BEES AND BEE CULTURE. 



1159 



At present a popular shipping cage is known as the Poet 

 cage (Fig. 28). One side of this is covered by a slide of tin, 

 and on three sides are tin points which may be turned at right- 

 angles to the cage, as seen in the figure. At one end candy is 

 placed in small holes, so as to be of easy access to the bees. 

 To introduce a queen in this 

 cage is easy, and generally 

 successful. We turn the tin 

 points, as seen in the figure, 

 and press the cage against a 

 smooth piece of comb, so it 

 may cover both capped brood 

 and honey. The tin points 

 will hold it firmly to the 

 comb. We now pull out the 



Fio. 28. 



tin which lies against the comb. Soon the bees cut through the 

 comb by use of their jaws, and liberate the queen, when she is 

 almost invariably well received. 



SHIPPING QUEENS. This same cage is very convenient for 

 shipping queens. In this case the wire gauze is covered by a 

 thin piece of wood (Fig. 28), which is held out from the gauze 

 so as to give air, and yet prevent the mail agents from being 

 stung while handling the cages. 



THE GOOD CANDY. While being carried in the mails the bees 

 must have food. It used to be common to give them honey; 

 but this often run out and daubed the mails, which caused 

 the United States authorities to exclude bees from the mails. 

 Owing to the distance of express offices, and the expense of 

 sending by express, this worked great injustice to many. This 

 order was revoked by the mail authorities, but only on condi- 

 tions that there should always be the double cover, and no food 

 that could possibly soil the mails. This saves hundreds of dol- 

 lars each year, and no shipper should presume to disregard either 

 of these rules. The Good candy is simply granulated sugar 

 moistened with extracted honey, and pressed into small auger 

 holes which are cut out a little from the side of the chamber 

 next the bees, so that the bees can reach the food. This candy 



