THE STORY WE LOVE BEST 109 



sunlight. Had you noted her then, you would have 

 thought her created only for the enjoyment of a bright 

 spring day. Little would you have dreamed of the 

 strength of purpose and the power of endurance bound 

 up in that wee body. You perhaps would have scarcely 

 detected that she belonged to a family noted for perse- 

 verance and industry. Yet, despite her diminutive size, 

 and metallic colors, she is as truly a bee as the clumsiest 

 bumblebee that ever hummed in the clover. She 

 belongs especially, however, to the group of carpenter 

 bees ; she has a pretty scientific name, Ceratina dupla, 

 that seems quite in keeping with her dainty personality. 

 Her popular name is simply the " Little Carpenter Bee." 

 However, very little cares she by what Latin name 

 mortal man has chosen to call her, for weighty responsi- 

 bilities rest upon her mind this bright May morning; 

 and so she hunts until she finds some broken twig of 

 elder or sumac which permits her to come into direct 

 contact with the pith of the plant. Then our heroine, 

 with the aid of her mandibles or jaws, commences to 

 excavate a tunnel in the branch by removing the pith 

 mouthful by mouthful. Very carefully is the work 

 done, the pith being neatly cut, so that the walls of the 

 tunnel are left straight and smooth. To bring her 

 undertaking within our comprehension we might compare 

 her to a man who should attempt to dig a well three or 



