THE YOUNG QUEENS 137 



The bees may permit the first-born of the royal virgins, the 

 one whose birth we have witnessed, to destroy her sister- 

 enemies ; or they may elect to wait till she have performed 

 the perilous ceremony known as the " nuptial flight," whereon 

 the nation's future depends. The immediate massacre will 

 be authorised often, and often denied ; but in the latter case 

 it is of course not easy for us to pronounce whether their 

 decision be due to a desire for a second swarm, or to their 

 recognition of the danger attending the " nuptial flight " ; for 

 it will happen at times that, on account of the weather un- 

 expectedly becoming less favourable, or for some other reason 

 we cannot divine, they will suddenly change their mind, re- 

 nounce the cast that they had decreed, and destroy the royal 

 progeny they had so carefully preserved. But at present we 

 will suppose that they have determined to dispense with a 

 second swarm, and that they accept the risks of the nuptial 

 flight. Our young queen hastens towards the large cradles, 

 urged on by her great desire, and the guard make way 

 before her. Listening only to her furious jealousy, she will 

 fling herself on to the first cell she comes across, madly strip 

 off the wax with her teeth and claws, tear away the cocoon 

 that carpets the cell, and divest the sleeping princess of every 

 covering. If her rival should be already recognisable, the 

 queen will turn so that her sting may enter the capsule, 

 and will frantically stab it with her venomous weapon until 

 the victim perish. She then becomes calmer, appeased by 

 the death that puts a term to the hatred of every creature ; 

 she withdraws her sting, hurries to the adjoining cell, attacks 

 it and opens it, passing it by should she find in it only an 

 imperfect larva or nymph ; nor does she pause till, at last, 



