68 Buz. 



"I wonder why," said Buz thoughtfully. 



" It's simple enough," returned the other. " If 

 we do not unload our honey, it is gradually formed 

 into wax ; so that arriving in a new hive with honey 

 is almost the same thing as arriving with wax — and 

 that we must have at once. So that only those few 

 bees who happened to join the swarm without being 

 full of honey have gone to work. The moment the 

 honey you arrived with has become wax in your 

 pockets, you will pull it out, and munch away at it 

 till you have munched and pulled it into good order. 

 Then you will place it in position, where you see it 

 is wanted, and the nurse or architect bees will work 

 it into shape. Then you will go out and get afresh 

 supply of honey, and again hang yourself up till 

 it turns into wax. It's simple enough, as I said 

 before." 



Buz found that this was really the case, and indue 

 time she deposited her bricks of wax, and left the 

 architects at work, while she went off for a fresh 

 supply of honey. 



The architects began by attaching some wax to 

 the roof of the box, and fashioning therefrom hexa- 

 gonal cells — by employing which form, the greatest 

 number can be arranged in the smallest place. 



Each comb consisted of two sets of cells placed 



