82 EXAMINATION OF THE COMBS. 



our researches into this great secret of apiarian science. In 

 a few days the work of slaughter had ceased, and we then 

 " drove the hive *," in order to be convinced that no drone 

 remained, and after an hour's strict examination, we had 

 ascertained that not a single drone was in the hive. 

 Leaving then the bees in the empty hive, we took the full 

 one into the house, and began the examination of the 

 combs. Our design in this instance was to discover some 

 cells in which the egg was in that state, as if it had been just 

 laid by the queen, and which might have been fructified by 

 the drones previously to their expulsion. We were not 

 long before we discovered the object of our search, and 

 after cutting a small piece of the comb away, which con- 

 tained the cells in which the eggs had been deposited, we 

 returned the hive to its place, and restored the bees to it. 

 We then proceeded to examine the eggs in the piece of 

 comb, by the aid of a microscope, and we observed that 

 they were glossy and full ; there was not, however, any 

 mucous matter in the cell, which could indicate the in- 

 jection of the seminal matter by the drone. We conjectured 

 however, that it might have been absorbed by the egg, 

 previously to our examination. These eggs were deposited 

 in the common hexagon cells, consequently, the common 

 working bees were to be the produce. Our next aim was 

 to discover if there were any eggs in the drone cells : and 

 we again drove the hive— but the difficulty here was great, 

 as the drones are always bred in the middle of the combs, 

 and towards the upper part of the hive. To reach the 



* As this expression will frequently occur in the course of this work, we 

 mean by ' driving a hive,' the act of forcing the bees to leave their own 

 hive and take refuge in another. This operation is performed by placing 

 an empty hive over the full one, and by gently tapping the latter, the bees 

 will ascend into the upper one, and the lower one then remains ready for 

 experiments, or the purpose of deprivation. The above directions are 

 however, given on the supposition that the bees are in the common cottage 

 hive. 



