THE STOKY WE LOVE BEST 113 



is to work. For, when the youngest of the brood has 

 reached maturity, each one in the nest begins to work 

 its way upward toward the door by tearing down the 

 partition above it and pushing the particles of waste 

 material down toward the bottom of the nest. This ar- 

 rangement is a very comfortable one for the youngest, 

 which has only one partition between him and his 

 mother. But it is not nearly so pleasant for the eldest, 

 which had not only the longest time to wait but now 

 has most work to do ; for he must push his way up 

 through the debris of all the partitions above him. 

 It reveals a funny sight to open a Ceratina nest after 

 the material of the partitions has all been stowed away 

 in the bottom of the tunnel. There are all the bees — 

 sometimes as many as fourteen — packed in as closely 

 as possible, each with its head toward the opening, and 

 braced against the heels, so to speak, of its next 

 younger brother; for nature teaches them to face 

 toward the door that leads out into the world. Finally, 

 the sentinel mother, having become satisfied that all 

 are ready, leads her children in their first flight in the 

 sunshine. 



Later the remains of the partitions are removed, 

 and the nest is thus made ready for another brood. 

 Sometimes the whole grown-up family is found in a 

 nest thus cleaned, which would indicate that the young 



