The Bees and the Wasp

    Some bees once built a fine honeycomb in a hollow tree-trunk．Now there are two kinds of bees in a hive：worker bees，who gather pollen¹ and make honey all their lives，and drones，who lie lazily in the hive all day long doing nothing．It happened that the drones began to boast that they had made the fine honeycomb．This made the worker bees very angry and they called a wasp² in to decide who was right．“It is very difficult to say which of you really built the comb，”said the wasp thoughtfully．“You all look so much alike．However，I have an idea．I suggest that you each move into a different hive and each build up a new comb．When they are finished I will inspect them．From the shape of the cells and the taste of the honey I will soon know who built the fine honeycomb in this hollow tree．”
    “That's not fair，”said the drones．“We don't want to build another comb．We are talking about the comb in this hollow tree，not some new comb．”
    “We'll start straight away，”said the workers，“for we know we can do it．”
    The wasp turned to the workers．“Now I know who can make honeycombs and who cannot．There is no doubt that the honeycomb in the hollow tree belongs to you，workers．”
    Actions speak louder than words．Exercises：
    回答下列问题：
    ① What are the two kinds of bees？
    ② What was the wasp's suggestion？
    ③ Why did the drones refuse to do so？

1 pollen   

n.[植]花粉

参考例句：

• Hummingbirds have discovered that nectar and pollen are very nutritious.蜂鸟发现花蜜和花粉是很有营养的。
• He developed an allergy to pollen.他对花粉过敏。

2 wasp   

n.黄蜂，蚂蜂

参考例句：

• A wasp stung me on the arm.黄蜂蜇了我的手臂。
• Through the glass we can see the wasp.透过玻璃我们可以看到黄蜂。