HIVES. 85 



A hive 20 x 12, well filled, will weigh ahout 100 lb. ; 

 one 18 V 12, 80 lb. ; and the 16-inch hive wiU weigh 

 about 50 lb. These figures are meant to give the reader 

 an approximate idea of the contents of the hives recom- 

 mended. In the months of May and June, the hives 

 would be at the swarniing-point before they reach the 

 weights here mentioned, and in the autumn of favourable 

 seasons they would probably go beyond these weights 

 without the bees ever thinking of swarming. But we 

 want to know a little of the capabilities of these big hives. 

 How much honey can they gather in fine weather per 

 day? That greatly depends on the state of the atmo- 

 sphere ; for soft warm winds from the west and south fill 

 the nectaries of flowers with honey, whereas winds from 

 the east and north seem to stanch the flow of honey 

 almost completely. 



"Well, but on good pasture, and with favourable weather, 

 a 20-inch hive, well filled with bees, will gather from 4 

 to 10 lb. per day; the 18-inch hive, from 3 to 7 lb. per day; 

 and the 16-inch hive, from 2 to 4 lb. per day. Here, again, 

 a great deal depends on the number of empty cells in a 

 hive, and the quantity of brood that requires attention. 



"We have known, as already stated, one hive only that 

 gained 10 lb. in weight per day. It was placed in the 

 midst of good pasture, when it weighed*39 lb. It rapidly 

 rose in weight to 109 lb., and in two days it gained 20 

 lb., besides keeping itself. The traffic of bees going out 

 and in of this hive, while gathering so much honey, was 

 graphically described to resemble the steam of a tea-kettle 

 going two yards from its mouth before vanishing amongst 

 thin air. But it is good work for a hive to gather from 

 3 lb. to 5 lb. per day, and this is of frequent occurrence 

 where large hives are kept. 



But why use the smaller . size at all when we see that 

 the 18-in.ch hive does more work of every kind 1 We are 



