110 BEES. 



forming the operations about to be described. But the 

 bit of comb may be somewhat in the way. The bees 

 having" been stupified by the fumigation, the hive is turned 

 up, its top rested on the ground, and aii empty hive placed 

 over it of exactly the same shape (at the edg-es at least), 

 and a cloth tied round the circle of junction. Then tap or 

 drum g'ently at the sides of the two hives for about ten 

 minutes, in which time probably about two-thirds of the 

 bees will have ascended into the upper hive. The queen, 

 fortunately for the operation, is generally one of the first 

 either to run away from or to confront the danger (we 

 know not which it is) by ascending. If joiiv hive have a 

 glass window, as all should have, you can see when about the 

 right proportion have ascended ; if not, you must guess with 

 the aid above given of the knowledge of the ordinary du- 

 ration of time occupied. Now take off the top hive and 

 reverse it also on the ground, while you make sure the 

 queen is there, throwing, meanwhile, the cloth (that you 

 have removed) over the exposed bottom of the parent hive. 

 If the queen be there (and, as we have shown, p. 36, she is 

 easily distinguishable) you have only to shake queen and 

 bees into the prepared hive on the board, and restore the 

 parent colony also to the ordinary resting-place, where the 

 bees will soon rear a new queen for it. If the queen be not 

 there, then repeat the process with the prepared hive, and 

 so you will catch her at last. You can then return the 

 first batch of bees that were removed either to the parent 

 hive or to the prepared hive, by simply shaking them into 

 the one which most needs them. 



Old hives thus deprived of their queens, and made to rear 

 new ones, involve another important advantage. In twenty- 

 one days the entire brood will be reared, no fresh brood 

 having been deposited (through the absence of an old queen), 

 and the young queen not having begun to lay, which they 

 do in about ten days after they leave the cell. Here, then, 

 where the hives are heavy, say forty or more pounds in 

 weight, is an opportunity of removing the bees (by fumiga- 

 tion) into a new hive, and selling the contents of the old 

 one. The honey is thus earlier than usual in the market, 

 and fetches a higher price. Weak swarms should invariably 

 be joined either to strong ones, or to each other, and as sooa 



