CONTENTS. 



PAET FIEST. 



THE NATURAL HISTORY OF BEES. 



CHAPTER I. 



PAGE 



The queen bee, 1 



Her shape and appearance, 1 



Mother and monarch, 2 



The age of queens, 2 



How long in being hatched '! ... 2 



The food of princesses, 3 



The fertilisation of queens, 4 



Where fertilisation takes place, 6 

 Sometimes lost on their mar- 

 riage-tour 6 



Egg-laying 7 



How many eggs laid daily ? 8 



The sexes of eggs, 8 



The ovaries of queens, 9 



The eggs of virgin or unmated 



queens, 10 



CHAPTEE H. 



Drones, 10 



How long in their cells ? 11 



Why so many? 11 



Their idleness, 11 



Their sorrowful end, 12 



CHAPTEE HI. 



Working bees, 13 



Imperfect females, 13 



PAGE 



Possess five senses, 14 



Their industry, 14 



Their ingenuity, 16 



Their courage, 17 



How to tame and domesticate 



vicious bees, 18 



Have bees a language ? 19 



CHAPTEE rV. 

 Ligurian or Italian bees, 20 



CHAPTER V. 

 Government of a hive, 21 



CHAPTEE VI. 



Swarming, 22 



Preparations made for it 23 



The signal and the rush, 24 



Piping, 25 



Second and third swarms, 26 



Eoyal battles, 27 



CHAPTER VH. 



Honey, 27 



Crude and perfect honey, 28 



No two kinds of different plants 

 yield honey alike 28 



