304 THH INSECT WORLD. 
which you have just given them, and which they will not be long 
in entering.””* 
A good swarm weighs from four to six pounds; one pound 
contains about four thousand bees. The second swarms weigh 
rarely more than two pounds, and the third still less. You can 
also form artificial swarms by drawing off the bees of one hive into 
another; an operation which is easy with well-shaped hives. <A 
glance at Fig. 325, which represents the common hive of the 
north of France, that is to say, the bell-shaped, will show how easy 
it is to effect this drawing off, or pouring out of the bees, by 
joing together at their bases two hives, the one empty, the other 
containing a swarm. In order to have control over the bees during 
the operation, you must slightly stupefy them with the smoke of a 
smouldering rag. ; 
Beehives are of a thousand different shapes, each of which has its 
particular advantages. They are made of wood and of straw; and 









ETA 
i Ail 
le age 
ss eS ane xe 
Vj x7 : Ge wel 
\ W ' | > 
























































Fig. 327.—Swiss hive. Fig. 328.—Polish hive. 
the shapes used in different countries are very various. We give 
as examples, Figs. 325, 326, 327, 328. 
The site, that is, the place where hives stand, is not a 
* Cours d’Apiculture,”’ pp. 78, 74. 
