138 The Bee People. 



The queen spins her cocoon, changes 

 into a pupa, and comes forth a perfect 

 bee all in seven and -a half days, while it 

 takes the worker twelve days and the drone 

 fourteen and a half' to complete these 

 changes. 



If you do a little sum in addition, you 

 will find that it takes sixteen days for an 

 tgg to become a queen-bee, twenty-one 

 days for it to become a worker, and 

 twenty-four days for a drone tgg to be- 

 come a drone. 



As soon as the worker-bees hatch out, 

 they go to work. 



You already know what they do. They 

 fake care of the queen, following her about 

 and feeding her with royal jelly whenever 

 she is hungry, which is very often. 



They seem to be very fond of their hive- 

 mother ; and you will always see a little 

 cluster of bees about her, caressing her 

 with their antennae, and paying her the 

 greatest respect. 



