oh Account of the Drone Bee. 
beft hives produce them earlicft in the year; 
as they generally appear in fuch hives about 
the beginning of May, and the working bees 
put an end to their exiftence at Lammas, at 
which period I generally affift them as much 
aseleari ables.) 
After my firft work upon this fubject appear- 
ed, I had the honour of a converfation with 
two very intelligent gentlemen in my neigh- 
bourhood, who declared their fatisfaGion with 
the arguments I had formerly advanced. I al- 
fo repeated, in the prefence of one of them, — 
fome of the ex prments I had made, to prove © 
that the common bees are endued with the. 
power of rearing any egg, from a common cell, 
to become a Queen, when the community 
f{tands in need of one; and that a Queen, al. 
though fhe never faw a drone, will, at a proper 
age, lay eggs in abundance, which, again, by 
the afliftance of the common bees, will produce 
Queens, commons, and drones, as well as thofe 
eges that are laid by Queens, who are far- 
rounded with drones in the hives to which 
they belong. 
After feeing thefe experiments, of which he 
exprefied his approbation, I had another con- 
yerfation with both thefe gentlemen, when 
they 
