THE SOVEREIGN WORKER-BEE 137 
With the store-combs the six angles of the cell 
fulfil an equally important office. The ideal honey- 
cell would be one with its mouth opening upwards, 
so that it could be filled in an ordinary rational 
way. But under the strict economical principles 
ruling in the hive such an arrangement would be 
impracticable. The honey-vats must be stacked 
one over the other ina horizontal position, and 
therefore must be chargeable from the end. All 
cells in the comb have a slight upward tilt, but 
-not enough to retain the fluid contents if the cell 
were a round one. The effect of the angles in 
the hexagon is to increase the retentive property 
of the cell, and experience has taught the bees 
how to supplement this natural holding power of 
the angles by just that slight cant of the cell which 
is necessary to prevent the nectar running out. 
The worker-bee, during her period of larval life, 
at first lies coiled up at the bottom of the cell, but 
as her size increases she takes up a position 
lengthways, with her head towards the cell-mouth. 
This, however, is not a constant attitude, for she 
seems at intervals to make a series of slow gyra- 
tions or somersaults, probably to facilitate the 
casting of her skin, which she accomplishes several 
times during her five days’ life as a grub. At the 
end of this time the nurse-bees stop the feeding 
process and seal up the cell. Now the larva sets 
to work, first to spin herself a silken shroud before 
entering on her long sleep as a chrysalis, and then 
