34 THE CONTROLLABLE BEE HIVE 



every three or four years ; if this is not done, queens 

 will die, or become barren from old age, and con- 

 sequently loss of stocks follows ; keep this point in 

 your mind ; young, healthy, prolific queens are 

 essential to success,) as they will have ample room 

 in the boxes for their labor. Occasionally a hive 

 treated in this way will swarm, and if you wish to 

 have no increase of stocks whatever, if a swarm 

 comes out, hive it in a light box, and as soon as 

 this is done, go to the hive which they came from 

 and smoke lightly ; if tlie bees are cross, lift out the 

 comb frames from the brood section with the bees 

 adhering ; examine each and every comb carefully 

 for queen cells, and cut off all but one. Success 

 here depends on care and thoroughness, for if you 

 leave more than one cell, 3'our bees may swarm out 

 again in a day or two. 



After this is done, spread a sheet on the ground ; 

 set a light box, like the one in which you have the 

 bees, near one side ; raise the edge towards where 

 you will shake the bees one inch or a little moi'e, to 

 give the bees a chance to enter the box. Shake the 

 bees from the hive, by a quick, jerking motion, 

 upon the sheet, the most of them some two or three 

 feet from the box. With a large spoon or ladle, 

 put a few up near the box, so they will enter, and 

 distui'b the others gently with a quill or light brush. 

 When they commence to enter the box, they will 

 set up a loud and continual humming, or call, and 

 the bees on the sheet, if lightly disturbed with the 

 quill or brush, will spread out, and march toward 

 the hive, while those on the wing will alight, and 



