160 A COUNTRY READER. 



An ignorant, nervous person has more chance of 

 being hurt by the animals, than a person, who, 

 from knowledge and sympathy, has nerve and 

 confidence to handle and treat the animals with 

 kindness and firmness. 



There are some people, also, who suffer dread- 

 fully from the sting of a bee, and such are of 

 course unfitted by their constitution to keep 

 bees, and therefore they ought not to attempt it. 



If you are thinking of keeping bees it would 

 be wise to visit one of the district agricultural 

 shows, where bees are exhibited, and learn all 

 that the show can teach ; or consult someone 

 in the district who keeps bees, and who would 

 gladly give you the benefit of his experience. 



Begin in a small way at first, keeping only 

 one hive, and then if you find that you can 

 manage the one colony successfully, and that 

 they are profitable, increase your stock gradually. 



Also be careful that your hive is the British Bee 

 Association's standard size, so that all the parts 

 will fit each other, and will also fit every other 

 part of any other hive that you may introduce. 



If you buy a second-hand hive, be careful to 

 make sure that there has been no disease amongst 

 the bees that formerly occupied it, otherwise 

 your bees may catch the disease. Unless you 

 can be sure of this it is best to run no risks but 

 to buy a new hive. 



