i02 XUJi I'KACTIOAL BEE GUIDE. 



to treat you with every courtesy if only you reciprocate their 

 gentility. 



178. Manipulating Wicked Stocks. — In the case of a wicked 

 stoclc of Natives (46), Cyprians (49) or Syrians (50) the sub- 

 duing may require to be of a more thorough-going nature. 

 Give three or four puffs of smoke at the entrance, and close 

 the doors ; with your shut fists drum on the roof for half a 

 minute ; open the doors, and give more smoke ; and drum again 

 for half a minute. After three or four minutes draw on the 

 carbolic cloth, and the bees will probably be found perfectly 

 subdued. Keep the smoker at hand, to drive them back if they 

 should show a desire to boil over. 



179. Forcing the Pace. — In the event of a usually quiet 

 stock proving unruly, as will occasionally occur (168), suspend 

 operations at once, and withdraw. Give them time to calm 

 down, and try them again on the next day. Bees, like mortals, 

 sometimes " get their dander up," and probably witli better 

 reason. They may have been fighting robber bees (310): 

 they may scent rain in the distance : they may have been pro- 

 voked by some interfering man or beast — you cannot always 

 tell. But it will be better to let them " sleep upon it " than, 

 by forcing the pace and persevering in your manipulation, to 

 run the risk of turning them into demons for the rest of the 

 season. 



180. Smoking Overdone. — It must, however, be said, that 

 with our Native bees (46), Italians (47) or Carniolans (48) 

 elaborate preliminaries to manipulation are not often neces- 

 sary. When you have gained experience, and have learned 

 how to do it, you will frequently find yourself able to open and 

 manipulate a hive without the aid of smoke or carbolic, though 

 these should always be at hand in case of any emergency. In 

 the honey season, thoroughly smoking a colony puts a stop to 

 the gathering of nectar, probably for the rest of the day. The 

 honey that has been gorged has to be disgorged into the cells 

 when you have finished operations. If you stand aside and 

 observe, you will find that nothing like the same energy is 

 displayed at the entrance, and if you weigh the hive next morn- 

 ing, it will be seen that the average increase has been 

 suspended ; and that a loss of from s lb. to lo lb. of honey has 

 been incurred. Therefore, smoking should never be overdone; 

 and for simple operations, such as putting on or taking off a 

 super, it is seldom necessary at all (266), nor, indeed, unless 

 the brood nest is to be disturbed, or the hive manipulated at 

 unsuitable hours. 



181. No Food — No Subjugation It must also be added that 



the use of smoke for quieting bees presupposes the existence of 



