APIS. 
333 
human mother, to prepare the clothing and other neces¬ 
saries for her expected infant, has forecast the queen’s 
needs in its intermittent urgency, by progressively con¬ 
structing cells fitted severally in size for the growth and 
nurture of neuters, the first developed; of drones, the 
next produced ; and lastly, of queens, which soon after¬ 
wards appear; she instinctively knowing the proper time 
and the suitable use of them, having the faculty of dis¬ 
tinguishing them with a view to the deposit of the par¬ 
ticular kind of eggs of which she is for the moment 
parturient. 
The drones, or male bees, appear to receive life for 
one substantial purpose only, which is soon accomplished, 
but during the short space of time its successive perform¬ 
ance requires, it is incidentally accompanied with assist¬ 
ance to the general community whilst they remain per¬ 
mitted occupants of the hive, by aiding in heating and 
ventilating it,—a labour repaid by the food, which they 
obtain from the stores kept open for daily consumption. 
Although uncontributive to the acquisition of the riches 
of the hive, yet are they indispensable to the perpe¬ 
tuation of the species, and their murder as supposed 
by some apiarians, or their expulsion as thought by 
others, in either case equally terminating in their de¬ 
struction, seems an unworthy return for the important 
service performed, although this is restricted to the 
number of individuals required by the equal number of 
queens that may be produced. To this number their 
production might be limited, but for the chance of either 
or all of these queens failing by some casualty to ob¬ 
tain a prince consort. To baffle the possibility of this 
mischance, a very superfluous number of these drones is 
hatched, as above stated, which are on the alert, when 
