Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1882-08-01
The Queen Bee.

Each hive contains from fifty TO sixty
thousand bees at this season. and the supreme
power is vested in queen. a bee nearly twice
the size and of more than double the brilhancv
of drone or an ordinary worker. In addi-
ton to being the autocrat of the hive, the
queen is also the mother of all her subjects
The prince consort is one of the three thou.
sand drones whose mission in life has never
been very distinctly defined. and his life.
though matrimonially brilliant, perhaps, is of
the brefest after her majesty sets the eye OF
affection upon him. Whether it be that he
becomes inflated with pride and selfglorfi-
cation, or that close contact with royalty il
dangerous among bees as well as mrn-what.
ever may be the reason, he dies while yet the
buzzing songs Of the wedding feast are ring
ing in his ears. The tickle queen, forgetful
of the love she once professed, views his
death with calm complacency, and almost in
stantly begins to lay the eggs that will in 81
days develop into working bees and review
her myriad subjects. She passes from cell
to cell in the waxen walls of her kingdom.
and lays an egg in each cell. taking care
that the proportion of drones and workers
shall he perfectly preserved. One drone.
as has been already iptimated, serves Ms a
husband for the queen. Why she persists in
bringing 2000 or 5000 into existence (she has
the power it seems of deciding what shall be
the product Of her eggs) when only one is of
any conceivable use, is one of those things
that no fellow can find out. Possibly her
motive may be, after the capricious manner
of her sex, a desire to have a reasonable
choice for husband She sometimes lays
1900 eggs IN a day. She is armed with
strong sting, but she never uses it except
against rival of her own rank. A man can
squeeze her to his hearts content and she
will not resent the insult. and working bee
who loses his respect for her rank, and stings
her does with perfect impunity. The
queen eggs are selected by the workers, and
when the grubs appear they are fed on SUI
perior food called the Royal Pabulum. 4 sort
of thick jelley made especially for their con.
sumption and strictly forbidden to all bees OF
lesser rank. This food gives to the queens
their greater size and more brilliant color.
There are several queen eggs selected, and
constant vigilance is used by the workers to
prevent the reigning queen from putting the
young ones to death before they arrive at
maturity. When a royal birth is about to
take place the queen then in power is invited
out of the hive with the workers. and in her
absence her successor appears. But this
successor, young and innocent as she ap-
pears TO be, develops 4 nature that is utterly
devoid of good feeling and mercy. Her in
stinct teaches her that she has rivals to ex-
pect and she seeks the cells in which they
lie. As they are utterly helpless. she incon-
tinently puts them to death with her sting;
and from that time, from two to five years,
if she has good luck and sturdy constitu-
ton. reigns supreme. But the day comes
when she, too. having passed the day Of her
usefulness, is invited out with the workers
and she never returns When twin queens,
are born, which sometimes happens, there is
always lively circus in that colony.