Lgg-laying by the Queen. 87 
the queen, like the drones, will soon die if she be shut away 
from the workers by a double wire cage, even though in 
the hive and surrounded with honey. The fact that pollen 
husks—cuticula—are never found in the queen’s stomach 
gives added proof of the above fact. The contents are 
grayish. I never saw a queen void her feces. Vogel reports 
having seen it, and Mr. Cowan reports to me that he has seen 
a queen pass a yellowish gray liquid. Thus there is no doubt 
of the view of the German scientists, especially as we find 
the queen’s alimentary canal comparatively small, though 
the renal tubules are large and numerous. The queen, like 
the worker bees, is developed from an impregnated egg, 
which of course could only come from a queen that had 
previously mated. These eggs are not placed in a hori- 
zontal cell, but in one specially prepared for their reception 
(Fig. 247). The queen cells are usually built on the edge 
of the comb, or around an opening in it, which is necessi- 
tated from their size and form, as usually the combs are 
too close together to permit their location elsewhere. These 
cells extend either vertically or diagonally downward, are 
very rough and are composed of wax cut from the old 
combs, mixed with pollen, (Mr. Cheshire says all kinds of 
refuse is used in constructing queen cells) and in size and 
form much resemble a pea-nut. The eggs must be placed 
in these cells, either by the queen or workers. Huber, 
who though blind had wondrous eyes, witnessed the act. 
I have frequently seen eggs in these cells, and without 
exception in the exact position in which the queen always 
places her eggs in the other cells. John Keys, in the old 
work already referred to, whose descriptions, though penned 
so long ago, are wonderfully accurate and indicate great 
care, candor, and conscientious truthfulness, asserts that the 
queen is five times as long laying a royal egg as she is the 
others. From the character of his work, and its early 
publication, I can but think that he had witnessed this rare 
sight. Some candid apiarists of our own time and country 
—E. Gallup among the rest—claim to have witnessed the 
act. The eggs are so well glued, and are so delicate, that. 
with Neighbour, I should doubt the possibility of a removal 
except that some persons assert that they have positive 
