New Ulm weekly review. [volume] (New Ulm, Minn.) 1878-1892, 1880-01-28
WHOLE NUMBER 100.

coverings, called cOc0Ons, and are fed
BY the nurses with food intended to
develop them into drones, workers, or
queens, according to the size OF the
cell, % that the SIZE OF the cell deter
mines the future condition of the little
bee in the cocoon.
have told you that there can only
be one queen in hive at time, yet
there are many young baby queens in
the royal cells, fed with the remark
able jelly only used for queen babies.
These tiny queens grow in their CO.
coons until one of them, more forward
than the rest, throws off the silken
covering and comes out full.dedged
queen, ready to rule over the dominion,
she is wise enough to know falls to her
of right. But what do you think the
despotic lady does to begin with?
Why, walks to every cell containing a
royal grub, or baby queen, and stings
each poor little thing to death. and
then proceeds to drive out the old
queen. This seems like a very cruel
business, but, as two queens cannot ex-
list in the same hive, SO the young
queen does this. Of course the whole
hive is thrown into great confusion by
the arrival of this second queen. The
workers collect in impenetrable
ranks around their old sover-
eign and prevent a personal con-
dict between the two royal ladies.
An end to the matter has to
come, of course, and, generally, the
Oldest inhabitant flies out of the hive,
in great fuster, leaving it to the new
queen, and followed by all her devoted
attendants, who cluster about her
wherever she may see fit to alight,
hanging to the object and to each other
with their little hooked hands till they:
sometimes form a complete ball. Thiss
is called swarming. 1t may be guessed
where the swarm will alight when it
leaves the hive, for scouts are sent out
in advance to select the place, and
these, by going and coming with great
buster and Importance, give some
notice to the owners of the bees as to
what is to be done.
After the swarm has come out of
the hive and settled. it is only required
to strike the object from which they
are suspended quick blow, at the
same time holding an empty hive be-
meath. The bees at once cluster about
the new abode and take possession.
After the old queen and her attendants
have left the hive, the young workers
see the necessity of going at once out
into the world to provide for them
selves and their young queen. The
cells in which they were Matched are of
course empty; SO these they fill with
honey, and business goes on with the
young people who occupy the hive just
as it used to do with the old.
Bees 90 many strange things, showing
their ability to reason in case of emer-
gency. No greater proof of this can
be found than that given by the sagao-
ity of the little creatures in times of
calamity, when enemies come into the
hive, or when they are by accident de-
prived of their queen. In the latter
case they do very curious thing.
They select one of the common grubs,
and all begin to lavish every attention
upon it; feed it with the food kept only
for queens; enlarge its small cell, and
by care convert it into royal person.
age. so that, when it leaves the cell,
instead of common worker it comes
out queen. How this change is pro-
duced merely by change of food and
enlargement of cell, we do not know,
but that the common little grub be-
comes real queen we are very sure
Bees, as you see. are very curious
little insects, and the more we learn of
them the more astonished we become
at the wisdom and goodness of God.
who has fitted them so entirely for the
work they have to do, and given even
to creatures so small powers SO Won
derful. George Klingle. in N. Y. o.
cPT7Jer