180 BEES AND BEE-KEEPING. 



than worker, in the ratio of 25 to 16; so that, in their 

 case, a system of girdering is adopted, which greatly 

 interested me when I discovered its existence a few 

 years since. If a sealed drone grub be dropped back- 

 ward out of its cell, by cutting away the base of the 

 latter, the capping and its surroundings, as seen by 

 transmitted light, give the appearance of A, Fig. 40. 

 The porous and weak, but semi-opaque, sealing 

 occupies the centre, while the angles are made rigid 

 by filling up with transparent wax, which is done 

 with such regularity that an exceedingly pretty star- 

 like form results ; but the little engineers seem not 

 content with this provision, so they throw webs across 

 from the convexity of one cell to the convexity of the 

 next, each web radiating in six arms, as seen at B. 

 The utility of the arrangement as against downward 

 strain is evident, as the strap [b, C) clearly prevents 

 any sinking. The illustration shows the almost 

 hemispherical form of the cap, which, we must 

 remember, is made by the bee outside the cell, so 

 that the convex side is towards her. How this form 

 is accomplished I know not, and my difficulty is but 

 increased by learning that the contained grub gives 

 no help by its presence within. While studying the 

 drone, I cut, as I imagined, about a hundred of their 

 sealed larvae from a hive, for dissection purposes. The 

 cappings were fully as prominent as usual, but, to my 

 astonishment, I found worker larvae within, and these 

 only ; and searching further revealed the curious fact 

 that the queen seemed incapable of layino- a drone 

 egg, of which more hereafter. The evidence of 

 interference, giving form to worker cells is so con- 



