ARCHITECTURE AND ECONOMY OF THE HIVE. 17 



workmen; determines the relative position of the combs, and 

 their distances from each other ; attaches the blocks to the hives, 

 and then leaves his inferior architects to go to work, and form the 

 cells. One bee does not complete any cell ; but these insects re- 

 lieve each other in succession, to the number of from fifteen to 

 twenty, until the last finishing polish is given to the work. The 

 cells designed for the drones are built with due reference to their 

 superior size, and are usually near the bottom of the combs. 

 The royal cells are built last, are usually from five to ten in num- 

 ber, and placed near the centre of the hive : these are designed 

 as receptacles for the infant queens. I should not omit observing, 

 that, while one set of workers are forming the comb and cells, 

 another set are busy flying to and fro, collecting materials, and 

 bringing them to the hives. Nor do they furnish their architec- 

 tural brethren with materials only ; they supply them with food 

 also, and with the sweets from which they likewise elaborate wax 

 in their interior. 



The royal cells differ in form and dimensions from the others. 

 They are much larger ; more wax is expended on their formation ; 

 their form is not hexagonal, but an oblong spheroid ; the mouth, 

 which is at bottom, is left open until the grub is ready to undergo 

 its transformations, when it is closed like the rest ; and imme- 

 diately on a perfected queen emerging from her cradle, it is de- 

 stroyed, and its site built upon with common cells. Nor are the 

 royal cells built in among the other cells, but attached to them 

 externally, suspended perpendicularly, with their sides parallel to 

 the orifices of the common cells. 



The bees occasionally depart from the regular form of their 

 cells, and in doing so exhibit something so nearly resembling de- 

 sign as to become absolutely startling to the observer. These 

 deviations appear when, after having formed a number of small 

 cells, the bees wish to form larger ones — they may be termed 

 cells of transition ; their bases are composed of two rhombs and 

 two hexagons, instead of three. Reaumur and others have re- 

 garded this departure from regularity as a proof of imperfection. 

 Dr. Bevan justly looks upon it as " determined by a sufficient 

 motive," and forming " no impeachment of the sagacity of the 

 bee." 



The cells are by no means used indiscriminately for all the pur- 

 poses of the hive : there are, on the contrary, as I have shown, 

 cells peculiar to the royal brood : there are also cells peculiarly 



