216 THE BEE keeper's MANUAL. 



ing another. If he has not enough for this purpose, he 

 must take the required number from the four stocks which 

 are raising young queens, the exact condition of which 

 ought to have been previously ascertained. Some of these 

 stocks will be found to contain a large namber of queen 

 cells. Huber, in one of his experiments, found twenty-four, 

 in one hive, and even a larger number has sometimes been 

 reared by a single colony. As the Apiarian will always 

 have many more queens than are wanted, he ought to select 

 those combs which contain a sealed queen, so as to secure 

 say, about fifteen combs, each of which has one or more 

 queens. If necessary, he can cut out some of the cells, and 

 adjust them in the manner previously described. Each 

 comb containing a sealed queen must be put with all the 

 bees adhering to it, into an empty hive ; and by a divider, or 

 movable partition, they must be confined to about one 

 quarter of the hive ; water should be given to them, and 

 honey, if none is contained in the comb. I always prefer 

 to select a comb which contains a large number of workers 

 almost mature, and some of which are just beginning to 

 hatch, so that even if a considerable number of the bees 

 should return to the parent stock, after their liberty is given 

 them, there will still be a sufficient number hatched, to attend 

 to the young, and especially to watch over the maturing 

 queens. If the comb contains a large number of bees just 

 emerging from their cells, I prefer to confine them only 

 one day, otherwise I keep them shut up until about an hour 

 before sunset of the third day. The hives containing the 

 small colonies, ought, if they are not well protected by being 

 made double, to be set where they are thorougly sheltered 

 from the intense heat of the sun ; and the ventilators should 

 give them an abundance of air. They should also be closed 

 in such a manner, as to keep the interior in entire darkness, 



