112 THE BEE-MASTER OF WARRILOW 
her winter food to a process of pre-digestion during 
the summer, so that when she consumes it there 
shall be neither force expended in its assimilation 
nor waste products taken with it, needing to be 
afterwards expelled. Honey, in fact, is the nectar 
digested, and then regurgitated just when it is 
ready to be absorbed into the system. It is almost 
certain that every drop goes through this process 
twice, and possibly three times, in each case by 
different bees; and the heat of the hive still further 
contributes to the object in view by driving off the 
superfluous moisture from the nectar so treated, 
and thus concentrating it into an almost perfect 
food. 
