THE 



MANUAL. 197 



faction that the swarm, in their compact state, might 

 set all cold at defiance, if they were full fed. This 

 also led him to conclude, that whenever Bees died 

 with the cold of winter, their food must be short, and 

 their hives old, and bad, so as to admit both frost and 

 wet. He also remarks, that heat often destroys the 

 swarms, when the hives are exposed to the intense 

 rays of the sun, and that this evil ought carefully to 

 be guarded against. Mr. Huish also remarks, that 

 the light of the snow, in a clear day, often invites the 

 Bees abroad, and a chill causes them to light upoa 

 the snow, where they all perish ; he directs that the 

 hives be closed at such times. Twelve or fourteen 

 pounds of honey may be considered sufficient food 

 fora common swarm, through the winter; you may al- 

 ways determine the state of your hives with regard to 

 food, by weighing them in January or February, (al- 

 ways allowing more for the weight of an old hive 

 than a new one, on account of an accumulation of 

 bee-bread, which, by its augmentation in old hives, 

 increases their weight.) If your quantum of food 

 falls short, feed your Bees. 



Butler, in his feminine Monarchy, remarks, " That 

 no hope can be entertained of saving a hive through 

 the winter, that weighs only 10 or 12 pounds; but 

 one of 15 pounds may be preserved by feeding, and 

 one 'of 20 pounds will winter safe, and free from al! 

 fear of famine." 



CHAP. XVIII. 



On the life of the Bee and period of duration of a 

 hive. 



There are two seasons which exhaust the hives of 

 their inhabitants ; the spring and autumn. It may 

 be calculated with some certainty, that more than 

 one-third of a hive dies in autumn, and nearly the 

 same number in the spring. The life of the Bee has 



