20 ALEXANDER’S WRITINGS ON PRACTICAL BEE CULTURE 
onies that night; and after they had been out a little while they quieted 
down so they did not commence to fly until about 10 a.m. next day, 
then they flew quite well; but as it got some cloudy, and they kept on 
trying to fly, many were lost. 
Well, we think it is time that they were all out, so we take out 
another lot to-night. These have a better fly, for it is much warmer. 
But here is a new trouble started—nearly all those hives we took out 
the first night are robbing these last hives, which are so busy getting 
water and locating their home that they don’t seem to know it. Well, 
that is too bad. We are now, as the saying is, between two fires. Those 
that are left in the cellar have been so disturbed by taking the others 
out that they are leaving their hives badly, so I say, “(Come on, let us 
get all the trouble on one side. We will take out the last to-night, let 
come what may.” 
This is done, and the next day happens to be the brightest and 
warmest day yet; and, oh, what a picture that apiary makes the night 
of that last day! Those bees that were taken out the first two nights 
have commenced to rob this last lot as fast as they tried to fly, and 
not only robbed them of a large part of their honey, but the call that 
those strong full hives kept up all day has taken most of the bees from 
this last lot we carried out, and now less than 100 colonies have the 
greater part of the bees of the whole apiary, and they are so demoral- 
ized that it will be a hard job to get them righted, and I know we shall 
lose one-half of our colonies this spring. 
Now the boys proposed to sit down and talk the situation over, and 
see if there is not some way that this loss and trouble can be avoided. 
O, experience! thou art a dear school, and I often wish I could give the 
many readers of GLEANINGS more of our costly experience before they 
make the many bad mistakes I have made. 
Now we will take up the third way of taking bees out of the cellar: 
First get every thing all ready for a big job, and watch the weather 
closely, especially after a few nice days, for it is quite changeable at this 
time of the year. Then when the wind gets around in the east, and it 
commences to become overcast with hazy clouds, and has every appear- 
ance of bad weather for the morrow, we commence about sundown and 
carry out all our bees—yes, even if it takes not only all night but into 
the next day; and if it commences to rain before we are done, all the 
better, for we don’t want any to try to fly until they have been out two 
or three days if we can help it. During this time they will become 
nice and quiet; and when a fair day comes they will commence to fly, 
only a few at a time, and will get their location marked, so there will 
be no mixing up or robbing, as they all have their first fly together. 
Then when the day is over we find by examining our hives that nearly 
every one has apparently retained all its bees. 
Now we feel that we have at least learned how to take our bees 
from the cellar. We know that close attention hereafter will almost 
wholly prevent spring dwindling, and we can see a fair chance for a 
