294 THE BEE KEEPER'S MANUAL. 



As soon as the hive is thus prepared, let the temporary 

 box into which the bees have been driven, be removed, and 

 their new home put in its place. Shake out now the bees 

 from the box, upon a sheet in front of this hive, and the 

 work isrdone; bees, brood, honey, bee-bread, empty combs 

 and all", have been nicely moved, and without any more 

 serious loss than is often incurred by any other moving 

 family, which has to mourn over some broken crockery, 

 or other damage done in the necessary work of establishing 

 themselves in a new home ! If this operation is perfornfled 

 at a season of the year when there is much brood in the 

 hive, and when the weather is cool, care must be taken not 

 to expose the brood, so that it may become fatally chilled. 



The best time for performing it, is late in the Fall, when 

 there is but little brood in the hive ; or about ten days after 

 the voluntary or forced departure of a first swarm from the 

 old stock. By this time, the brood left by the old queen, 

 will all be sealed over, and old enough to bear exposure, 

 especially as the weather, at swarming time, is usually quite 

 warra. A temperature, not lower than 70°, will do them 

 no harm, for if exposed to such a temperature, they will 

 hatch, even if taken from the bees. 



I have spoken of the test time for performing this opera- 

 tion. It may he done at any season of the year, when the 

 bees can fly without any danger of being chilled, and I 

 should not be afraid to attempt it, in mid-winter, if the 

 weather was as warm as it sometimes is. Let me here 

 earnestly caution all who keep bees, against meddling with 

 item when the weather is cool. Irreparable mischief is 

 often done to them at such times ; they are tempted to fly, 

 and thus perish from the cold, and frequently they become 

 so much excited, that they eonnot retain their faeces, but 

 void them among the combs.. If nothing worse ensues, they 



