THE AMBEICAN BEE JOURNAL. 



83 



sign— though still uot a perfectly reliable 

 oue — is when the outlying bees suddenly with- 

 draw into the hive and gorge themselves with 

 honey. Yet even this sign is usually of little 

 avail to the bee-keeper, as a premouitary hint, 

 because it may occur in his absence, and in a 

 moment the bees may reappear, rushing forth in 

 a steady stream, and the swarming is almost as 

 suddenly at an end ; so that the sign is nearly 

 useless if we are present, and of no value what- 

 ever if we are absent. The main matter is to 

 keep watch, from moon to eve; and he who de- 

 pends on natural swarming must do so persever- 

 ingly, or he may in an instant lose that which 

 was long and anxiously looked for. 



Whether a swarm has gone off' unobserved 

 can readily be determined by an inspection of 

 the stock. If the bees no longer " hang out," 

 if comparatively few enter or leave the hive, 

 and work seems to be in a great measure sus- 

 pended, we may conclude that a swarm has de- 

 parted. A close search should then be insti- 

 tuted, as possibly the fugitives may still be 

 found clustered somewhere in the neigborhood 

 on a tree or a bush, because first swarms com- 

 monly settle and pause before taking their final 

 departure. All tliese remarks, however, apply 

 to first swarms only. In after-swarms the 

 queens are generally heard Ueting before they 

 leave, but they issue more suddenly than first 

 swarms, and are also much more disposed to 

 decamp, the young queens being more agile than 

 the old ones. Sometimes, however, the teetiug 

 is continued, at intervals, for several days, and 

 still no swarm issues. Indeed, after-swarms 

 rarely make their appearance before the ninth 

 day after the prime, swarm has left. But some- 

 times weeks elapse before afcer-swarming ceases. 

 It may, however, be regarded as a sure in- 

 dication that it if; ended Avhen young queens, 

 either dead or expiring are found on the alighting 

 board or in front of the hive, early in the morn- 

 ing, or when others make their escape from the 

 hive, and are seen flying about the apiary. If 

 the hive be then tipped up, clumps of bees may 

 commonly be seen between the combs or on the 

 bottom board, encasing supernumerary young 

 queens doomed to destruction by suffocation or 

 siarvation. 



When there are no trees in close proximity 

 to the apiary, it may be advantageous to erect 

 a few poles, previous to the swarming season, 

 twelve or filteen paces in front of the stands, 

 and suspending therefrom, at an elevation of 

 ten or twelve feet, some pieces of black oak 

 bark, with the rough side turned towards the 

 ground. Experienced bee-keepers allege that 

 bees will readily settle and cluster on such sus- 

 pended bark, and this may then be taken 

 down for the more convenient hiving of the 

 swarm. 



3. It is scarcely necessary to remark that a 

 supply of empty hives should be prepared be- 

 fore the svv^armiug season comes, to receive the 

 swarms. If they are to be painted, this 

 should be done so early that thej'^ may become 

 perfectly dry and free from smell; betore they 

 are used. 



Prime swarms rarely attempt to abscond, 

 usually settling on some tree or bush in the 



neighborhood of the apiary, unless indeed it 

 be what is termed a mujlug swarm — that is, 

 oue_ issuing from a stock that changed or 

 1 lost its queen early in the spring, and has been 

 i successful in rearing others. Such a swarm, 

 having a young and uufecundatcd queen, and 

 thus resembling perfectly an after-swarm in 

 this respect, is apt, also, to be of the same va- 

 grant disposition, especially if several queens 

 : accompany it. But even second swarms com- 

 ■ monly settle before taking their linal departure 

 for parts unknown, and if then promptly at- 

 tended to may easily be hived. 



Squirting ^vater or throwing sand among the 

 swarming bees to induce them to settle, is sek'.om 

 serviceable and may sometimes be injurious 

 by inducing them to return hurriedly to the 

 parent hive. It is better to look on patiently 

 till they select a spot on which to cluster, and 

 then let them congregate without interference, 

 unless the place be one from which it would be 

 very inconvenient to dislodge them for hiving. 

 4. "When bees swarm, the bee-keeper should 

 remain perfectly calm and collected. Swarms 

 arc generally very tractable if taken in hand 

 immediately after they have clustered, and 

 there is then no need of a bee-hat or veil, as 

 they will not sting unless rudely treated. As 

 soon as the mass of the bees have entered the 

 hive prepared for them, it should immediately 

 be removed to the place where it is intended it 

 should remain permanently — that is, where the 

 parent stock stood. The few individuals still 

 out will then promptly rejoin it, and those re- 

 turning from foraging will not be constrained 

 to look for a home elsewhere. If any bees re- 

 main on the hiving cloth or sheet, this should 

 be carried to the new hive, that these laggards, 

 which are mostly young bees, may unite with 

 the swarm, or they may be carried to the parent 

 stock and allowed to enter there, if this has 

 been greatly depopulated. They will aid in 

 nursing the brood. 



Where a large number of stocks are kept in 

 oue apiary, ami they are managed in the ordi- 

 nary manner — that is, not managed at all, but 

 indulged in the "largxbt liberty," two or more 

 swarms will sometimes issue simultaneously and 

 cluster together. This rarely happens where the 

 business is conducted systematically, for though 

 in cottage bee-culture you cannot have com- 

 mand of the combs, you can still, to a great ex- 

 tent, control the bees, and subject them to your 

 own regulations. On the system which we pur- 

 sue and recommend, few stocks are permitted 

 to swarm, and after-swarming is prevented by 

 transposition. Hence we are seldom annoyed 

 by double or triple clustering. But if it should 

 occur, and one or more after-swarms unite with 

 a first swarm, we put the whole in one large 

 hive, and set it in a cool dark place, giving it 

 ample ventilation, and on the following day re- 

 move it to the permanent stand designed for it. 

 But when several first swarms unite, and we 

 desire to separate them, we proceed as follows : 

 Hive them unitedly, then spread a large linen 

 sheet on a level place or lloor, and set thereon 

 as many empty hives as there are swarms united, 

 underlaying each with small wedges to elevate 

 them suificientiy to permit the entrance of the 



