LAWS OF REPRODUCTION. 25 
Accordingly, on a 14th of June, in one of my 
collateral stock-hives, where the drones for a day or 
two had been hard pushed by the others, [ opened a 
communication on the eround floor into an empty side 
box. My theory was completely realised, for the poor 
drones gladly made their way into this, where they 
remained clustered at the top like a swarm—not a 
single working bee accompanying them—and would 
probably have been starved. The following morning I 
took away the box of drones and destroyed them, 
counting rather more than 2200, besides some few that 
had eseaped; altogether a greater number than the 
usual estimate gives to a family. I did not find among 
them a solitary working bee; nor could I discover in 
the parent stock-hive one remaining drone. The bees 
peaceably at once recommenced work, and did well; 
as if glad in this wholesale way to be rid of their late 
unprofitable inmates. What was the cost of their 
daily maintenance? And what proportion to the 
entire population of the hive did the drones bear ? 
After this apparently large abstraction, no sensible 
difference was observable wm the crowding. In this hive 
the usual second laying of drone eges took place, and 
a good many more drones were expelled at the end of 
July. I have not been enabled to repeat this 
experiment, but have no doubt it would always 
succeed under similar circumstances. 
LAWS OF REPRODUCTION, 
Within the course of the present generation the most 
surprising discoveries have been made in this field, 
