Culture  of  Bees.  109 
accident  difcovered  them  laft  Midfummer  in  one  of 
rny  boxes;  debraw  fays,  the  reafon  of  this  difference, 
in  the  fize  of  drones  he  fears  mull  remain  among  the 
arcana  of  nature;  but  I will  venture  a conjedture  from 
the  general  ceconomy  of  thofe  creatures.  The  large 
drones  confume  a great  quantity  of  food,  and,  as  foon 
as  the  breeding  feafon  is  over,  are  all  deftroyed  by 
the  working  bees,  evidently  to  avoid  the  expence  of 
keeping  them:  and  they  do  not  appear  again  till  the 
middle  of  April,  when  honey  is  plenty ; though  the 
breeding  begins  in  March,  or,  if  the  fpring  be  forward, 
the  latter  end  of  February : from  hence  I think  it 
may  fairly  be  concluded,  that  the  fmall  drones  are  pre- 
ferved  to  impregnate  the  eggs  in  fpring,  in  preference  to 
the  large  ones,  becaufe  they  devour  lefs  honey ; and  this 
is  no  incon deferable  objedt,  few  hives  being  fo  well  pro- 
vided as  to  have  much  to  fpare  at  that  feafon. 
The  only  thing  wanting  to  introduce  Mr.  debraw’s 
difeoveries  to  general  practice  is,  to  contrive  a method  of 
making  his  experiments  fo  eafy,  and  v/ith  fo  little  dan- 
ger from  the  flings  of  the  bees,  as  may  recommend  it  to 
little  farmers  and  cottagers  in  the  country.  This  I fhall 
endeavour  to  do  next  fummer,  and  am  not  without 
hopes  of  fucceeding : this  once  effedfed,  every  poor  man,, 
who 
