

 either that the bees did not hear the music, or that, though they 

 had been feeding close to the music, eight days was not a long 

 enough period to suggest to them that there could possibly be 

 any connexion between the honey and the musical box. 



