88 AN EASY METHOD 



duel if their honor would not suffer, and remain some time 

 looking at each other, in a sort of reflection before the deadly 

 conflict. We have known them to make an assault upon 

 each other, and lose their hold unhurt, and place themselves 

 in their former positions at the two opposite sides of the 

 cylinder, the motions all done quick as sight. When the 

 two conflicting queens have once grappled, and made their 

 hold firm and strong, this hold is never broken until the 

 sharpness of death has dislocated one of them, by unnerving 

 her of every bodily and mental feeling. This also is instan- 

 taneous. The queens, while in the conflict, are hugged 

 breast to breast, facing each other, with their legs and arms 

 around upon the back of each in such a manner as to bring 

 their bodies in close contact as possible, one lying on her 

 right side and the other on her left. Now the reader will 

 see that the abdomen of each is close to and fronting the 

 other. Now comes the struggle, which is tremendous : they 

 have not power to curve their abdomen back, nor sidewise 

 very much ; neither would they do either, if they could, for 

 it would only give the competitor the advantage, should one 

 do either. Thus the whole victory depends entirely on the 

 curve of the abdomen. Hence the queen possessing supe- 

 rior strength or agility, or both, curves her body and enters 

 the fatal sting into the lower region of the chest of her an- 

 tagonist, which kills her in an instanf, and the two bees 

 are apart the next. ITie least motion in the conquered 

 queen is not often seen, except a slight trembling of her 

 limbs. 



In speaking of multiplying swarms to any desirable ex- 

 tent, without swarming, as directed in Chapter IX., we ought 

 here to remark that the same instincts of the bees are mani- 

 fested in creating a queen for themselves in one of the divi- 

 sions, as when the throne of royalty is vacated by the de- 



