HATCHING AND FERTILIZATION OF QUEENS. 
27 
the purpose of fertilization. This once accomplished, the work- 
f ers, awaiting her safe return, greet 
her with a reverence and affection 
never shown before. They hasten 
to prepare the cells to receive her 
tiny eggs, and seem to realize that 
on her the existence and perpetua- 
tion of the family depends. There 
Q „«„. Ja a]g0 a perceptiWe change ^ th e 
queen’s form, her abdomen being a little swollen and somewhat 
lengthened, but not as much as at the height of the breeding 
season. She now remains the fruitful mother of the prosperous 
and happy colony. 
SECOND AND THIRD OR AFTER SWARMS. 
After the first swarm leaves the hive, if bees are still numer- 
ous and the yield of honey continues good, the workers will often 
decide to protect the queen cells, and thus cause the issue of one 
or more after-swarms. Small knots of bees cluster about the 
cells, and thu3 prevent their destruction by the first emerging 
queen. At this she seems greatly enraged and utters a peculiar 
sound, like the “peep,” “peep,” of young chickens, though on a 
very fine key. This is often answered in a hoarser note, from 
the eldest of the still enclosed queens. The senior queen con- 
tinues “piping,” as it is called for a day or two, meanwhile mak- 
ing every effort to engage in “mortal combat” her royal rivals. 
Being frustrated in every attempt, she finally leaves the hive in 
a “huff,” accompanied by a considerable body of workers. It 
