Page:The Annual Register 1758.djvu/362

 ;^^$ ANxNUAL REGISTER, 175S.

ance. Neverthelefs, as the feafon was very far advanced, and the fpoc ihe bees lighted upon very ill fur- uifhed with materials for making honey, I thought it worth while to facrifice them to the curiofity I had of knowing what work fuch a num- ber could perform in fo fliort a time, and withal in fo unfavourable weather.

Among this great multitude, there was but one female bee. The greateft number of them weie work- ing bees, which are neither males ror females; and there were befides thefe and the female bee already mentioned, only 33 male bees, pre- pofteroiifiy called by the vulgar hatching bee^ ; for the youna; bees are hatched by the mere heat of the fammer, and that which is caufed by the perpetual hurry and motion of the old bees flying about, or working in the hive. It is very remarkable, that the bottle into which the firil 189S bees, driven out of the hive, had been received, was thoroughly heated by the per- petual motion of thefe imprifontd creatures, and the warm vapours, which exhaled from their bodies.

The number of waxen cells be- gun and iinifhed, including thofe of the comb I had found on the ground on my firll examining the hive, amounted to 3392 : they were all of the fame fize and form, and were intended only for neils to ih.itih the working bees. In 236 of the cells fomc honey had been ilored up, but it had been after- wards made ufe of, as very iitt'e could be then gathered abroad. It was no difficult matter to dillinguifli T.ie cells thus made ufe of fron the others, for they had received a yel- low tinflure from the honey depo- uted in them ; whereas thofe which

had not as yet been employed t'nlh way were of a fliining white.

There were alfo 62 of thefe cells, in which the bees had alrea- dy begun to lay up their ordinary food or bread called erithace. This fubftance was of a change- able colour, between a yellow and a purplifh red ; but perhaps thii tinge might be owing to the fumi- gation ; the whitenels of the un- employed wax was in fome parts alfo impaired by the fame means; coloured and covered bcfides with, black fpots.

In 3 ^ cells I found as many eggs fixed in them at one end ; fo that including the eggs found in the comb, which had fallen to the ground as already mentioned, there were 45 eggs in all. There were befjde? in 150 of the celU fo many new-hatched worms, but thefe lay almoil infenfible and motionlefs. They were of different fizes. All thefe worms were furroundcd with that kind of food wfvich the moft expert obicrvers of bees think is honey thrown up by the old ones, out of their flomachs. This kind of honey is white, like a folution of gum tragacanth, cr flarch dif- iolved in water, and is almoll infi- pid ; it (hews nothing remarkable on being viewed by the micro- fcope. In the worms themfelves 1 could perceive pulmon.iry tubes of a hlver whitenef, running moll beautifully on each fide through their little tranfparent bodies.

I examined attentively the wax cemented by way of foundation to the top of the hive, but 1 could find no difference between that and the other wax of which the cells confitl. They appear both to have the feme nature and properties. I could not, ho'iscver, but admire

this