88 COMBS, AND THE FORM OF CELLS. 



try and make the best use of all the opportunities of 

 work and usefulness that are given to us. 



' How oft, when wandering far and erring long, 

 Man might learn truth and virtue from the bee ! ' 



Occasionally, as before mentioned, under certain 

 circumstances we find a worker bee which, in the ab- 

 sence of a queen, tries to act the queen's part and to 

 lay some eggs. But the consequences are most disas- 

 trous. The whole colony gets out of order : workers 

 die, and only drones are born to take their place, and 

 the colony soon altogether perishes. True example 

 how each one should be content with the work of his 

 own proper place, and not try to act the part of those 

 in a different station of life ; not to be the jackdaw 

 assuming the peacock's feathers. It seems to tell us 

 that we only do more harm than good if we try 

 to do so. 



CHAPTER XXI. 



COMBS, AND THE FORM OF CELLS. 



Having considered the bee itself — although there is a 

 great deal more of the same subject which I hope 

 you will learn some day — we will now look somewhat 

 more closely at the house it builds for itself — how 'the 

 singing masons ' build their ' roofs of gold.' 



I have spoken of this before, but only in general 

 terms, describing how the combs are built of wax, 

 with cells on each side, and so arranged that there is 

 just space enough between the combs for the bees to 



