The Swarm 



mal. 1 refer to the manner in which 

 the bees will dispose of a mouse or a 

 slug that may happen to have found its 

 way into the hive. The intruder killed, 

 they have to deal with the body, which 

 will very soon poison their dwelling. 

 If it be impossible for them to expel or 

 dismember it, they will proceed methodi- 

 cally and hermetically to enclose it in a 

 veritable sepulchre of propolis and wax, 

 which will tower fantastically above the 

 ordinary monuments of the city. In one 

 of my hives last year I discovered three 

 such tombs side by side, erected with 

 party-walls, like the cells of the comb, 

 so that no wax should be wasted. These 

 tombs the prudent grave-diggers had 

 raised over the remains of three snails 

 that a child had introduced into the hive. 

 As a rule, when dealing with snails, theyi 

 will be content to seal up with wax the 

 orifice of the shell. But in this case 



8 113 



