56 



as populous as before, and made thirty pounds of honey for 

 our use that season. I dreaded the operation previous to doing 

 it, as I had never seen anything of the kind, but it was very 

 easy and a complete success. I have since done it alone several 

 times, and it has always worked w^ell ; but I would advise every 

 one Avho undertakes it for the first time to have assistance. 

 This is certainly an easy method of making swarms ; but easy 

 as it is there is a way to do it much easier, and that is by 

 using the 



MOVABLE COMB HIVE, 



invented and patented by Rev. L. L. Langstroth. In this hive 

 all the comb is built in moveable frames, which are suspended 

 from the upper part of the hive, and can be taken out and re- 

 placed with the utmost facility. Every one acquainted with 

 bees knows that, if left to themselves, they build their combs 

 in a very irregular manner ; but in this hive, the combs are 

 built with perfect regularity ; we can have them made of any 

 thickness, but it is best to have them all of one thickness, so 

 that we may change them from one hive to another, thus — If 

 we find in the month of November that one swarm has not 

 honey enough to carry them through the winter, we can 

 take two or three frames from a hive that has a surplus and 

 put them in the weak hive in place of their empty frames ; if 

 we wish to make a swarm at the proper season, we take a few 

 frames containing broad comb with the bees adhering, and put 

 them in a new hive, and if we wish for more bees, shake a few 

 from other frames, and we have a new swarm, as bees will 

 never leave brood comb ; they immediately raise a queen and 

 go on with their work. To mention all the advantages of this 

 hive would require considerable space ; we think any bee- 

 keeper examining it will be convinced that it is the hive. 

 Langstroth, in his very valuable book, the " Hive and Honey 

 Bee," gives sixty-one reasons why he considers his hive an 

 improvement on the old fashioned hive, among them is his fa- 

 cihty for getting rid of the moth. All we have to do wh«n 



