FIFTY YEARS AMONG THE BEES 197 



come hardened to failures and disappointments in 

 following after the will-o'-the-wisp — non-swarming. 



PILES OF STORIES. 



The problem of prevention of swarming would be 

 very much easier if I were running for extracted honey 

 instead of comb. I am very much of the opinion that I 

 could pile up stories as in Fig. 68, and not have one 

 colony in a hundred swarm, the fact that no such pile 

 ever swarmed for me confirming that opinion ; and I 

 have had a few such piles every year for a number of 

 years. 



VEXTILATIOX TO PREVENT SWARMIXG. 



It is not, I think, so much the abundance of room, 

 as the abundance of ventilation thats prevents swarming, 

 although the room is important. Notice the opportunity 

 for ventilation in that pile in Fig. 68. The entrance, 

 which you cannot see, is 1'? inches wide and 2 inches 

 deep. The second story is shoved forward on the first 

 story so as to make a ventilating space of half an inch at 

 the back, between the two stories. The third story is 

 shoved back to make a space in front : and the ventilating 

 space between the third and fourth stories is at the back. 

 Lastly the cover is shoved forward to make a space of 

 half an inch or more. Thus you see there is a fine 

 chance for a free circulation of air right through the 

 whole pile. Alas that such a thing can not be used for 

 comb honey. 



DEMAREE PLAN. 



If I were running for extracted honey, I could get 

 along with little or no swarming by following the 

 plan of G. \\\ Demaree. When the time comes that 

 there is danger of swarming, put into a second story all 

 the frames from below except one containing the least 

 brood, fill up the vacancies with empty combs or frames 



