Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1913-06-01
woman"

lie Refine le veut! Swarm. Swarm, swar-r-rmr'
The Hive shook beneath tho SCATTERING thunder Of
a stuck down quilt being torn back
Don't be alarmed dears" said the Wax-mothA
That's our work Look up. and you'll see the dawn
OF the New Day."
Light broke in tho top Of the hive the Queen
bees
sacharissa rounded up her rearguard. which
dropped headlong off frame, and Joined the Prin
cesss detachment thrusting toward the Gate. Now
panic in full blast and each sound bee found
herself embraced by at least three Oddities The rst
instinct of frightened is break into the stores
and herself with honey: but there
stores left so the Oddities fought the sound bees
You must feed us. shall die!' they cried.
holding and clutching and slipping. while the silent
scared carvings and little spiders twisted between
their legs. Think OF the Hive. traitors! The Holy
Hiver'
You should have thought of that beforew cried
sound bees. Stay the dawn of your New
They reached the Gate at last over soft bodies
o many whom they had ministered-
ION! Out! Up" roared Melissa In the Prtncesss
For the Hives sake To the Old oak!"
Princess left the alightingboard circled once.
hung herself at the lowest branch OF the Old Oak.
and her little loyal swarm-you could have covered IL
with a pint mus-followed.~ hooked. and hung
Hold closer Melissa gasped THE old legends
The Hive was half hidden by smoke. and Figures
moved through the smoke. They heard . frame crack
stickily saw 1t heaved high and twirled round be-
tween enormous hands-a blotched. bulsed. and per-
horror Of gray wax. corrupt brood and small
drone-cells. all covered with crawling Oddities
strange to the sun.
why this isn't a hive. This a museum os
curtosites," said the Voice behind the Veil 1t was
only Master talking to his
Can you blame 'em. fatherT' said second voice
IT'S rotten with Wax-moth. See herel'
Another frame up. A finger poked through
It, and 1t broke In rustling fakes OF ashy rotten
Number Frame! That your mothers pet
comb once" whispered Melissa to the Princess.
"Manyfss the COED egs-rse watched her lay there"
Aren't you confusing post hoo with propter hoor'
said the Bee Master way moths only succeed when
haoo lat In bird anna nd
into the light "Al this is full OF laying work.
brood That never happens till the stocks weak
Phew"
He beat 1t on his knee like . tambour1ne ana ~
also crumbed to pieces
The little shivered they watched tho
dwarf -grubs squirm feebly the grass. Many
sound bees had nursed that frame. well knowing
useless; but the actual sight Of even
useless work destroyed disheartens good worker.
mo, they recuperative power left" said
the second voice Here's Queen cellT
But tucked away among What earth
to the little wretches? They seem to have lost
instinct Of ce-building." The father held the
frame where the bees had experimental in circular
cework It looked like tho pftted head OF deoayans
toadstooL
Not altogether" the corrected THERE'S one
line. at least perfectly good cells"
MY work." said Sacharissa to herself I'm glad
Man does justice before
That frame, too, was smashed thrown
atop of the others the foul earwiggy quilts.
after frame followed 1t. the swarm be-
held the upheaval exposure. and destruction OF all
had been well i'll done in every Granny OF their
Hives for generations past There was black comb
OLE that they forgotten where it hung; orange.
buff and ocher-varnished store-comb built bees
before the days of artificial founda
tons there a little white. frail new work
There were sheets on Of level. even brood
comb that a Its time unnumbered thousands
workers; patches OF obsolete orone-comb.
square and high shouldered. showing to what marks
a male grub expected to grow and two-inch deep
honey-mag azines. empty, but still magnificent:
whole gummed and glued into twisted scrap-work.
awry on the wires half-cells. beginnings abandoned
or grandiose walled composite cells pieced
with and capped with dirt
o inch OF 1t was 80 T1odled by
tunnels of the Wax-moth 1t broke in clouds Of
1t flung the heap
.Oh. see.' cried Sacharissa. The Great Burning
that our Queen foretold. Who can bear to look p
A flame up the pile OF rubbish and they
smuggling
The Figures stopped, lifted the Hive and shook il
upside down pyre. A cascade of Oddities
chips broken comb, scale, fun, and grubs slid out
cracked sizzed popped little. then the flames
roared up consumed all that fuel.
must disinfect," said a Voice. Get me a su-
candle. please
shell Hive returned to its Mace
light in its sticky emptiness by tier the
Figures built up, closed the entrance and wen
away The watched the light leaking through
moth by. fluttering impudently. ' 80
There has been mscalcula ton about the New
to be perfect all once. That was our mstakae .p
No. the mistake WAS entirely said the Prin-
Pardon me- said the wax-moth. when you
which our influence brought about. YOU Will admit
that we. and We alone ~
have come Hang close al, my, my people"
Within Sight Of the old Hive hsnas Bs pre-
pared to