The Life of the Bee 
follow them most accurately. It is a 
curious mathematical problem at what pre- 
cise angle the three planes which compose 
the bottom of a cell ought to meet, in order 
to make the greatest possible saving, or the 
least expense of material and labour. This 
is one of the problems which belong to the 
higher parts of mathematics. It has accord- 
ingly been resolved by some mathematicians, 
particularly by the ingenious Maclaurin, by a 
fluctionary calculation, which is to be found 
in the Transactions of the Royal Society of 
London. He has determined precisely the 
angle required, and he found, by the most 
exact mensuration the subject would admit, 
that it is the very angle in which the three 
planes at the bottom of the cell of a honey- 
comb do actually meet.” 
58 
I myself do not believe that the bees 
indulge in these abstruse calculations ; but, 
on the other hand, it seems equally impos- 
sible to me that such astounding results can 
be due to chance alone, or to the mere force 
158 
