MANIFESTATIONS OF DIVINE WISDOM. 27 
prevent escape, and even restrain them from fight- 
ing, until, chafed into fury, they burst from their 
subjects’ hold, and rush into the deadly strife. 
The hum of the spectators increases to an uproar, 
the duel continues, and at length one falls, mortally 
wounded. The survivor’s supremacy is now fully 
established, and, with the consent of all her sub- 
jects, she tears open the chambers of the remain- 
ing princesses, and slays them one by one. The 
bees aid her in this cruel work, by dragging away 
the dead bodies, and removing all traces of her 
jealous fury. 
How does the life of the bee teach us that God 
gives us “ help in time of need ; ” that he always 
places at our disposal the means by which to meet 
every want of life ; and that, inasmuch as we are 
“of more value than many sparrows,” he will 
certainly care for us in all our necessities ! 
Sometimes a hive is unexpectedly bereft of its 
monarch when no young queen is living to supply 
her place. At such a time is exhibited the most 
convincing proof that bees have a language of their 
own, and that they communicate intelligibly with 
each other. When a queen has been taken away, 
