184 MANUAL OP THE APIARY 



duoe a queen in the manner explained in the section on artificial 

 swarming. To introduce a queen to a colony composed of old 

 bees more care is required. First, we should seek out the old 

 queen and destroy her, then cage our Italian queen in a wire 

 cage, which may be made by winding a strip of wire-cloth, three 

 and one-half inches wide, and containing fifteen to twenty 

 meshes to the inch, about the finger. Let it lap each way 

 one-half inch, then cut it ofi'. Ravel out the half inch on 

 each side, and weave in the ends of the wires, forming a tube 

 the size of the finger. We now have only to put the queen in 

 the tube, and pinch the ends together, and the queen is caged. 

 The cage containing the queen should be inserted between two 

 adjacent combs containing honey, each of which will touch it. 

 The queen can thus sip honey as she needs it. If we fear the 

 queen may not be able to sip the honey through the meshes 

 of the wire, we may dip a piece of clean sponge in honey and 

 insert it in the upper end of the cage before we compress this 

 end. This will furnish the queen with the needed food. In 

 forty-eight hours we again open the hive, "after a thorough 

 smoking, also the cage, which is easily done by pressing the 

 upper end, at right-angles to the direction of the pressure 

 when we closed it. In doing this .do not remove the cage. 

 Now keep watch, and if, as the bees enter the cage or as the 

 queen emerges, the bees attack her, secure her immediately 

 and re-cage her for another forty-eight hours. I usually let 

 some honey drip on the queen as soon as the cage is opened. 

 Some think this renders the bees more amiable. I have 

 introduced many queens in this manner, and have very rarely 

 been unsuccessful. 



Mr. Dadant stops the cage with a plug of wood, and when 

 he goes to liberate the qeeen replaces the wooden stop with 

 one of comb, and leaves the bees to liberate the queen by 

 eating out the comb. I have tried this, but with no better 

 success than I have had with the above method, while with 

 this plan the queen is surely lost if the bees do not receive her 

 kindly. Mr. Betsinger uses a larger cage, open at one end, 

 which is pressed against the comb till the mouth of the cage 

 reaches the middle of it. If I understand him, the queen is 

 thus held by cage and comb till the bees liberate her. I have 

 never tried this plan. When bees are not storing, especially 



