THE SWARM 



ment, in its unrivalled hour of fullest 

 abundance and joy ; serene for all its 

 apparent excitement and feverishness. 



Let us endeavour to picture it to 

 ourselves, not as it appears to the bees, 

 — for we cannot tell in Vv'hat magical, 

 formidable fashion things may be reflected 

 in the 6,000 or 7,0iX) facets of their lat- 

 eral eyes and the triple cyclopean eye on 

 their brov.-, — but as it v/ould seem to 

 us, were we of their stature. From the 

 height of a dome more colossal than that 

 of St. Peter's at Rome waxen v/alls de- 

 scend to the ground, balanced in the void 

 and the darkness; gigantic and manifold, 

 venical and parallel geometric construc- 

 tions, to v.-hich, for relative precision, 

 audacity, and vastness, no human struc- 



[14] 



