174 THE HIVE AND HONEY-BEE. 



chapter on Loss of the Queen.) As an old queen leaves 

 the hive only with a new swarm, the loss of her wings* in 

 no way interferes with her usefulness, or the attachment 

 of the bees. If, in spite of her inability to fly, she is bent 

 on emigrating, though she has a " will," she can find " no 

 way," but helplessly falls to the ground, instead of gaily 

 mounting into the air. If the bees find her, they cluster 

 around her, and may be easily secured by the Apiarian ; 

 if she is not found, they return to the parent-stock, to 

 await the maturity of the young queens. As soon as the 

 piping of the first-hatched queen is heard (p. 121), the 

 Apiarian may force his swann, unless having fair warning 

 of their intentions he prefers to allow them to swarm in 

 the natural way. The number of queens nearly ready to 

 hatch which are usually found in such a stock, may be 

 profitably used in the swarming season. 



As the queen can not get through an opening 5-32dsf 

 of an inch high, which will just pass a loaded worker, if 

 the entrance to the hive be contracted to this dimension, 

 she will not be able to leave with a swarm : (see PI. HI., 

 Figs. 11, 12.) 



This method of preventing swarming,! requires great 



* Bees communicate with each other by their antenna, and Huher has proved 

 that queens deprived of these, drop their eggs without care, and are unfit for pre- 

 siding over a hive. 



t Huber does not give the size necessary for confining a queen ; but he speaks 

 of adjusting a glass tube, so as to pass out a worker, and not a queen. The small- 

 est queen I ever saw, could not pass through my blocks. Although the workers 

 are at first slightly annoyed by them, they soon become accustomed to them, as 

 they do not confuse them, by presenting the entrance in a new place. The ventila- 

 tion not depending on this contracted entrance, abundance of air can be given to 

 the bees, when the blocks are adjusted to confine the queen. 



$ 111 health, for the last two Summers, has prevented me from giving this 

 method of swarming such a full trial that I can confidently indorse it, except for 

 temporary purposes ; though I have little doubt that it may be made entirely to 

 prevent the issue of swarms. If so, it will be of great service to those who fear 

 to open a hive to remove the royal cells, or cut off the wings of a queen. If 

 as soon as piping is heard, the entrance is contracted for about a week, the bees 

 may allow the young queens to engage in mortal combat. In this case, the blocks 



