44 miner's AMERICAN 



those few authors who have written on the bee, have, 

 as I before stated, servilely copied the endorsement of 

 Huber's theory, from foreign v^orks circulated here ; that 

 is, in such treatises as have made any attempt to eluci- 

 date the natural history of the bee ; consequently the 

 question has not been subject to that dispute here, that 

 it has been in England and on the continent. 



Huber's theory of the impregnatidb of the queen, has 

 met with a very strong opposition in Europe, even to 

 ridicule ; yet I consider him right — yes, not admitting 

 of a doubt in the mind of any man, who will look into 

 the subject, with a mind untrammelled by prejudice. 



The drones appear to be a superfluous legion, of no 

 use at all, but rather a disadvantage. This class of the 

 honey-bee, derive their name from their general lazy 

 habits, spending their time in luxury, and feeding upon 

 the stores gathered by the ever industrious workers. 

 They collect no honey at all, for the reason, that nature, 

 has not provided them with honey bags, such as the 

 workers possess, to contain collected sweets; neither 

 have they any cavities, or baskets upon their legs, as 

 workers have, to hold pollen or ■ farina. This insect is 

 the only thing known to exist in the animate creation, 

 unprovided with the means of supplying itself with .food 

 from the boundless store-house of nature. A drone could 

 not exist a day, were it deprived of the privilege of feed- 

 ing on the stores of the hive already gathered. They 

 are never seen to alight on any flower, or doing any 

 thing to aid the prosperity of the colony. In one re- 

 spect they difier entirely from the workers, having the 



