LITTLE LANCE-BEARERS 317 
ently half-dead, soon came to life, and made 
haste to establish themselves in a safer neighbor¬ 
hood.” 
“ What becomes of the bumblebees in winter? ” 
Alice wanted to know, interestedly. 
“ All but the young queens perish when the 
Frost Giants come,” Uncle John replied. “ In¬ 
stinct tells these to hide away in some safe shel¬ 
ter, where they sleep secure from all storms and 
chills. I found one last winter in the center of a 
corn shock out in the field. Old rubbish piles and 
crevices about the buildings are the favorite sites. 
The young queen I have brought in probably 
emerged about a month ago. Just how she came 
to discover the abandoned home of Mrs. Gray 
Mouse is uncertain, but as such quarters are a 
favorite nesting site, it may be that she deliber¬ 
ately hunted until she found this ready-built 
home. 
“ First of all, of course, she gave it a thorough 
cleaning; for bumblebees are famous housekeep¬ 
ers. Then she went over the outside and made it 
strictly water-proof; next she laid a fine linoleum 
of her own manufacture on the floor at one end 
of her house. This linoleum, as you may see for 
yourselves, is composed of wax, mixed with 
shredded hair and bits of grass. Here in this 
corner specially designed for the nursery she then 
arranged a novel mattress of pollen mixed with 
