Of Bee-bread and Wi 1X igt 
mouth, as pigeons feed their young ones. To 
this it may be objected, that the young bees 
furely cannot make ufe of all the bee-bread, 
which the old bees are almoft conftantly car- 
fying into the hive when they are at work. 
Perhaps both thefe laft hypothefes may be true ; 
as it may not only ferve to feed the young 
bees, but alfo, by pafling through the bodies 
_ of the old ones, may be converted into wax; 
_ with which bees not only build their combs, 
when a fwarm is newly put into a hive, but 
alfo feal up both their young in the cells, and 
their honey in the combs. If this fuppofition 
be true, then the confumption of bee-bread, 
through the courfe of the year, but efpecially 
during the honey and breeding feafons, muft be 
very great; and therefore we need not be fur- 
prized at the quantities imported by the work- 
ing bees. But, whatever truth may be in ei- 
ther or both of thefe theories, [. am certain of 
one thing, that the bees do not live on bee- 
bread alone ;.for they will die of hunger, al- 
though there be plenty of it in the hive, if 
there be no honey in it; whereas, when they 
- have abundance of honey, they will live with- 
- out bee-bread, at leaft for many weeks. Rrav- 
ae MUR 
