like an army which is obeying the definite orders of its
officer, at once begins to form thick columns along the whole length
of the vertical partitions of the hive. The first to arrive at the top
hang on to the arch by the claws of their hind legs, those who come
after attach themselves to the first, and so on till long chains are
formed which serve as bridges for the ever mounting crowd to pass
over. Little by little these chains are multiplied with indefinite
re-enforcements and interlacing each other become garlands, which,
owing to the enormous and uninterrupted mounting of the bees upon
them, are transformed into a thick triangular curtain, or rather into
a sort of compact reversed cone, the point of which is attached to the
top of the hive; the base of which is about two-thirds of the total
height of the hive. Then the last bee, which would appear to be
summoned by some interior voice to join this group, mounts this
curtain, which is hung in the darkness, and little by little every
movement among the vast crowd ceases, and this strange reversed cone
remains for many hours in a silence which might be called religious,
and in a statuesqueness which in such a mass of life is almost
startling, waiting for the arrival of the mystery of the wax.

[Illustration: CLUSTER OF BEES.]

[Illustration: A BEE HIVE.]

While this is going on, without taking any notice of the wonderful
curtain from out of whose folds so magic a gift will come, without
even appearing to be tempted to attach themselves to it, the rest of
the bees, that is all those who are on the floor of the hive, begin to
examine the building and to undertake the work which is necessary to
be done. The floor is carefully swept, dead leaves, twigs, grains of
sand are transferred to a considerable distance one by one, for bees
have an absolute mania for cleanliness; so much is this the case that
in the winter, when the extremely cold weather prevents them from
taking what bee lovers know as their "flight of cleanliness," rather
than soil the interior of the hive they perish in enormous numbers,
victims of a disease of the stomach.

After this cleaning up is done these same bees set themselves to work
to carefully close up every opening which is round about the lower
part of the hive. Finally when every crack has been carefully looked
over, filled up and covered with propolis, they begin to varnish the
whole of the interior sides. By this time guardians are place