It was taken
from the bunch of flowers whence one of his former captives had been
taken, and there was every chance of its belonging to the same hive
as its companion. Which direction it might take, should it prove to
be a bee from either of the two hives of which the positions were
now known, it altogether exceeded Boden's art to tell, so he
dexterously avoided committing himself. It was enough that Peter
gazed attentively, and that he saw the insect dart away,
disappearing in the direction of the island. By this time more of
the savages were on the alert, and now knowing how and where to look
for the bee, they also saw its course.
"You tell him ag'in go dere?" asked Peter, whose interest by this
time was so manifest, as to defy all attempts at concealment.
"To be sure I did. The bees obey ME, as your young men obey YOU. I
am their chief, and they KNOW me. I will give you further proof of
this. We will now go to that little bit of wood, when you shall all
see what it contains. I have sent three of my bees there; and here,
one of them is already back, to let me know what he has seen."
Sure enough, a bee was buzzing around the head of le Bourdon,
probably attracted by some fragment of comb, and he cunningly
converted it into a messenger from the copse! All this was wonderful
to the crowd, and it even greatly troubled Peter.
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