No. C. DEPARTMENT OK AGRICULTURE. 375 



getber. Thou pull but the block, trim off the corners of the end a 

 little so that it Avill easily enter the cage, slide the stick in and out 

 of the cage a number of times so that it Avill work easily, and the 

 thing is complete. When not in use the block is pushed clear in, 

 so as to preserve the shape of the cage. 



Remove the old hive and put the new hive on the old stand. Lay 

 the caged queen at the entrance of the new hive. When the swarm 

 returns and a large part or all of it has entered the hive, let the 

 queen out of the cage and let lier run in with the rest. The »warm 

 can now be moved to a new stand and the old hive returned to its 

 place. The better way, however, is to leave the swarm on the old 

 stand, as given under the head of prevention of after-swarms. 



DESERTION OF s'wARMS. 



It is not an uncommon occurrence with the inexperienced to have 

 a swarm leave a hive the next day after being hived, and if returned 

 to the hive to repeat the process. If unobserved, and the wings 

 of the queen are not clipped, it will leave for the woods. In the 

 belief that it will prevent the desertion of the bees, some wash the 

 inside of the hive with sweetened water, or rub it with leaves or 

 something else to give it a certain odor. Nothing of the kind is 

 needed. If a hive is liot absolutely filthy, the bees will be satis- 

 fied with it if other conditions are right. In the great majority of 

 cases the bees desert because of too great heat in the hive, or what 

 is much the same thing, because there is too little ventilation. 

 Shade the hive and give abundance of ventilation, and there is likely 

 10 be no desertion. Block up the hive so the entrance shall be 

 two or three inches deep, and let the cover be partly off for two or 

 three days. If there is no other way to shade the hive, take a good 

 armful of fresh-cut hay, the longer the grass the better, lay it on the 

 hive and put on it two or three sticks of fire-wood. 



If you have movable-frame hives, you can give to the swarm a 

 frame of brood, and with such a start in housekeeping it is not likely 

 to desert, even if the hive be not the most comfortable. 



PREVENTION OP SWARMS. 



The prevention of a first swarm is not alwaj's an easy matter, if, 

 indeed, it can be prevented at all. Being crowded for room is one 

 of the things that perhaps more than anything else encourages 

 swarming, so plenty of room does.no little towards discouraging 

 swarming. With hives containing ten or more Langstroth frames 

 (a Langstroth frame is 17fx9J inches, outside measure) worked for 

 extracted honey, and with plenty of room always in the surplus 

 chamber, the hives kept comfortable by the shade of trees or its 



