14 
coming in sight, they again rushed together, seized 
one another, and resumed exactly their former 
position. The result of this encounter was the 
same. During all this time, the workers were in 
great agitation ; and the tumult seemed to increase, 
when the adversaries separated. Twice they in- 
terrupted the flight of the queens, seized their 
limbs, and retained them prisoners about a min- 
ute. At last, that queen that was the strongest or 
the most enraged, darted on her rival at a moment 
when unperceived, and with her latigs took hold 
of the origin of her wing ; then rising above her, 
she curved her own body, and inflicted a mortal 
wound. She withdrew her sting, and likewise 
quitted her hold of the wing she had seized : the 
vanquished queen fell down, dragged herself 
languidly along, and her strength declining, she 
soon expired.” The antipathy manifested by 
queens, is not limited to their perfect state, for it 
extends to nymphs in the cells. That a queen 
may appear that will dispute her place in the 
hive, seems to excite suspicion, in a queen already 
come to maturity. The oldest queen in a hive 
containing several royal cells, on emerging from 
her cell, hastens to attack the cells remaining 
closed, and by dint of labor opens one of the cells, 
thrusts in her sting, and destroys her approaching 
rival. When she has left the cell, the bees drag 
forth the body of a queen scarcely come from the 
nymphine state. She then attacks and destroys 
the remaining queens in the royal cells. If two 
queens hatch about the same time, the workers use 
every exertion to keep them apart ; knowing, that 
if they come together, death must be the portion 
of one of them, they having the same affection for 
both. If the bees succeed in keeping them apart 
