116 



THE AMERICAN BEE-KEEPER. 



May 



must be cut off with a saw, or other- 

 wise, so they can be twisted and work- 

 ed out of the combs as soon as the first 

 comb is out so you can get hold of 

 them. By this time the bees will all 

 be off the combs next to you, when 

 the first one is to be cut out of the 

 hive and laid on the prepared board. 

 Now lay a frame on the comb, and 

 mark the comb by the inside of the 

 frame. Take off the frame and cut 

 out the comb a hair larger than the 

 marks, so that it will fit closely. 

 Next press the frame over the comb 

 until it is as nicely in place as if the 

 comb had originally been built there, 

 when the nails are to be pushed into 

 the comb through the holes made for 

 them, thus securing the comb in the 

 frame as you have it fixed, when it is 

 to be hung in the hive. To take the 

 frame from the board, raise board and 

 all until the frame stands in the posi- 

 tion it will when hanging in the hive, 

 when there will be no danger of the 

 comii falling out, in lifting it. If you 

 attempt to lift it otherwise, the honey 

 which has run out will cause it to 

 stick to the board, and this, together 

 with the weight of the comb, will be 

 quite liable to cause it to leave the 

 frame in spite of your nails. Place 

 the comb in the hive, when the bees 

 which have returned from the field 

 will take possession of it, licking up 

 drip, etc. Proceed to cut out the rest 

 of the combs and fit them in the 

 frames in the same way until all are 

 used, and set in the new hive, always 

 placing them in the new hive in the 

 same relative position as near as pos- 

 sible which they occupied before, 

 otherwise much brood might be lost, 

 should the weather become cold soon 

 after transferring. If drone comb to 



any amount is found, this should be 

 left out, for by so doing you will save 

 the raising of a host of useless consum- 

 ers. If many pieces of nice worker 

 comb are made, by the combs not cut- 

 ting to advantage, they can be fitted 

 into the frames and fine wire wound 

 around to hold them in place. If af- 

 ter you have used all the good comb 

 you still do not have enough to fill all 

 the frames, it is well to fill the other 

 frames with comb foundation , as the 

 bees will be likely to fill these frames 

 with drone comb, if they are allowed 

 to build comb in empty frames under 

 these conditions. As soon as the 

 combs are all in , and the inside work 

 completed, close the hive, and hive 

 the bees which are in the box into it 

 the same as any hive would be swarm- 

 ed. Now wait two or three days until 

 the bees get the combs all repaired 

 and fastened to the frames as they 

 wish them, when you will open the 

 hive and remove the wire nails, wire, 

 or whatever you use to hold the combs 

 in the frames, when you have your 

 colony in your new hive in just as 

 nice shape as if they had originally 

 been hived in it. If a scarcity of 

 honey exists at the time of transfer- 

 ring, so that robbing is liable to oc- 

 cur, you should wait until near sun- 

 set to do this work, or have a screen 

 tent to set over you and the hive dur- 

 ing the operation. 



Borodino, N. Y. 



We will send the American Bee- 

 Keeper one year with the Cosmopol- 

 itan for $1.25. The Cosmopolitan is 

 a monthly magazine containing an 

 average of over 100 pages and 80 il- 

 lustrations each month. 



