THE SEXES OF EGGS. 21 



over, if the queens from the strong hives were placed ia 

 the weak ones, their eggs become exchisively workers. 

 Admittiag that there are difficulties on both sides of this 

 question, the reader will naturally, like electricity or 

 running water, follow the Hne of least resistance. "Where 

 there is room left for guessing — where conclusions are not 

 yet fuUy demonstrated — it iU becomes us to speak in posi- 

 tive terms. 



Mr Woodbury honestly thinks that the results of his 

 investigations have placed the matter absolutely beyond a 

 doubt. For above thirty years I have not had a doubt 

 as to the convertibility of eggs into queens, drones, or 

 workers. But as this question is interesting alike to the 

 student of physiological science and to the intelligent bee- 

 keeper, we shall, if all be well, probably put the question 

 to the test of searching experiments. 



When I was lately in Scotland, I was informed of two 

 instances of drone-comb containing eggs being placed in 

 qneenless hives. Prom these eggs the bees manufactured 

 queens for themselves. This test or experiment may be 

 easily tried ; and, if fairly and fully tried, will put the mat- 

 ter beyond a doubt. It is an easy matter to take a queen 

 from a hive, and, five or six days after that is done, to 

 cut out every royal cell containing a young queen. In 

 twenty-foni or forty-eight hours afterwards, a bit of drone- 

 comb, with fresh-laid eggs in it, could be cut from another 

 hive, and fixed in the hive thus robbed of its queen and 

 royal cells. If the eggs are aU of one gender when laid, 

 the bees will manufacture queens from the eggs thus 

 transplanted. If the eggs are male, as Mr "Woodbury and 

 others say they are, the bees must be unable to rear queens 

 from them. Xo experiment can be more simple or satis- 

 factory than the one now suggested. If the bees fail 

 to rear queens from such eggs, we shall be most ready 



