The Mother Hive

"The Mother Hive" is a short story or fable by Rudyard Kipling about the decline and destruction of a Hive of Bees. It was published first in Collier’s Weekly in the US on 28 November 1908. Later that same year (December) it was published in the "Windsor Magazine" in the UK with a title of the "Adventures of Melissa". [cite web | title="The Mother Hive" | last=McGivering | first=John | work=Kipling reader's guide | url=http://www.kipling.org.uk/rg_motherhive1_bak.htm | date=October 12, 2006 | accessdate=2007-12-12 ]

Plot summary

Their downfall begins when, in a moment of carelessness, the guardians of the hive allow it to be infiltrated by the Death's-head Hawkmoths - creatures that violate the laws of Irony by actually being as deplorable as they look. The moths devour honey and wax and undermine the structure of the hive, which leads to even worse problems. More and more bees are hatched with freakish deformities. Honored traditions collapse. The only hope for salvation is hatching and rearing a secret clandestine Princess.

Footnotes