THE COMMONWEALTH OF THE HIVE 83 



ceeded in distinguishing himself from the apes. 

 In the honey-bee of to-day, and her life in the 

 modern hive, we get a sort of quintessence of the 

 ages ; a creature developed in mind and body by 

 her unique conditions, these conditions again 

 imposing upon her unique systems of life. Like 

 Ruskin's Venetian, she must live nobly or perish. 

 Much more is required of her than the r61e of 

 domestic and political economist. To make 

 the modern beehive a possibility there must be 

 architects, mathematicians, and chemists within its 

 walls. Sanitary science must have its skilled ex- 

 ponents, or the hive would change into a death- 

 trap within a few hours. There must be land- 

 surveyors ready to explore the country, just before 

 the issue of the swarms, to determine for them 

 their new location. There must be overseers, 

 gang-forewomen, everywhere to superintend every 

 work in progress throughout the hive. Above 

 all, there must be a supreme central power, a far- 

 seeing intelligence, to divine the imminent com- 

 mon need, and to set the forces of the State to 

 work, in right time and order, to provide for it. 

 If all these cannot be proved to exist in a hive of 

 bees to-day, at least the necessity for them is 

 undeniable ; and as undeniable, the achieved 

 results. 



6 — 3 



