120 
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATURAL [April, 1887, 
A few of these wasps carried loads. 
From 9:39 to 10 no wasps arrived. It is apparent that those 
liberated in the boat-house came home as soon as they could 
find their way. Although on the morning of the 24th we did 
not see any wasps flying about the nest and trying to get in, 
there must have been a few out since forty-nine were killed while 
we only set free thirty-eight; and these were probably the ones 
which were bringing loads. The close relation between the de¬ 
parture of the wasps from the boat-house and their arrival at 
the nest, and the fact that we watched for twenty-one minutes 
after the last one came makes it reasonably sure that nearly ail 
of the thirty-eight wasps found their way home. We studied 
this nest so closely that we feel very confident that not more 
than fifteen or twenty workers are likely to get belated and thus 
be unable to reach the nest for the night. 
We have watched this nest as well as others after dark by 
means of artificial light or moon-light and never found a single 
wasp at work. On several warm nights we found wasps huddled 
together on the outside of paper nests, but when we turned the 
light toward them they always slowly crawled inside. 
At 10:45 a. m. on August 24 we took fourteen wasps from 
nest number one and carried them seventy-three yards to the 
southeast. The cage was opened so that they could fly out in 
any direction they chose. They all started in a straight line for 
°n the same day at 1:15 p. m„ we took forty-five wasps fro 
this nest and set them free one hundred nnri 
to tho sooth. Seven flew north towa r /7h ""T?’ 
south, eight west and .even east, the other t . ' 7 ^ 
to vtw N„ S “ d h '<*» the air until they were I. 
to vrew. None, r„ ,h„ experiment, returned to t L a Ire, 
On the same day at 2:40 p at ^ 4 - i 
three hundred yards southl ^77^7 
an open field. Thirteen flew east or " 7 ^ 
seven west or northwest, toward’the 
