156 HOMES WITHOUT HANDS. 



thick hair with which they are covered being all matted together, 

 their wings soft and crumpled,-and their limbs scarcely able to 

 bear them. Two or three days are generally passed in the nest, 

 and not until having gained their full strength do they venture 

 out into the wide world. None but worker bees are developed 

 for the first part of the year, the females and males not making 

 their appearance until the summer weather has set in. 



As may be seen from the illustration, the cells of the Humble- 

 bee are not arranged in regular rows like those of the hive-bee, 

 but are set carelessly side by side, mostly fixed together in groups 

 of greater or lesser dimensions. Now and then a very little group 

 of two or three cells is found, and single cells are occasionally to 

 be seen, detached from the general mass. 



This species is more prolific than any other, and the nests con- 

 tain more individuals. Mr. Smith mentions that in one nest he 

 found one hundred and seven males, fifty-six females, and one 

 hundred and eighty workers, making a total of three hundred 

 and forty-three inhabitants. Compared with the numbers that 

 inhabit the hive, this may seem to be but a small amount ; but 

 when the reader takes into consideration the fact that the insects 

 are very much larger than the hive-bee, and that the cells in 

 which they are hatched and nurtured are not only of correspond- 

 ing size but are also set very irregularly, so as to occupy a large 

 amount of space, he will see that the cells which produced nearly 

 three hundred and fifty Humble-bees must have formed very 

 large groups, and that the cavity which contained them must 

 have been exceedingly large in proportion to the size of the ex- 

 cavators. 



As far as my own experience goes, there is little danger in un- 

 earthing and exploring the nest of the Humble-bee. Opinions 

 differ greatly on this point, some practical observers saying that 

 the bees are dangerous when irritated, and that they execute 

 stinged vengeance on the disturbers of the home ; while others 

 report that the insects do not attack at all; and others, again, 

 say that they attack, but that their stings cause so little pain as to 

 excite no fear. I have opened many a nest of the Humble-bee, 

 and never been stung by the inhabitants, though the bare hand 

 might easily have suffered, as it was thrust into the chamber 

 wherein the cells reposed. 



The honey of the Humble-bee is peculiarly sweet and fragrant, 

 but not suitable for general consumption, as many persons, my- 



