The Life of the Bee 
their reserves of honey, into which they 
eagerly dip in order to possess within them- 
selves the wherewithal to start a new city, 
immediately and no matter where, should 
the ancient one be destroyed or they be 
compelled to forsake it. 
7 
The first impression of the novice before 
whom an observation-hive’ is opened will 
be one of some disappointment. He had 
been told that this little glass case contained 
an unparalleled activity, an infinite number 
of wise laws, and a startling amalgam of 
mystery, experience, genius, calculation, 
science, of various industries, of certitude 
and prescience, of intelligent habits and 
curious feelings and virtues. All that he 
sees is a confused mass of little reddish 
1 By observation-hive is meant a hive of glass, fur- 
nished with black curtains or shutters. The best kind 
have only one comb, thus permitting both faces to be 
studied. These hives can be placed in a drawing-room, 
library, &c., without inconvenience or danger. The 
bees that inhabit the one I have in my study in Paris are 
able, even in the stony desert of that great city, to find 
the wherewithal to nourish themselves and to prosper. 
22 
