32 The Bee People. 
flower-cups, and so it must be long. It has 
to lap up honey, and so it must be flexible. 
It has to find its way through very small 
oot", openings, and so it must be as 
slender as a thread. 
It often has to come into con- 
whe ‘and plants, and so it must be 
Hf \ protected. 
It is protected by two hard horny 
s “? sheaths, — one covering the upper 
side of the tongue, (T); the other covering 
the lower side. The lower sheath is made 
of two long pieces, X, X, that can oan, 
be separated, as you see in the 
picture. Each has a little feeler 
F at the end. Usually they lie { 
side by side with their edges over-- 
lapping, underneath the tongue. They# | 
make a little trough in which the i 
tongue lies, as you -see in this next#4 
picture. They protect the under side of 
the tongue. 
