ROBBING. 859 
agitation, once seen, can never be mistaken. It does not, 
like the laborer carrying home the fruits of honest toil, 
alight boldly upon the entrance-board, or face the guards, 
knowing well that, if caught by these trusty guardians, its 
life would hardly be worth insuring. If it can glide by 
without touching any of the sentinels, those within—taking 
it for granted that all is right—usually permit it to help 
itself. 
Bees which lose their way, and alight upon a strange 
hive, can readily be distinguished from these thieving 
scamps. The rogue, when caught, strives to pull away 
from his executioners, while the bewildered unfortunate 
shrinks into the smallest compass, submitting to any fate 
his captors may award. 
These dishonest bees are the ‘Jerry Sneaks’? of their 
profession, and after following it for a time, lose all taste 
for honest pursuits. Constantly creeping through small 
holes, and daubing themselves with honey, their plumes 
assume a smooth and almost black appearance, just as the 
hat and garments of a thievish loafer, acquire a ‘‘scedy’’ 
aspect. 
Dzierzon thinks that these black bees, which Huber has 
described as so bitterly persecuted by the rest, are nothing 
more than thieves. Aristotle speaks of ‘‘ a black bee which 
is called a thief.”’ 
Some bee-keepers question whether a bee that once 
learns to steal ever returns to honest courses. The writer 
has known the value of an Apiary to be so seriously im- 
paired by the bees beginning early in the seascn to rob 
each other, that the owner was often tempted to wish that 
he had never seen a bee. 
G66. Yet, we should hardly blame them for their rob- 
bing propensities. With them, as with men, much depends 
on the education which they are allowed to receive. Their 
nature teaches them to hunt for sweets industriously, 
